Student Health warns of high respiratory illness rates
Students are advised to get the influenza vaccine if they have not already.
By QUINTEN SEGHERS
As students slowly readjust to the start of a new semester, they should remain vigilant so as to not contract any respiratory illnesses, said Chief Campus Health Officer Dr. Sarah Van Orman in a briefing with the Daily Trojan on Wednesday morning.
Rates of respiratory illnesses are high, both in Los Angeles County and within the student body. According to data from the California Department of Public Health, the percentage of patients with influenza-like symptoms is at 6.9% for California Sentinel Providers, which is above the 4.1% baseline. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has also put California at “Very High” risk for influenza-like illness activity.
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As students slowly readjust to the start of a new semester, they should remain vigilant so as to not contract any respiratory illnesses, said Chief Campus Health Officer Dr. Sarah Van Orman in a briefing with the Daily Trojan on Wednesday morning.
Rates of respiratory illnesses are high, both in Los Angeles County and within the student body. According to data from the California Department of Public Health, the percentage of patients with influenza-like symptoms is at 6.9% for California Sentinel Providers, which is above the 4.1% baseline. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has also put California at “Very High” risk for influenza-like illness activity.
“This is the peak of respiratory virus season,” Van Orman said. “We hope it will come down within the next week or two. It’s not too late to get your flu shot. Many students don’t get a flu shot because they think, ‘Well, I don’t really need one’ … [but] influenza vaccines really can attenuate how severe your symptoms are.”
Influenza is categorized into four types: A, B, C and D. Types A and B are the ones that cause the seasonal epidemics. Van Orman said most influenza cases so far have been type A, but she warns that there can still also be a surge of type B — a slightly more mild strain compared to type A — later this spring.
“We are seeing a lot of influenza this winter from students,” Van Orman said. “And they’re like, ‘Wow, I did not realize how sick I was.’ Flu [comes with] high fevers, 102, 103 [degrees Fahrenheit], severe body aches, in bed for a week wiped out.”
Being vaccinated against influenza was required for students attending classes in-person for the 2021-2022 school year, which Van Orman said greatly reduced the number of influenza cases on campus.The influenza vaccine requirement was dropped the following school year, but remains highly recommended for all students.
“We’re in a very complicated time right now, I think, in public health and on campus, with vaccines,” Van Orman said. “The data on the effectiveness and the impact and the power of vaccines haven’t changed, but the public narrative of that value really has and so it’s very unfortunate.”
Van Orman said the rate of vaccination for influenza among students is dropping, particularly for undergraduates. For the 2023-2024 school year so far, 22.58 percent of undergraduate students have been vaccinated for influenza as well as 33.42 percent of graduate students. USC pulled data from the California Immunization Records database in order to match patient records for students who didn’t receive flu shots via USC.
“There’s a little bit of [a] sense of complacency because we often don’t remember when we didn’t get something,” Van Orman said. “So no one got the flu for a couple years … during the peak of the pandemic, there was this idea that a vaccine was perfect, was a panacea. We would take the vaccine and something would go away. And when that didn’t happen, there was a loss of confidence in vaccinations.”
In addition to encouraging students to remain up to date on their vaccinations, Student Health regularly conducts wastewater tests of on-campus housing facilities. They currently test for influenza, SARS-CoV-2 and norovirus. This past week, the tests found elevated levels of COVID-19.
Los Angeles County announced new requirements this week on when someone with COVID-19 can end isolation. If someone tests positive for COVID-19 and has symptoms, then they must remain isolated until they have been fever free for 24 hours. If someone has contracted COVID-19 but has no symptoms, then they only need to wear a mask for 10 days. Previously, everyone who tested positive for COVID-19 — regardless as to whether or not they experienced symptoms — had to isolate for five days minimum.
“That’s good news,” Van Orman said. “That’s relaxing the requirement a bit, but continue to wear a mask because that’s really the best way to protect other people. We still recommend an antigen test to leave isolation because that’s a really good test to see if you’re still spreading [a] virus.”
Antigen tests are available free of charge for all faculty, students and staff. They are available at the Customer Service Centers in on-campus residence halls, and at Engemann Student Health Center.
Student Health was notified late last week of the planned permanent closure of the CVS Pharmacy within the Target at USC Village next month.
“It was a surprise to us as well,” Van Orman said. “We are concerned because we know many students rely on that location to receive their medication. The next nearest CVS Pharmacy is the pharmacy on [Figueroa Street] which we know is a little bit of a distance for students to travel. We are developing some plans around that right now.”
Van Orman recommends students to take full advantage of the USC Pharmacy located right next to Engemann.
“It’s not too late to get your flu shot,” Van Orman said. “Also, remind people to make sure they’re staying home when they’re sick. Practicing really good respiratory hygiene, which is: cover your cough, wash your hands [and] don’t touch your face.”
