After about 100 people were sicked with (possible) swine flu at the Penny Arcade Expo last weekend, the hamdemic also appears to have spread the University of Washington campus.
Early this morning, UW sent out this email to students and faculty:
While a diagnosis has not been confirmed, the first apparent cases of novel H1N1 influenza have been reported to Hall Health Center from a sorority at the University. Sorority rush is beginning and many of the houses are active with returning sorority members and new students. Two cases of probable H1N1 flu have been identified in one house. The students were advised to return home and other members who may have been exposed have been advised to take necessary precautions, which include hand washing and use of hand sanitizers. They have also been advised to watch for symptoms of the flu and report cases to Hall Health.
More information will be forthcoming in the coming week as we approach the start of the school year. This is the leading edge of what we anticipate during the fall quarter.
Sincerely,
Jean Haulman, M.D.
Medical Director
Campus Health Services
C’mon, UW! Only two cases? WSU beats you guys at everything.
H1Nerd1. Wow.
Go Cougs!
I am a CWU Wildcat…it should be interesting to see how this “pandemic” affects the campus. Maybe we can use those death panels (LIAR) & get rid of the people who get sick…just sayin’….
I completely support the use of “hamdemic”.
2 possible cases out of 40,000+ students.
Let the panic begin.
@3>> All in favour if using the term hamdemic say “Aye”.
aye!!!
Aye.
A lot of people who went to Dragon*Con in Atlanta got it, too. I think it’s geek-carried.
Geeks never wash their hands after anything.
@4: WSU has approximately 25,000 students between all of their campuses– if 2600 are sick within the first two weeks of classes, that’s 10% of the student body. If those numbers transfer to UW (which doesn’t start classes until Sept 30), that means that out of UW’s 43,000 students, by October 15, UW could have 4300+ students infected. Combine that with some of the dorm living situations (rooms meant for one student now housing three), and it could get pretty messy pretty fast. It doesn’t help that some kids pride themselves on always going to class regardless of their physical state, or that college kids, despite technically being adults, sometimes don’t have the firmest grasp on personal hygiene at the best of times.
I think ours are in the sororities due to all the attendance at the Young Democrats Conference.
In related news, there’s an alert that we’re concerned over pregnant women being tested for H1N1 on the main UW page.