 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
|
H1N1 flu outbreak reported at Ontario summer camps9 N8 Z% R* A# N$ j
+ h, A% W+ u" p2 E# o# ]3 ^0 A
Updated: Wed Jul. 15 2009 3:50:08 PM
2 r. v+ a" Z- o/ K! y
! g8 p" D; j# X6 Mctvtoronto.ca
^8 W& A* ~! n, _/ Z. D4 K1 i7 Y6 ]7 r8 m; P( Q
The Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit is reporting that 227 young people at three summer camps in cottage country have developed H1N1 flu.5 X. w' N/ f" z( b
/ o# `, d) _& c: {2 Q
Dr. Charles Gardner, the district's chief medical officer of health, told ctvtoronto.ca on Wednesday that the district isn't saying which three camps are involved.
( H' w$ t' d- g3 s8 Q9 q; S: R
7 q$ F( |. m: w# g& D3 q) ?6 zThe lakeland area of central Ontario covered by the district has 71 registered camps. The three camps involved had 1,275 campers and 480 staff, he said.
3 @0 H) S" Y5 B: i3 c4 e0 M
- X9 S$ B c, Y6 f7 m' sThe number of infected represents almost one in five campers and almost one in seven camp staffers at the affected camps.
! s% A6 i8 Z8 C' @0 V. ?& K' y8 X5 Q1 t5 Z' p
The cases developed in the past week. All are considered mild, meaning no one required hospitalization, Gardner said.
- Q# A) ~( V+ z+ v8 i9 z( q1 I& M# O6 v, y
"The camps are working very closely with the health unit to implement what we call control measures," he said.
o: o& [! h% ~# h$ t6 X# T
' x! T. f) z; @. s. b6 n* ]Most of the infected campers have been sent home to recover. Those who can't be sent home for whatever reason are in quarantine.
8 C$ l. V4 w+ L. B+ _, O) S* M( g4 Y- L3 u- }7 _ u- ?0 T
Gardner said the district is also having all camps tell all parents in writing that "this is an unusual year" -- referring to the outbreak of H1N1, which the World Health Organization has declared a pandemic., i3 U+ `: P: w1 F: Q" W/ T# d
, F; e1 @5 O o: l"They need to be aware of H1N1 influenza, that we've had three outbreaks to date and there's the possibility we could have others," he said.$ v6 J0 K8 O1 J( i
4 _0 l* \# O* B/ c% L: t0 DParents can help by making sure they aren't sending sick children to camp, Gardner said.% P" c, ]' ?- l% n. C! ?. u6 e
( t; d$ o7 S. W w3 u* D5 q"Do not send your children to camp if they have any influenza-like illness," he said.! q( Q$ [ b% N7 I9 }) ^
( a* d0 s1 p! }) T" E% ~
Those symptoms include fever, cough, sore throats or a general sense of malaise. "If that's happening within seven days of them coming to a camp, they should not go," he said.1 q, Y, U# F( Q
* P+ @1 e# Z6 s2 T" A C
Gardner said the district thought there could be some outbreaks at camps this summer, given that some cases had occurred in schools.
' ]2 {# k! U9 q6 m% _* _* @1 Z1 R4 t0 D2 d# u/ e
However, normally the district is usually more focused on working with camps to prevent outbreaks of gastroenteric diseases and on injury prevention, he said. |
|