Friday, January 28, 2011

The Public Health Sneeze

Once again, my allergies have reared their ugly heads, and I've run into a bit of a problem. 

I have been trained in the fine art of the public health sneeze - sneezing into one's arm or shoulder to avoid getting germs on your hand, which then transfer to door knobs, etc.

However - as you may have guessed - in this lovely tropical climate, I very rarely wear sleeves at all. So where, exactly, does an Australian sneeze to avoid the ickiness of sneeze all over themselves, while still managing to shield their fellow citizens? 

A quick google search yielded little apart from complaints about an ad for flu vaccines. (Apparently seeing the symptoms of flu on TV is far too disgusting for some people - imagine if they saw it in real life!)

The Government of South Australia (state including the City of Adelaide) suggests the sleeve sneeze/cough, or at least moving away from others (see handy fact sheets here). But I still find that difficult. Maybe THIS is why Australia always gets the flu before others!

1 comment:

  1. Caro.. it's Heather!! I'm suggesting to sneeze into your shoulder..where there is still fabric.. if you're wearing a tshirt. Or lifting up top of shirt to mouth. Those are my brilliant suggestions. Oh.. and carrying lots of tissues! MISS YOU!!!

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