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H1N1 flu outbreak reported at Ontario summer camps
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Updated: Wed Jul. 15 2009 3:50:08 PM2 m; ~- E* f* X5 @4 E: f' I
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( o* Z) k; N; N: U- o5 u* u1 BThe Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit is reporting that 227 young people at three summer camps in cottage country have developed H1N1 flu.
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+ A1 Z7 l8 Z+ ~% N: }6 c, t1 Y+ U( zDr. 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.+ y4 o6 J' t' K- T1 |9 J$ o: P
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The 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.
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. s; Z m; n( K) r7 \1 N2 U- }, ZThe number of infected represents almost one in five campers and almost one in seven camp staffers at the affected camps.
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! A. x2 n% c S# `The cases developed in the past week. All are considered mild, meaning no one required hospitalization, Gardner said.. Q5 q. O9 F- w4 E* K8 e G: Z" P0 c
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"The camps are working very closely with the health unit to implement what we call control measures," he said.& a4 x1 p0 V7 [! t2 x9 ~# s: x
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Most of the infected campers have been sent home to recover. Those who can't be sent home for whatever reason are in quarantine.
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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.
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, [3 f$ e, V r/ V% |"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.3 {- W1 Q7 W( J1 Z, g, c
6 ~& J4 J5 t1 J# F( m2 [Parents can help by making sure they aren't sending sick children to camp, Gardner said.
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"Do not send your children to camp if they have any influenza-like illness," he said.
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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.
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" E4 T6 D2 `" j, M8 I3 wGardner said the district thought there could be some outbreaks at camps this summer, given that some cases had occurred in schools.3 i1 I) }6 t, s7 }! _6 t" d ~
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However, normally the district is usually more focused on working with camps to prevent outbreaks of gastroenteric diseases and on injury prevention, he said. |
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