Have fun outdoors this summer, and follow these safety steps to prevent illness due to ticks.
To prevent tick bites:
- Wear long socks or pants when walking on trails or in dense flora areas to reduce the possibility of a tick reaching your skin.
- Regularly check yourself and your pets for ticks.
- Avoid tall grass or brush when outdoors and stay in the center of hiking trails.
- Keep your grass mowed to protect yourself, children and pets from ticks.
- Use repellant such as DEET or permethrin-treated clothing if outdoors for an extended period of time. This measure is good for preventing bites from young ticks, called nymphs, whose bites are often not felt or seen.
If you have been bitten by a tick, follow these steps:
- Remove the tick by holding it with tweezers as close to the skin as possible and gently but firmly pulling it out from the skin. Do not use matches, petroleum jelly or nail polish to remove the tick. This could cause the tick to regurgitate contaminated blood back into your body. Do not handle the tick with your bare hands.
- Mark the spot where the tick was to keep track of any abnormalities that may arise.
- If possible, preserve the tick in alcohol in case it needs to be identified later. Identification can be important for knowing what treatment is best.
- Seek medical attention if you develop a rash, fever or any unexplained illness after having a tick bite.
Check out this safety share for more information.
All employees are encouraged to submit safety shares for inclusion in the Safety Share Library. Submission details are available on Inside Argonne.
Each month a safety share submitted by an individual will be selected to receive a Spot Award for demonstrated safety leadership. The Spot Award program offers three award levels: gold ($100), silver ($50) and bronze ($25).
By Savannah Mitchem (CPA)