IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM THE WESTCHESTER COMMUNITY COLLEGE HEALTH OFFICE

Dear Students:
Please help WCC comply with a SUNY mandate which requires all institutions to report the number of students who come down with the flu or a flu-like illness. You may have the flu if you have a fever OR chills AND a cough or sore throat. (Other symptoms can include a runny nose, body aches, a headache, tiredness, diarrhea or vomiting).

So if you have a fever OR chills AND a cough OR sore throat, please stay home AND;

Call the Flu Hotline: 914-606-3700 to report your symptoms, your last name and last 4 digits of your social security or school ID number

and………

Contact your professors via the information provided to you on your course syllabus to let them know you are ill and will need makeup information.

We appreciate your assistance in helping us to minimize the spread of infection on campus.

(Remember: cover your mouths when coughing or sneezing with a tissue or cough into your sleeve and wash your hands frequently)

PREVENTING THE SPREAD OF COLDS AND FLU VIRUSES

No doubt you have heard a lot about the H1N1 flu recently and the concern that it will spread quickly as students return to school. We at the Health Office, as well as members of the college’s Pandemic Flu Response Team, share that concern. People under 24 years of age are expected to be slightly more susceptible to this virus. Fortunately, the vast majority of cases are mild and at this point, no more severe than the seasonal flu. In order to prepare for the possibility of illness and to prevent the spread of the virus here on campus please abide by the CDC’s (Center for Disease Control) recommendations:

If you develop flu-like symptoms, stay home for at least 24 hours after you no longer have a fever, without the use of fever reducing medications (flu symptoms: sore throat, body aches, cough, runny nose, headache, chills and fatigue). If you become sick while at school, please leave and head home or to your doctor’s office if indicated.
Practice the use of hand hygiene and respiratory etiquette, even if you are not sick: Wash your hands often with soap and warm water or alcohol based hand cleaners, especially after coughing or sneezing. Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue (or if not available a shirt sleeve) when coughing or sneezing. If you are at a higher risk of complications from the flu, secondary to underlying medical conditions, it is critical for you to seek out early medical care for treatment.
Keep emergency contact phone numbers with you.
Be certain that you have your instructor’s and a classmate’s contact information so that you can keep up with the course assignments. Determine if your instructor posts their assignments on Blackboard.
The government expects a vaccine against H1N1 to be available by mid-October. If it is available to you through a community organization or doctor’s office, take advantage and receive the vaccine. We will keep you updated with the status of the H1N1 influenza as it becomes available to us.
We hope you have a healthy semester. Stay proactive!

Helpful Links