H1N1 Flu Update

Campus Email: 11/13/09
On Wednesday, 11/4, a survey went out to the GMC community asking about seasonal and H1N1 flu. The survey can be found at SurveyMonkey.com

As of the evening of 11/12, data from the survey indicate the following:

272 responses to the survey

45% have not had flu like symptoms this semester
54% have had flu like symptoms this semester
19% received medical care
81% did not receive medical care
5.6% who had medical care were diagnosed with seasonal flu
4.8% who had medical care were diagnosed with H1N1 flu
90.4% who had medical care had no diagnosis
17% got the seasonal flu vaccine
83% did not get the seasonal flu vaccine
20% who did not get it want the seasonal shot
81% who did not get it do not want seasonal shot
2% got H1N1 shot
98% have not gotten H1N1 shot
30% want H1N1 shot
70% do not want H1N1 shot

On the open-ended question which asks respondents to describe the precautions they are taking to avoid becoming sick or getting others sick, one person made a complaint about the lack of health services on campus; three people expressed our messages informing the community about H1N1 as laughable/excessive/much ado about nothing; three people expressed concerns about the practice of vaccination; and four people reported taking no extra steps.

Everyone else described the common procedures for not spreading flu and minimizing chances of catching it: hand washing/sanitizing, not sharing food/drink; respiratory etiquette; and isolating self, in addition to other describing other personal health-related behaviors (e.g. taking vitamin C, getting adequate sleep, eating healthy).