Norovirus Leading Suspect in Over 60 Student Illnesses.
Over 60 students have become ill at the University of Rochester in recent days. Some students have been seeking help at Strong Memorial or Highland Hospital Emergency Departments, while others sought medical assistance at University Health Services. The sickened students are generally reporting symptoms that include vomiting, nausea, and diarrhea. Student Health reports at least one confirmed case of norovirus. The positive test reinforced the strong suspicion norovirus is the cause of the ongoing outbreak.
The majority of students affected by the virus are from the Eastman School of Music and River Campus, and the University has been working with Environmental Health and Safety and the Monroe County Health Department to determine the cause of the outbreak.
University of Rochester Reacts.
From information that has been made public, it appears that the University quickly launched an attack on the outbreak involving at least four different university divisions: University Facilities, the Office of Environmental Health and Safety, Residence Life and Dining Services. In addition, University Health Service updated the student body as soon as it appeared a cluster of illnesses had developed, and kept the students updated as the outbreak progressed.
University Facilities
University Facilities is “aggressively continuing with its comprehensive surface sanitizing protocol,” according to one report. That protocol includes residential common areas and bathrooms at River Campus and Eastman School. In addition, sanitization crews arrived and hygienists arrived on-site early Tuesday morning. The professionals, all employed by ServPro, will perform supplemental work disinfecting other University public areas.
Dining Services
Dining Services also launched a proactive campaign. Concerns regarding common utensils being handled by different customers led the university division to suspend the use of self-service food operations on a temporary basis. This suspension applies only on the River Campus, and is the result of an increase in the number of students exhibiting symptoms in that area. However, according to school officials the suspension of self-serve dining does not in any way indicate that food itself is suspected as the source of the current outbreak.
Office of Environmental Health with Resident Life
On Monday evening, Resident Life and the Office of Environmental Health teamed up to deliver packages of Clorox Germicidal wipes to residential apartments. Students were informed that these wipes could be used to sanitize their bathrooms and other surfaces in their apartments, and the university recommended that bathrooms be cleaned at least once daily during the outbreak. The germicidal wipes, which have proven to be particularly effective in combating norovirus, are now also available at University Health Service offices – both on the River Campus and at the Eastman School.
(Excellent) Communication by University Health Service; University of Rochester Communications
Rochester University acted quickly and decisively, and proactively took steps to make it easier for the student body to combat the outbreak. One of the most important components in containing the spread of the virus, perhaps, were the open lanes of communication as the situation developed.
OUTBREAK CASE COUNT 20: INITIAL ILLNESS ADVISORY
On April 9th, UR Communications sent a message to all faculty, staff and students at the River Campus and Eastman School informing them that there had been about 20 cases of rapid-onset nausea, vomiting and diarrhea reported in the past 48 hours. The communication advised all students to pay special attention to “hand hygiene,” correctly informing them that while “alcohol-based hand sanitizers may offer some protection, washing your hands with soap and water is the most important way to avoid acquiring this type of infection.” The message included a link to the CDC website on norovirus prevention and provided advice to students who may become ill.
OUTBREAK CASE COUNT 37: UNIVERSITY-WIDE ALERT AND UPDATE
On Monday, University Health Service Director Dr. Ralph Manchester issued a communications update informing the larger student body of the ongoing illnesses. In addition to including the initial message sent to select students on April 9th, the update stated that the number of cases had risen to 37, and that no common source of exposure had been identified. Manchester reiterated that the most likely cause of the outbreak was norovirus, but qualified his statement by noting that this fact had not yet been proven.
The communication, which contained details about the provision of germicidal wipes, stated that the majority of illnesses to that point had occurred in the undergraduate population, though the “onset of illness is not exclusive” to that segment of the student body.
The notice detailed the steps that University officials and staff were taking to sanitize the campus, and alerted students to the upcoming presence of ServPro sanitation crews. Notably, all restrooms on the River Campus (with very few exceptions) had already been sanitized as of 10 that morning. Additionally, a “comprehensive surface sanitizing protocol” was being implemented by University Facilities, which “included University shuttles” and would “continue until further notice.”
Finally, Manchester informed students that they might receive a questionnaire from the Monroe County Health Department, and encouraged students receiving the communication to reply in an attempt to “help officials target key areas that the illness is being transmitted.”
OUTBREAK CASE COUNT 60+: STATUS UPDATE
On Tuesday, with the case count standing somewhere above 60, University of Rochester Communications released a third statement that one student had tested positive for norovirus, “which is almost undoubtedly the cause of the sudden onset nausea, vomiting and diarrhea among students.” The release stated that the University is “not aware of any student that has been admitted to a hospital due to the severity of symptoms,” however, a few had been treated in emergency departments. Students were encouraged to continue to disinfect surfaces, use proper hand washing techniques, and limit personal exposure, as norovirus “particles can live on surfaces for weeks.” The release also informed the student body and staff of measures (discussed above) that Dining Services, University Facilities, and Residential Life would be taking to help stem the outbreak.
Further, the University Facilities Customer Service line at 273-4567 is available to take service calls 24 hours a day for areas needing clean-up and disinfection as a result of a person being ill.
The release stated in closing that the “University’s high-level sanitization efforts and practices will be continued until this outbreak has been brought under control.”
