Student Health Center officials set up an information booth outside the Terrace Dining Room Tuesday in an effort to educate the AU community about staph infections and other communicable diseases days after its director revealed that a small increase of diagnosed cases of skin infections has occurred at AU.
Student Health Center Director Dan Bruey sent an e-mail to residential students Friday that revealed the center had seen a small increase in the number of diagnosed cases of methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus and other skin infections recently.
MRSA is a type of staph infection that does not respond to certain kinds of antibiotic treatment. When the bacterium gets into the body, it can cause a serious infection. MRSA initially shows its presence through a visible skin infection, but serious cases of the disease can also cause fever and shortness of breath.
The MRSA cases at AU have all been mild and effectively treatable. The Student Health Center likely diagnosed more skin infection cases recently because of media reports about a recent outbreak of MRSA in the metropolitan area, according to Edythe-Anne Cook, patient services coordinator for the center.
"Media reports increased awareness of the more serious cases of MRSA as well as the signs and symptoms of MRSA," she said. "This has caused a slight increase in the number of students who have utilized the Student Health Center to have rashes and other skin infections evaluated."
Some AU students said they were confident about not being infected because of widespread discussion on how to prevent the disease.
Liz Anderson, a first-year graduate student in the School of Communication, said she was concerned over the number of recent staph infections on campus but that she knew how to protect herself from the disease.
"I've read that taking precautions such as washing your hands will reduce the chances of infection," Anderson said. "I hope whoever is responsible for maintaining cleanliness on campus will work to [prevent the spread of this infection] as well. Sometimes, you just have to trust others."
Hallie Tosher, a freshman in the College of Arts and Sciences, credited AU for distributing information on the infection.
"I think it's nice that they posted information in the bathrooms," she said. "I'm more aware now that they've done this."
Officials from multiple public school districts in Maryland, D.C. and Virginia reported more than 50 cases of drug-resistant staph infections among their students and staff by the end of October. A student from Staunton River High School in Bedford, Va., died from an MRSA infection Oct. 15.
The information booth was part of a series of outreach programs the Student Health Center uses to inform students about communicable diseases, Cook said.
"We originally were going to focus on cold and flu season, but as students expressed concern about MRSA, we decided to focus on many communicable diseases," she said.
In addition to the information booth and Friday's e-mail, the Student Health Center posted information on MRSA's symptoms and suggestions for how to prevent contracting it on the Web site.
