The Lethbridge College community is effected each year by influenza or more commonly “the flu”.
Although it is impossible to remove it completely, the college has a few steps they take to try and prevent it from spreading to other students and staff.
The flu is a yearly disease and the college has students coming in sick with sore throats and other illnesses.
“Around January we get students coming in with sore throats and stuffed noses. We see a lot of that kind of stuff but it’s too be expected this time of year,” Said Health Clinic worker Steven Johnson.
Each year the college has flu shots that they make available for students and staff before the weather gets cold and the sick season kicks in to try and prevent a spread as best as possible.
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“We do have a flu clinic that we run in October, November – so hopefully we can immunize a bunch of people. It’s not possible for us to ever completely remove the flu completely so in the end we try our best to avoid a big spread,” Said Johnson.
The flu affects the college every single year and the strength of it stays the same each year as well which according to Health services workers that’s a good thing.
There are three different kinds of Influenza (A, B and C) and according to Canada.ca, Influenza is one of the top causes of death in Canada with an average of 3,500 deaths come from the disease every year and around 12,000 hospitalized.
Around the cold months of the year the Lethbridge College is affected by all types of diseases such as the flu which is an easily spread disease.
“The flu has to be the worst sicknesses of them all. It comes along each year and I wish one day they would be able to just completely remove it, but unfortunately the science just isn’t there yet,” Said Lethbridge College student Logan Nelson.
To help prevent a big outbreak of any disease not just the flu Canada.ca advises you to wash your hands a few times a day, cough and sneeze into your sleeve, keeping your workspace clean and also getting the flu vaccine each year if you are over the age of six.
