Last week, 343 seen for flu-like symptoms at UNC center

BY BETH VELLIQUETTE

bvelliquette@heraldsun.com; 918-1042

CHAPEL HILL -- It seems people are talking about it everywhere.

A child stayed out of school, a UNC student reported having the swine flu, health clinics are filled with people with flu-like symptoms, but the question remains: Is there an H1N1 flu epidemic in Orange County?

"We've got flu but nothing massive yet," said Judy Butler, Community Health Services supervisor for the Orange County Health Department, whose department is collecting information from UNC, the two school systems, hospitals and clinics about the number of flu cases in the county.

Because this time of year is not considered flu season, it's generally accepted that if someone gets the flu now that they most likely have the H1N1 virus, or swine flu, as it's commonly called. Officials say they don't know for sure how many people have the H1N1 flu because they are no longer testing for it.

A few Twitter updates would indicate the UNC campus is overrun with the flu. One person twittered, "This is getting crazy -- the whole campus is sneezing and sniffling. UNC's passing out swine flu like homework."

Another twittered, "Trying not to get swine flu on UNC campus is like trying not to run into a hippie."

On Thursday, UNC reported that during the week ending Sept. 5, 343 people were seen by Campus Health Services providers or evaluated by nursing staff in face-to-face visits or by telephone consultation for influenza-like illnesses.

During the previous week ending Aug. 29, which was the first week students returned for classes for the fall semester, 25 people were seen for influenza-like illnesses.

Those figures would not include anyone who saw a private doctor or who just stayed home and didn't seek medical attention at all.

At the university, people who have symptoms of the flu are advised to stay home and isolate themselves, said Carol Kozel, director of nursing for Campus Health Services.

"There's a good number of students that are taking that precaution," she said.

Unless a person becomes extremely sick, they don't necessarily have to seek medical care when they have the flu, Kozel said.

The university recommends that people with the flu go home to recover if they can. If they live in a dormitory and can't go home, their roommates are advised to see if they can find another place to stay, Kozel said.

UNC Food Services has even prepared flu kits for people with the flu that contain food and drinks for three days that include items such as Gatorade, microwavable cans of soup, chicken or tuna lunch packs, crackers and fresh fruit, among other items, so they can stay home and eat rather than going to a dining hall and possibly infect other students.

The figures for this week at UNC have not yet been released.

The Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools reported that the district has seen an increase in the number of daily absences. On Sept. 4, 341 students were absent from school, said Stephanie Knott, spokeswoman for the school system.

That is higher than normal for this time of year but typical of the number of absences the school system would see in the middle of the flu season in January, Knott said.

In the past several days, Culbreth and Phillips middle schools and Rashkis Elementary School have seen spikes in the number of students absent from school, Butler said.

Orange County Schools has not seen a spike in the number of absences at its schools, said Mike Gilbert, public information officer for the school system.