Last week there was a surge in Washington College students who were sent home or quarantined for displaying flu-like symptoms, reaching a high of almost 70 students in one week. An approximate total of 200 students have been sent home or quarantined so far during the fall 2009 semester, said Dawn Nordhoff C.R.N.P., Director of the WC Health Center.
According to www.flu.gov, normal flu symptoms include fever, coughing, sore throat, runny nose, headaches, body aches, chills, and fatigue. Additional H1N1 symptoms include vomiting and diarrhea, states flu.gov. Sophomores Samantha Buzaid and Junior Whitney Smith, who both had H1N1, said that the extreme headache, fatigue, and body aches were their most prominent symptoms.
Smith said that, by far, the worst part of having H1N1 was the headache. “I cannot function with headaches, and sleeping did not even make it go away.”
Buzaid said that she “couldn’t move for three days.”
It appears that many students, although they have relatively similar symptoms, have had very different experiences with H1N1. Buzaid said that, “I was sitting in class and was fine [but] within a half hour I had a 104 fever, chills, and body aches.” She said that it is similar to having the regular flu, but it comes on extremely fast.
Some students, like Buzaid, have even been hospitalized due to the virus.
Nordhoff said the concern is that H1N1 is a new virus and no one has been able to build up immunity to it. Despite the Health Center offering H1N1 vaccines to students, many refused to come, said Nordhoff.
For those students who are feeling ill, Nordhoff said that the Health Center has devised a “symptom check list that we review on the phone. We really have worked out a whole system.”
This system includes emails, WAC Alert updates, flu vaccines, a Blackboard site for professors that contains the names of sick students, and a meal delivery system for students who are quarantined on campus.
The Health Center and Student Affairs have worked to put together a list of the names of students who have been sent home or quarantined which is located on a secure Blackboard site, said Feyerherm. Earlier in the year, some professors did not realize that the Blackboard site was up and did not know how to verify if the students missing class were actually assessed by Health Services and excused from classes, said Feyerherm.
Food Service Director Donna Dhue-Wilkins said “if the student is declared sick, or that they shouldn’t go to class, their name goes to Student Affairs.”
While Dhue-Wilkins does receive some of the sick students’ names who are staying on campus, if they want a meal delivered, “it is their job to call me.”
Dhue-Wilkins said that they originally gave students a menu with options such as bagels and sandwiches for them to choose from. Now she said that they give them options from the food line that meet the students’ dietary needs based on what stage of the flu they currently have.
In order for a student to get meals delivered to his or her door, he or she must first go to the Health Center where, upon being diagnosed with the flu, the student will be given a card with Dhue-Wilkins’s information. Once the student calls her, Dhue-Wilkins said that she will make up a meal for the student based upon his or her dietary needs. Dhue-Wilkins said that “we kind of custom make [the meal] for the student.”
The meal delivery system “is mainly for the students that can’t go home,” said Dhue-Wilkins. Although junior Whitney Smith did not use the meal delivery system, she said that “I think it is super cool. Very handy.”
So far, approximately twenty-five to thirty meals have been delivered to students across campus, said Dhue-Wilkins. The number of meals delivered per day varies, said Dhue-Wilkins. Dhue-Wilkins said, “one day I had seven deliveries, other days, like one or two.”
For days when Dhue-Wilkins has numerous meals to deliver on campus, Associate VP for Student Affairs Sarah Feyerherm has asked several peer mentor volunteers to help her. Student Affairs is given a list of all sick students from the Health Center.
“So far Donna has been able to deliver the meals herself,” said Feyerherm. If the number of students needing meals delivered heightens, there are five or six peer mentors who have volunteered to help her deliver meals to quarantined students if needed, said Feyerherm.
According to Feyerherm, there are twenty-five rooms available for the healthy roommates of sick students who may want to move for a few days to prevent contracting the virus. While there are many rooms available, “I think we’ve only moved one well student,” said Feyerherm.
Jen Collins from Student Affairs manages a database to keep track of sick students on and off campus, said Feyerherm. “Jen follows up with students to see if they’ve come back and if the need help with anything,” she said.
Both Smith and Buzaid felt that the faculty was extremely helpful, despite their extended absence from class. “Most of my professors handled it very nicely. They all e-mailed me back that they hoped I felt better soon, and that I could meet with them to get back on track when I was all better,” said Smith.
According to flu.gov, 70 countries have reported cases of H1N1, with the United States documenting the largest number of reported cases. The website also mentions that people can expect to see the most number of flu cases in the fall and winter. Flu.gov said two types of antiviral drugs, Tamiflu and Relenza, are being used to treat the H1N1 virus.
Students who are experiencing flu symptoms are discouraged from attending class, sports practices, and campus events, said Nordhoff. Nordhoff also said that students should “use their judgment and do the right thing” if they are feeling sick. Because everyone is living in such confined areas, diseases spread quickly, said Nordhoff.
Nordhoff said that it is important to prevent the spread of H1N1 by using hand sanitizer, getting sufficient sleep, washing hands frequently, and wiping down frequently used surfaces. “There are healthy people that have been hospitalized for this and died...this is not something to ignore,” said Nordhoff.
According to Flu.gov, on Oct. 24, President. Barack Obama sigened a national emergency declaration for the H1N1 flu. The website also states that at this point there have been 9,000 hospitalizations and 600 deaths.
“Vaccination is the best protection against contracting the flu,” said Flu.gov. Nordhoff explained that the H1N1 vaccine is not the same as the seasonal vaccine and neither should be used in place of the other. Nordhoff also said that the regular flu season is starting now, and she is worried about what will happen if someone should contract the regular flu and H1N1 at the same time.
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