Via KSBW.com: H1N1 Emergency Declared In Santa Clara County. Excerpt:
An H1N1 emergency has been declared in Santa Clara County following the deaths of eight people infected with the virus.
The county will receive $500,000 for an emergency response to the H1N1 virus, which is also known as the swine flu.
Health officials have told Santa Clara County supervisors that the number of hospitalizations in the county is now up to 155 patients who have the H1N1 virus.
The Saint Louise Regional Hospital in Morgan Hill is witnessing an average of three to four H1N1 cases a day. The hospital said they expect a steady increase of patients in the future.
"We have a plan for what we call a flu tent, which is a tent specially set up to help patients under symptoms of the flu," said Dr. Valerie Vigl, of the Saint Louise Regional Hospital.
Vigl said the tent, which was first used in April, will allow patients to be rapidly evaluated and treated. The tent will also keep those with H1N1 from infecting the rest of the hospital's patient population.At the Monday editorial meeting of The Tyee, I mentioned the use of tents in Austin, Texas to handle the surge of H1N1 cases. Vancouver, I said, would likely do the same. One of my colleagues asked: "Will we have the tents?"
You know, I'm not sure. I'm going to follow up on this.