Francais
Let’s Make Solidarity Contagious!
Influenza A (H1N1) will probably disrupt our daily
lives.
We might need one another.
Why not prepare for it?
Press Release, nov 10, 09
The daily lives of some
people might be disrupted by the Influenza A (H1N1) pandemic.
Your neighbours could become indispensable
allies because, if
relatives and friends do not live close by, the local community
service centers (CLSC) and community organizations will not necessarily
be able to meet all the needs tied to daily life.
During the ice storm (1997),
spontaneous solidarity among neighbours was implemented quickly.
Why not create it beforehand so that it will be more efficient?
What You Can Do
- Contact your neighbours right away to tell them that you are
willing to help them, should they need it. Show concern especially
for vulnerable people (elderly, alone, handicapped, and single-parent
families);
- discuss with them the measures of assistance that you could
take.
- identify together the people that could be vulnerable: a
person living alone, a person unable to be away from work,
a handicapped person, etc.
- identify together everyone’s availability and the
type of assistance that available people are willing to offer.
- It is normal to need help when facing certain situations.
Talk to your neighbours right away to ask them for their support,
should you need it. This is not about pride or weakness; it
is about taking measures to keep you healthy and safe.
- Check if there are organizations within your neighbourhood
or town that can help neighbours in need: volunteer services for
transportation, emergency food services, etc.
- See if the Mes voisins et la pandémie
(My neighbours and the pandemic) kit can be useful. It includes
tools to encourage and facilitate contacts among neighbours
in the event of the Influenza A (H1N1).
Ways to Help Each Other among Neighbours
- Pick up the prescription of the elderly couple who lives on
the second floor.
- Cook for the single-parent family next door.
- Run errands for the neighbour across the street who lives alone;.
- Share babysitting responsibilities with neighbours you know.
- Reassure the isolated person who is worried about the pandemic.
There are other ways of helping.
By talking with your neighbours, you will see what type of
support could be most helpful.
Helping Each Other without Getting Infected
Preventive
measures must be taken if you expect coming into
contact with a sick person, but they do not prohibit people
from showing solidarity, quite on the contrary.
- Get vaccinated.
- Wash our hands often.
- Wash your hands before eating or handling food and after using
a tissue to cough, sneeze or blow your nose.
- Cough or sneeze in a tissue or into the crook of your arm.
- Clean your environment (counters, sinks, and other surfaces
often touched by hands).
- If you are sick and interact with other people, wear a mask
or a scarf (that you will wash after use).
- Remind them of the basic instructions to follow (aforementioned).
- Keep a safe distance from sick people (one to two meters).
- Avoid touching personal objects and utensils used by sick
people.
- In the presence of a sick person, wear a mask or a scarf
(that you will wash after use).
- If you are someone who runs the risk of having complications,
avoid direct contact with a sick neighbour and find someone
else to help him or her.
Refer to the Preventive
Measures section of the Pandémie Québec website
to have access to the complete list of instructions to follow
to protect yourself and avoid spreading the virus
Advantages to Caring about Your Neighbours in the Face of Influenza
A (H1N1)
- Mutual aid among neighbours will facilitate your daily
lives and allow you to get through the pandemic more calmly.
- You will feel useful and generous.
- By strengthening the bond with your neighbours, you will
improve your life in the neighbourhood and plan for the future
given the fact that other situations could arise and your
neighbours’ support could be useful.
“Mes
voisins et la pandémie” Kit (My Neighbours and the Pandemic)
Here are a few tools to encourage and facilitate
contacts among neighbours in the event of Influenza A (H1N1). To
download or print according to your needs.
 |
 |
 |
To put up in a common
room,
the lobby in your building or on
the door of your home for
all to
see and this, to encourage mutual
aid among neighbours. |
The neighbours’ directory
with
everyone’s address and phone
number to stay in contact without
coming into contact. |
To offer a service
or express a need.
To put up in a common room or the
lobby in your building
for all to see. |
|
Use it to devise homemade tools. |
To Get Information about the Flu
- Visit the Pandémie Québec website.
- For questions about your health, a relative’s or a
neighbour’s, call the Info-Santé health hotline
8-1-1.
- For any other question related to the outbreak of Influenza
A (H1N1) and Influenza A (H1N1) pandemic vaccination centers,
call Services Québec:
Everyday: 8:30 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Québec area: 418 644-4545
Montréal area: 514 644-4545
Elsewhere in Québec: 1 877 644-4545 (toll free)
Teletypewriter
(TTY) for people with a hearing or speech impairments: 1 800
361-9596 (toll free)
This campaign was initiated by the
Réseau québécois de Villes et Villages en
santé (Québec Network of Healthy Communities),
a non-profit-making organization uniting more than 180 towns
that care about the health of their citizens and the development
of healthy and sustainable environments.
The network also initiated
the Fête des Voisins (Neighbours’ Day), a provincial
event that has become increasingly popular for almost five years
and that aims at developing mutual aid and solidarity among neighbours.
This campaign drew its inspiration
from the campaign that was conducted in France by the Association
Voisins Solidaire (Neighbours’ Solidarity
Association).
