Making the best of flu season

With the start of the spring semester, SUNYIT welcome students and faculty back to campus after the winter break. And the health & wellness center was ready.

“Nationally, it’s been a very active flu season, and we’ve been very fortunate that the campus has not experienced more cases than we have,” says Jo Ruffrage, director of health & wellness. “As we do every year, this season our focus has been on prevention.”

In a recent interview with WKTV-TV, Ruffrage described the tips that health & wellness shares with students and the campus community:

•    Practice good hand hygiene by washing your hands with soap and water, especially after coughing or sneezing. Alcohol-based hand cleaners also are effective.
•    Practice respiratory etiquette by covering your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. If you don’t have a tissue, cough or sneeze into your elbow or shoulder, not into your hands.  Avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth; germs are spread this way.
•    Know the signs and symptoms of the flu. A fever is a temperature taken with a thermometer that is equal to or greater than 100 degrees Fahrenheit or 38 degrees Celsius. Look for possible signs of fever: if the person feels very warm, has a flushed appearance, or is sweating or shivering. Any member of the campus community exhibiting symptoms of the flu should go home and self-isolate until he or she has recovered.
•    Stay home if you have flu or flu-like illness for at least 24 hours after you no longer have a fever (100 degrees Fahrenheit or 38 degrees Celsius) or signs of a fever (have chills, feel very warm, have a flushed appearance, or are sweating). This should be determined without the use of fever-reducing medications (any medicine that contains ibuprofen or acetaminophen).  Don’t go to class or work.

Last fall, SUNYIT made flu shots available to students, faculty and staff. Ruffrage recommends the vaccine as a yearly first line of defense, especially for those in high-risk groups.