FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Thursday, August 20, 2009

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Lori Maldonado
Deputy Director, Office of Communications
303-692-2028

New Guidance Issued to Colleges in Light of H1N1

DENVER– The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment is recommending the state’s colleges and universities follow new guidance issued today by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) regarding the H1N1 and seasonal influenza viruses. To assist higher education institutions with their emergency planning, the CDC announced a toolkit for institutions of higher learning, which is available at http://www.flu.gov/plan/school/higheredtoolkit.html.

State health officials have issued the guidance to administrators of colleges and universities throughout the state.

The latest recommendations and tips in the toolkit recognize the need to balance risks of illness among faculty, students and staff with the desire to keep students in class. The guidance offers strategies and recommendations for current flu conditions and for more severe flu outbreaks.

The guidance also recommended, based on current flu conditions, faculty, students and staff with flu-like illness should stay in their home, dormitory or residence hall until at least 24 hours after they no longer have a fever (100 F or 38 C). This should be determined without the use of fever-reducing medications (any medicine that contains aspirin, ibuprofen or acetaminophen).

“We know from our summer experience with the H1N1 virus that college-aged students are at higher risk for this illness, so it’s especially important for colleges and universities to be well prepared in terms of their strategies for combating flu on their campuses,” said Ned Calonge, chief medical officer for the state of Colorado.

According to the guidance, educational institutions are encouraged to take the following precautions:

• Develop specific information targeted to students’ parents and provide it through available campus communication channels, such as the institution’s Web site.

• Appreciate that parents will be concerned about issues at institutions ranging from their child’s safety and health to the highly unlikely, but possible, suspension of classes.

• Continuously assess the flu situation in countries where they have students in study- abroad programs. Review policies for study-abroad programs, including how students can access health services abroad, how illness will be reported to the institutions, resources for those students abroad who are unable to travel back to the United States and any legal liability issues.

For more information on H1N1, visit the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment’s Web site at http://www.cdphe.state.co.us or www.flu.gov .

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