DDPHE Blog: Stay Healthy and Spook-tacularly Safe This Fall
Published on September 23, 2024
Frighteningly Good Advice: Stay Healthy and Spook-tacularly Safe This Fall
Fall in Denver brings all kinds of good things: changing leaves, cooler weather, harvest festivals, pumpkin spice, and fun family and community gatherings, including Halloween and Thanksgiving. As the witching hour approaches and the streets fill with little monsters and mummies, the Denver Department of Public Health & Environment (DDPHE) reminds our Denver community to take the following steps to safely enjoy all types of fun this fall.
Stay home if you’re sick.
If you or anyone in your home isn’t feeling well, postpone your plans until you feel better. Even if you only have mild symptoms, you could still get someone else sick, and that illness may be severe for them. Contact a health care provider if you experience new symptoms of an illness or your symptoms get worse.
Get vaccinated against respiratory viruses.
Respiratory infections can greatly disrupt our lives, even for those who aren’t at risk for severe disease. Avoid the horror of getting sick by making sure you’re up to date with your flu shot and other recommended vaccines. Everyone 6 months and older should get a flu vaccine and an updated 2024-25 COVID-19 vaccine. This fall routine can reduce the risk of serious illness, especially for those most at risk, including young children, older adults, people with weakened immune systems, and those who are pregnant.
Most health insurers (including Medicaid, Medicare, CHP+, and private insurance) cover the full cost of flu, COVID-19, and RSV immunizations, so you don't have to pay anything at providers that accept your health plan. Even without health insurance, you can still get flu, COVID-19, and RSV immunizations at low or no-cost at hundreds of locations statewide, including Denver. DDPHE is committed to making vaccines accessible and readily available in the community. Check the online schedule to find an upcoming immunization clinic.
Reduce risk by practicing harm reduction strategies
Access to harm reduction supplies is more important now than ever. Make sure you have naloxone (Narcan) available as it can reverse the effects of an opioid overdose. DDPHE offers harm reduction supplies, including naloxone and fentanyl test strips to Denver residents for free. Shipping times of these supplies from DDPHE can be up to two weeks. If you have an immediate need for naloxone, visit StoptheClockColorado.org.
People who use drugs should utilize harm reduction techniques to reduce the risk of overdose.
- Never use alone. Ensure at least one person can administer naloxone or rescue breaths if needed. Or let someone know you’re using, so they can check in.
- Be prepared to provide rescue breaths. Watch a short training video online.
- Use fentanyl test strips to check for the presence of fentanyl before using a substance.
- Test the potency of your drugs by using less than your normal dose. This could mean injecting or snorting a smaller amount or breaking off a piece of a pill.
- Avoid mixing substances. Mixing opioids with alcohol and/or benzodiazepines (such as Xanax, Valium, or Klonopin) increases overdose risk.
- If you think it’s an overdose, call 911. Every minute counts.
- Check in with your friends and community at large to provide connection and support.
- Substance use treatment is effective and is available.
Stay up to date on all recommended vaccines
During 2024, there have been increases in cases of several preventable diseases. For example, there have been four times as many cases of measles in the U.S. this year than in 2023. Measles is making a return because fewer people are getting vaccinated. Measles spreads easily and can cause life-long problems like hearing loss and brain damage. If one person has it, up to nine out of 10 people who are unprotected around them will get measles. The measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine is the best way to keep safe from measles. Two doses of MMR vaccine are 97% effective at preventing measles. It has been given to billions of kids around the world for more than six decades. To keep measles out of Colorado, it’s important for families to get themselves and their children vaccinated. For more information, visit MightierThanMeasles.com.
Individuals with a high risk for exposure to mpox should receive a vaccine called Jynneos. Many providers across Denver offer free mpox vaccines for people who are uninsured or underinsured. No ID, insurance, or out-of-pocket payment is needed to get vaccinated at clinics where free vaccines are available. If you are concerned about your risk for mpox, talk with your health care provider.
Stay safe, have a boo-tiful fall, and let’s keep the ghouls and goblins in the costumes, not in our health! DDPHE continues to urge everyone to be mindful and take precautions when going about their fall and winter routines: practice good hand hygiene habits, and if you feel sick, stay home and get tested.