Toll-free hotline for H1N1 questions, influenza questions, launches Friday in N.D.

The North Dakota Department of Health encourages North Dakotans to call a new toll-free hotline with questions about H1N1 and seasonal influenza, according to State Health Officer Terry Dwelle, M.D.

The toll-free hotline number is 866-207-2880, and it will operate from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. Monday through Friday beginning Friday. Information about influenza also is available on the Department of Health’s hotline website at www.ndhealth.gov/EPR/HealthHotline or its influenza Web site at www.ndflu.com.

“We want North Dakotans to be able to access the most current information available about H1N1 influenza, seasonal influenza and vaccinations,” Dwelle said. “The hotline and the department’s website are designed to provide easier access to the information they are seeking.”

The hotline is staffed with Department of Health personnel who will answer questions based on information provided by the North Dakota Department of Health’s Division of Disease Control, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and local public health units. If an operator does not have the information a caller is requesting, the call will be referred for appropriate follow-up by a disease epidemiologist on staff.

“The hotline is not designed to give medical advice,” Dwelle said. “The purpose of the hotline is to answer questions about topics such as caring for someone who is ill, the symptoms of H1N1 flu, and vaccine safety. People who think they may be ill should contact their physicians.”

For more information about the public health hotline, call Loreeta Canton or Stacy Eberl, Office of Public Information, North Dakota Department of Health, at 701-328-2372.

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