All too rarely an official announcement earns memory space for its common touch.

Today’s release from Director of Public Health Mark Jacobs, qualifies. He urges people not to spread their flu germs, because:

 "The influenza virus spreads very easily – via droplets in the air when a person coughs or sneezes and doesn’t cover it up.  The germs can live on hard surfaces for 48 hours. has that quality."

Then follows the gem of simplicity:

“… cover up your coughs and sneezes with a tissue.  Put it in a bin  straight away.  If you don’t have a tissue handy, bend your arm and sneeze into your elbow to stop germs spreading through the air.  Wash and dry your hands thoroughly, particularly after coughing or sneezing.  It’s also important to stay away from sick people…and if you’re sick, stay at home".

This announcement is to me a model of how officials should communicate with the rest of us. But don’t bother looking for it on the Ministry’s website. I got a copy of the release, but I can’t find it to link to on their latest releases page, or the swine flu page. Indeed the swine flu pages are months out of date.