• Services
• About Us
• Eligibility
• Forms
• Health Resources
• H1N1 Flu
  • Overview
  • Prevention
  • Vaccination Information
  • Symptoms
  • Student Treatment
  • Employee Treatment
  • Information for Parents
  • Other Important Links
• Related Sites
  • Healthy Alternatives Office
  • Student Development & Counseling Center

Prevention

WPI would also like to share the CDC's tips for helping to reduce germ spread and the risk of infection, and asks all members of the campus community to engage these tactics.

1. Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Throw the tissue in the trash after you use it. Cover coughs or sneezes using your elbow or shoulder instead of your hands when a tissue is not available.
2. Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze. Alcohol-based hands cleaners are also effective.
3. Avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth.
4. Try to avoid close contact with sick people.   Influenza is thought to spread mainly person-to-person through coughing or sneezing of infected people.
5. Frequently clean your living quarters. If you live together with others, you should frequently clean commonly-used surfaces such as doorknobs, refrigerator handles, remote controls, computer keyboards, countertops, faucet handles, and bathroom areas.
6. Plan to monitor your health by checking for fever and other symptoms of flu.
7. Talk with your health care provider if you are at higher risk for complications from flu. 
8. Be prepared in case you get sick and need to stay home for a week or so; a supply of over-the-counter medicines, alcohol-based hand rubs, tissues and other related items might be useful and help avoid the need to make trips out in public while you are sick and contagious.
9. If you get sick, CDC recommends that you stay home from work or school and limit contact with others to keep from infecting them.

Earlier in the year it was common practice to cancel events and close schools because of reported cases. However, the management of this outbreak has been constantly evolving. As we continue to move through the flu season in the months ahead, WPI will take our guidance from the DPH regarding cancellations and closings. We will provide alerts and notification pertaining to changes or interruptions in WPI's academic programs, daily operations, residential and campus life, and scheduled activities as soon as possible. Students who are unable to return home during a shutdown should consider a backup plan in the event the university must be evacuated on short notice.

Maintained by webmaster@wpi.edu
Last modified: January 08, 2010 13:50:36