By Laura Clark

With classes back in session, crowds, classrooms and coughs are inevitable scenes at schools, resulting in a higher risk for students to contract viruses.

Kentucky elementary schools in Letcher and Boyle counties closed last week due to Novel H1N1 (Swine) Flu-like symptoms of some students and staff.

For UK’s campus to close, a substantial amount of students would have to contract the virus.  Enough that it would largely impact the community, said Anthany Beatty, vice president for public safety.

UK’s Pandemic Planning Workgroup has been meeting weekly since April, developing plans for infected-student isolation and quick triage.

Beatty said arrangements are being made for possible dorm evacuations of healthy students, transferring them to other housing facilities while the sick are isolated.

“We have to think about other things, like if you isolate them, how are they fed?  How do they keep up with course work? All of that is in the works,” Beatty said.

The Emergency Management department, including Director Christy Giles and Specialist Therese Smith,  have a plan for each segment of campus “fully in motion now,” Beatty said. Four or five committees were formed to focus on how to respond to specific areas of campus if an impending H1N1 epidemic occurred.

Discussions on class cancellations and students’ make-up work are also a part of the campus pandemic planning.

Dr. Chris Nelson, associate professor of pediatrics who specializes in infectious diseases, said plans for the UK Healthcare Services are prepared for a potential upswing in cases since students’ arrival to campus.

Healthcare Services has been involved in educating students and parents on vaccinations and basic protocol to follow if they do become sick. A triage hotline is also available for students to call if they contract the H1N1 flu.

“A huge surge of students to the clinic obviously wouldn’t be a good thing,” Nelson said. “They have a plan to try to prevent a huge rush with patients with the flu.”

Nelson said plans are currently underway for an alternative waiting area for patients who have influenza-like symptoms so quick triage can be completed to see if they are infected.

Flu kits are also available for parents to send to their children, with information about UK Healthcare Services and the basics of hand hygiene. The kit also includes a thermometer, tissues and medicine, Nelson said.

Seasonal influenza vaccinations are in at the clinic, however Nelson was unsure of the cost for students.  H1N1 clinical trials are currently underway across the country, and vaccinations for the flu should be available by mid-to-end of October.

Nelson said scenarios have been pitched to leaders in every department to prepare for the possibility of cross-training staff in case of employee absences.

“We’re having to train people to do jobs they don’t normally do — how to keep business as usual,” Nelson said.

Currently around six documented student cases have been reported to UK Healthcare, though not all of those have been confirmed, Nelson said.  However, he said a lot of students avoid testing.

“That’s only the tip of the iceberg,” Nelson said. “The K through 12 school situation demonstrates there’s a lot of people who have H1N1 out there.”

UK hospital has had seven or eight cases this week that were sent off for confirmative testing, Nelson said.

Provost Kumble Subbaswamy sent an e-mail regarding H1N1 earlier in the week, instructing professors to emphasize to students if they are sick, they should not attend class.

Computer science professor Debby Keen had a warning about the flu to students in her syllabus that read, “H1N1 with a clinic note IS excused.”

“The Provost sent a memo to all faculty … to emphasize that if they’re sick, they should stay home,” Keen said.

Nelson said students showing a rapid onset of fever, cough, sore throat, body aches, chills and generalized fatigue should seek medical attention. Nelson said 25 percent of patients have even been showing  symptoms of vomiting and/or suffering from diarrhea.

Advice to students to stay healthy included focusing on the basics of keeping up with good hand hygiene, avoiding crowded places and getting familiar with the signs and symptoms of H1N1 influenza.

More information on Novel H1N1 Flu can be found on UK’s Emergency Management Web site at www.uky.edu/EM/swineflu.htm or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Web site at http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/.