Is it COVID? Flu? Allergies? 3 Things to Know

Feb 24, 2025 | AOC Business Partner

Sponsored content contributed by AOC Business Partner: Regence

How to recognize the differences between a cold, flu, allergies and COVID-19

Know the symptoms

Sneezing, coughing or feeling feverish? Here are some common symptoms and what to look for.

Colds vs. allergies: Colds typically last three-10 days, while allergy symptoms can stick around for weeks or months. Itchy, watery eyes are rare with a cold but are common with allergies. A dry cough with wheezing is more likely an allergy, while a wet cough with mucus is more likely a cold.

Allergies vs. COVID-19: Allergies are more likely to cause itchy, watery eyes. Allergies don’t tend to cause fever or body aches, and they typically do not cause coughing, except in cases where there is a lot of nasal drainage. If you have allergies, stay on top of your treatment to prevent symptoms from getting worse.

Flu vs. COVID-19: Both can cause fever, cough and fatigue, but the flu is more likely to come with a high fever, severe headaches and body aches. COVID-19 symptoms may appear anywhere from two to 14 days after exposure and may come with a loss of taste and smell. If you’re unsure, take a COVID-19 test—especially if you’re at a higher risk for severe illness.

Manage your symptoms

Consider over-the-counter medications or home remedies: For colds and allergies, try over-the-counter medications and home remedies like rest, hydration and humidifiers to improve symptoms. For flu symptoms, pain relievers like aspirin, acetaminophen or ibuprofen can help reduce fever and relieve body aches.

Call your health care provider: If you have severe symptoms or are unsure about your diagnosis, contact a health care provider for guidance.

Prevent the spread of infection

Get vaccinated: The best prevention from flu and severe COVID-19 symptoms is getting vaccinated. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends getting a flu vaccine once it’s available, ideally by the end of October.

Take a COVID-19 test: If you’re unsure about your symptoms, take a test to rule out COVID-19.

Know when to return to normal activities: If you have the flu or COVID-19, the CDC advises waiting until your symptoms are improved and you haven’t had a fever (and aren’t taking fever-reducing medication) for at least 24 hours.

More information

Check out this infographic from the CDC for guidance on protecting yourself and others from respiratory viruses like the flu, COVID-19 and RSV.

Take added precautions: For the next five days after returning to normal activities, take extra steps to prevent the spread of infection.

• Improve air quality with ventilation or air purifiers.
• Practice good hygiene, such as frequent handwashing and cleaning surfaces.
• Wear a mask when around others indoors.

If you get sick and need care, call your doctor. Consider virtual care or an urgent care clinic before heading to the hospital emergency department (ED). EDs will cost you more and may be extremely busy so wait times could be long. 

Nine Peaks Solutions and Digital Transformation

Feb 24, 2025 | AOC Business Partner

Sponsored content contributed by AOC Business Partner: Nine Peaks Solutions

Replacing Banker Boxes With Modern Document Management Solutions

Traditional methods of preserving documents—such as storing them in banker boxes in warehouses or offsite storage facilities—are increasingly being replaced by innovative digital document and records management systems. This shift is driven by the growing demand for efficiency, compliance, and ease of access, and it is clear that businesses that adopt digital solutions are reaping significant benefits.

The Problem with Banker Boxes

Many organizations rely on banker boxes to store important documents, such as financial records, commissioner meeting records, contracts, legal files, and employee records. While these boxes can hold large volumes of paperwork, they come with significant downsides:

1. Physical Space Requirements: Storing documents in banker boxes takes up a lot of physical space, often in crowded offices, offsite warehouses, or expensive storage units.
2. Time-Consuming Retrieval: Searching for a specific document requires manually sifting through boxes, a slow and inefficient process.
3. Security Risks: Paper documents are vulnerable to theft, damage, and loss due to fires, floods, or other disasters.
4. Compliance Challenges: Many industries require companies to retain documents for a set number of years. Managing compliance with regulatory requirements through physical storage can be cumbersome.
5. Environmental Impact: The continued use of paper results in deforestation and higher carbon footprints, especially when physical storage needs grow over time.

Enter Digital Document Management Solutions

In the face of these challenges, businesses are turning to digital solutions that provide more efficient, secure, and cost-effective ways to store and manage historical documents. With the adoption of cloud-based systems, scanning technology, and automated workflows, organizations are transforming how they handle paperwork. Digitizing documents offers several key advantages:

1. Space Efficiency: Digital storage eliminates the need for physical space. Businesses can store thousands of documents in a fraction of the space it would take to house banker boxes.
2. Easy Accessibility: With digital documents stored in secure cloud environments or enterprise document management systems, authorized users can retrieve files instantly from anywhere with an internet connection.
3. Enhanced Security: Digital document storage offers advanced encryption, access control, and backup systems, significantly reducing the risk of data loss or unauthorized access.
4. Searchability and Automation: With the right software, companies can index documents, allowing for fast keyword-based searches. Automation features can also flag important deadlines or actions needed based on document content.
5. Compliance and Auditing: Document management systems come with audit trails and automatic retention policies, ensuring that documents are stored in compliance with industry regulations and are properly disposed of when no longer needed.

Laserfiche and Nine Peaks Solutions: A Modern Approach to Document Management

Nine Peaks Solutions is at the forefront of helping businesses transition from traditional paper-based storage to efficient, digital solutions. The services and partnership that NPS provides with Laserfiche is designed to help counties eliminate the need for banker boxes and move their records management processes online and more transparent.

Laserfiche / Nine Peaks offers a range of solutions that include:

• Document Scanning and Indexing: They help businesses scan, digitize, and index their paper documents, making it easy to transition from physical to digital archives.
• Cloud-based Storage: Nine Peaks provides secure, cloud-based document storage that ensures easy access, backup, and disaster recovery.
• Automation and Workflow Integration: Their systems integrate with existing organizations’ processes, automating document handling, approvals, and compliance tracking.
• Advanced Security: With top-notch security features, including encryption and role-based access controls, the Laserfiche and Nine Peaks team ensures that sensitive documents are protected at all stages of storage and retrieval. Bottom line… you have to be able to keep what you already have… no matter what threats are coming your way.

By offering these services, Nine Peaks Solutions helps your county reduce overhead costs associated with physical storage, improve document retrieval times, and enhance overall workflow efficiency.

NinePeaksSolutions.com/AOC

Request a demo to learn more about how Nine Peaks Solutions can advance your records management and organization continuity capabilities

Nine Peaks Solutions LLC
5 NW Hawthorne Ave, Suite 100
Bend, OR 97703-2935
(844) 797-3257
(541) 797-7595
Info@NinePeaksSolutions.com