Starting on Thursday, health officials were meeting with 150 administrators of long-term care facilities to offer them information about properly disinfecting surfaces with bleach when cleaning up vomit and diarrhea, the need to wear gloves when preparing food and the importance of banning sick employees from work.

The highly contagious virus can be spread through infected surfaces, food and direct contact. There is no treatment and symptoms usually last two to three days.

"We like to get some preventative information out there," said Linda Bogdanow, the health department's epidemiologist. Nursing homes were important to target because residents are "such a vulnerable population."

While the campaign wasn't created after five residents of a nursing home died from the flu, Bogdanow said spreading information about handwashing and proper cleaning will "help fight other organisms."

- Heather May