While the virus has been milder than most strains of flu, it is highly contagious. And college campuses, with large groups of students living and learning in close quarters, are among the most vulnerable. A fast-moving, transmittable virus has the potential to disrupt, even suspend, campus operations.

While federal officials with the Center for Disease Control don’t anticipate such a scenario, Furman and many other institutions of higher learning are doing more than hoping for the best. They are preparing and planning for the worst.

About two dozen administrators and staff participated in a one-hour teleconference Thursday sponsored by Inside Higher Ed, an online news source that covers high education, titled “Planning to Pandemic.”

Anita L. Barkin, director of student health services at Carnegie Mellon University and chair of the American College Health Association's Coalition for Emerging Public Health Risks and Emergency Response Planning, told that group that the H1N1 virus had caused some disruptions at summer camps on a handful of college campuses.

But she said young people, who have stronger immune systems, generally recover from the illness quickly.

“It is a mild to moderate in severity,” she said. “Healthy people generally get over this without serious consequences.”

She cautioned administrators to remain vigilant by developing strategies and education programs to combat the spread of the disease. She also urged participants to consider “tipping points,” or conditions that would cause the university to suspend classes and public gatherings.

Barkin told her audience to keep a watchful on local public schools – particularly elementary schools. A serious outbreak there usually means the disease is at your college campus doorstep.

On July 9, about 20 faculty, staff and administrators took part in an exercise that examined a variety of H1Ni scenarios, including one in which Greenville County schools were closed. The exercise was organized by Furman’s Crisis Management Team, which meets several times a year to discuss emergency scenarios and preparedness.

At Thursday’s teleconference, Mary Haselden, director of Health Services, said there was one reported student flu case at Furman this summer. A test was not taken to determine if the virus was the H1Ni strain. She said the university reports campus flu outbreaks to the Department of Health and Environmental Control, a state agency that can administer a test to pinpoint a viral strain.

While the university has scheduled flu vaccination clinics for October 14 (students) and October 20 (faculty and staff), it is unlikely that the H1N1 vaccination will be widely available at that time, said Haselden. She said the university will administer the H1N1 vaccine when it becomes available.

With first-year students moving in today, the university has posted posters throughout residence halls and other public areas that emphasize good hygiene and offer tips to avoid the flu. The university has also created a H1N1 webpage that includes additional resources. The webpage will be updated throughout the year with H1N1-related news.

Haselden urges all members of the community to practice good hygiene, including frequent hand washing and sanitizing, and to avoid contact with others who show signs of illness.

“Our strategy now is to stress hygiene, educate our university community, to plan and keep a watchful eye.” says Haselden.