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Flu warnings go out on UM-Flint campus

Friday, October 23, 2009

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Autumn Perry

FLINT (WJRT) -- (10/23/09) -- Local colleges are preparing for a possible H1N1 outbreak on campus.

Most local colleges have no confirmed cases of the virus, but there is a possible case at the University of Michigan-Flint.

That student was sent home last week after developing flu-like symptoms that may be caused by the H1N1 strain.

School officials are waiting for test results to confirm that.

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Meanwhile, the university is encouraging students to take steps to prevent the illness.

The number of H1N1 cases is growing in Mid-Michigan, and local college students are taking notice.

"I'm concerned that it's growing rapidly," Nikiaya Mahone said.

"It's a big concern, I guess. It's killing people," said Juaun McCall

Michael Lane works with the college's Department of Environment Health and Safety. He says one student was sent home after developing symptoms of H1N1. "Still waiting on the sample from the lab to see if it was confirmed or not. We don't know. We just treated it as it was a potential."

Lane says there is a policy in place, should an outbreak happen. The biggest concern is that a student living on campus will become infected, and then spreading the disease rapidly through student housing.

"If it's an international student or if it's someone that lives far away, that's really not a possibility. Then what we would do is encourage them to self isolate, stay in their room. We would make sure they have their meals," Lane said.

Should the virus make its way on campus, Lane says they don't plan to cancel classes. That may happen, though, if absences climb high enough.

Signs are posted across campus urging people to keep themselves healthy, and most students seem to be taking the warning seriously.

"It's like little foam hand sanitizer everywhere, so I just use that a lot. And they say always wash your hands. They talk a lot about it around here, through," Mahone said.

Brionna Hines says she tries to minimize exposure in a number of ways. "Keep hand sanitizer with me. Not shake everyone's hand. When people cough, I walk away."

College officials are urging students to get both the seasonal flu vaccine and the H1N1 flu vaccine.

The University of Michigan-Flint has at least two more scheduled flu shot clinics and hope to offer the H1N1 vaccine by the end of the month.