VOA标准英语2009-Surge in H1N1 Cases Puts Strain on Hospital

By Jeff Swicord
Warrenton, Virginia
11 November 2009

Some hospital emergency rooms in the United States are facing severe strains dealing¹ with the H1N1 flu outbreak, while others are handling cases without much difficulty. One small hospital outside of Washington began planning last April for an influx² of flu patients.

 
Infectious disease physician Tam Ly attends to a patient with flu-like symptoms at Fauquier Hospital in Rural Fauquier County Virginia
Infectious disease physician Tam Ly says she is seeing fewer and fewer suspected cases of the H1N1 virus here at Fauquier Hospital, south of Washington. Dr. Ly says the first wave of infections at her hospital peaked in late October.  She is expecting another wave to start within the next few months.

"Our hospital was prepared because we had a plan in place for months prior in anticipation³ that this might occur," she noted⁴.  "We always hope for the best but we always anticipate and prepare for the worst."

Rural Fauquier County Virginia is known for its rolling hills, and horse farms.  Fauquier Health is a small 100 bed hospital that serves the community of Warrenton.

When the first cases of the H1N1 virus were reported in Mexico last April, Fauquier Hospital began planning.  Tracy Turman is in charge of emergency preparedness for the hospital.

 
Tracy Turman
"We knew that there was a potential for this to really snowball and our planning basically began at that point to adapt our existing pandemic flu plan to meet the needs of the H1N1," Mr. Turman explained.  "We've got the regular emergency room section and then we have converted this entry point into a flu clinic.  We have taken this little vending⁵ area and turned it into a waiting room."

Hospital officials divided Fauquier's emergency room into two separate areas with a designated entrance and triage area for flu patients. 

Their goal is to handle any surge of patients while keeping the virus from spreading to other parts of the hospital. There are special air scrubbers throughout the clinic that remove infectious materials from the air.  The treatment rooms have specially⁶ designed ventilation systems that recycle room air 12 times in an hour.  All staff wear masks and gloves when entering a treatment room.

Their planning paid off when flu cases surged in the Emergency Department.  Turman says having a separate flu clinic meant less stress on staff and facilities.

"We normally see about 80 patients a day," he said.  "That is our average in the Emergency Department.  There was one day about ten days ago when we actually saw 158 patients.  50 of those patients had flu like symptoms."

Most of the flu cases at Fauquier Hospital have been people in the high risk groups:  pregnant women, young children and people with weakened immune systems.  If flu cases should surge again, hospital officials say they are confident they are ready to respond.   And as more and more people in the Warrenton area receive the H1N1 vaccine⁷, hospital officials are hoping the worst is over. 

1 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

2 influx   

n.流入，注入

参考例句：

• The country simply cannot absorb this influx of refugees.这个国家实在不能接纳这么多涌入的难民。
• Textile workers favoured protection because they feared an influx of cheap cloth.纺织工人拥护贸易保护措施，因为他们担心涌入廉价纺织品。

3 anticipation   

n.预期，预料，期望

参考例句：

• We waited at the station in anticipation of her arrival.我们在车站等着，期待她的到来。
• The animals grew restless as if in anticipation of an earthquake.各种动物都变得焦躁不安，像是感到了地震即将发生。

4 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

5 vending   

v.出售（尤指土地等财产）( vend的现在分词 )；（尤指在公共场所）贩卖；发表（意见，言论）；声明

参考例句：

• Why Are You Banging on the Vending Machine? 你为什么敲打这台自动售货机？ 来自朗文快捷英语教程 2
• Coca-Cola had to adapt almost 300,000 vending machines to accept the new coins. 可口可乐公司必须使将近三十万台自动贩卖机接受新货币。 来自超越目标英语 第5册

6 specially   

adv.特定地；特殊地；明确地

参考例句：

• They are specially packaged so that they stack easily.它们经过特别包装以便于堆放。
• The machine was designed specially for demolishing old buildings.这种机器是专为拆毁旧楼房而设计的。

7 vaccine   

n.牛痘苗，疫苗；adj.牛痘的，疫苗的

参考例句：

• The polio vaccine has saved millions of lives.脊髓灰质炎疫苗挽救了数以百万计的生命。
• She takes a vaccine against influenza every fall.她每年秋季接种流感疫苗。