2013 Brings A Feisty Flu Season

greeninhygiene.com “Week 52 of the 2012-2013 Flu Season”

I’m sure many of you have heard about the outbreaks of flu throughout the United States this season. Boston recently declared a Public Health Emergency after an outbreak of this year’s flu.  Since October, this season’s seemingly epidemic flu has brought over 700 cases into Boston’s clinics and hospitals. Boston’s mayor, Thomas M. Menino said, “This is the worst flu season we’ve seen since 2009, and people should take the threat of flu seriously. This is not only a health concern, but also an economic concern for families, and I’m urging residents to get vaccinated if they haven’t already. It’s the best thing you can do to protect yourself and your family.  If you’re sick, please stay home from work or school.”

As many of you may remember, 2009 was the year that the “Swine Flu” or H1N1 virus had a large impact in the United States. The CDC estimated that between 14 million and 34 million cases of 2009 H1N1 occurred between April and October 17, 2009. This virus resulted in thousands of deaths across the United States. The Center for Disease Control and thousands of health care professionals are avidly trying to make sure that this year’s flu season does not turn into a similar pandemic.

On January 11^th, CNN reported, “twenty-four states and New York City were reporting high levels of flu activity.” In the past week, this number has grown. Severe outbreaks of flu across the United States can mean bad things in colleges, especially during a heightened period of travel to and from campus.

As students start off their spring semester, they will be bringing back germs from across the world and US. In relation to Boston’s state of emergency schools like MIT and BU are offering students free or discounted flu shots upon arrival back to campus. My own school, Mount Holyoke College recently released an email urging the student body to get their vaccines before returning to campus this semester. The email from the director of Health Services said, “If you have symptoms of the flu, please stay home and recover before returning to campus.”

Flu.gov provides a thorough list of instructions for students who may be experiencing flu-like symptoms on college and university campuses. These instructions include things such as avoiding close contact and interactions, receiving mail/food/provisions from the same person, notifying your residential advisor of your illness and contacting people through the use of technology. All of these precautions can be extremely important when containing an influenza outbreak amongst college students.

Until next time, be wary of this years feisty flu and take precautions like staying hydrated, avoiding contact with sick individuals and getting your flu shot to prevent further outbreak and protect your body!