By Sara Eisenhauer
News Editor
The Saint Mary’s University staff is prepared to deal with the H1N1 virus when it arrives on campus and encourages students to take precautions to prevent spread of the virus, according to Chris Kendall, vice president for student development.
“We’re not going to get caught flat-footed,” Kendall said. Student Development and Student Health have been working in conjunction with the Department of Health to prepare for a variety of scenarios that could arise when the H1N1 virus hits campus, Kendall said. However, he said that until the virus arrives, they will not know what exact measures to take to control the situation.
Kendall fully expects cases of H1N1 to develop on campus because of the number of people in contact with one another.
“I don’t know why people wouldn’t get it,” Kendall said. “It shouldn’t be a shock.”
A recent e-mail sent by Angel Weisbrod, director of health services, confirmed that there are two cases of Influenza A, or seasonal flu, at Winona State University, and the cases are being treated like cases of H1N1.
Though H1N1 has not yet arrived on the SMU campus or in Winona, “a main concern is the hype that has developed about this,” Weisbrod said. “We use terms like pandemic, and people say, ‘oh my gosh.’”
Kendall said he “really want(s) to avoid the panic; It’s just the flu. There will just be more people sick at one time.”
Student Health has released several emails, and Kendall said it will continue each week to update students about H1N1 and how to stay protected. An open forum was also held for students to discuss H1N1 on Sept. 17.
A committee including staff members from various areas of student life and academics was formed to accommodate ill students and provide students with information about H1N1. The committee discussed the use of Tegrity to assist ill students with course work and has ordered sanitizing wipes for high-traffic areas such as the cardio room.
SMU has ordered H1N1 vaccines but is not guaranteed to receive the vaccines when they are fully developed because of availability, Weisbrod said. She recommends students get a regular flu shot and practice other safety precautions, especially handwashing, to reduce one’s risk of contracting H1N1 and seasonal flu.
H1N1, a new strain of influenza, becomes dangerous when people who are at high risk of complications contract the virus, Weisbrod said. High risk groups are children age six months to 24 years, including college students, and people suffering with asthma or other lung conditions, arthritis or other auto-immune conditions, cardiovascular conditions, kidney disease or diabetes.
Symptoms of H1N1 are similar to seasonal flu and include: fever, sore throat, cough, body aches, nausea and fatigue. In order to be diagnosed with H1N1, a person must have a fever of 100 degrees or more and have a cough or sore throat. These symptoms may exist but not indicate an H1N1 diagnosis if a person tests positive for strep throat, bronchitis or another diagnosis other than the flu.
Students who believe they may have H1N1 should immediately contact the wellness center by phone and are urged not to attend class, Weisbrod said.
For more information about H1N1, please contact Angel Weisbrod at Student Health (Ext. 1493).
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