Students wait in line for the H1N1 vaccine on Friday

When we reported on H1N1 cases at Georgetown in late September, the virus had infected about 250 students and the number of cases was rising precipitously every day. Infection rates have since dropped off. According to an e-mail from Dr. James Welsh, assistant vice president for student health, in the past four weeks, the number of students with Influenza-like Illnesses has dropped to about 35 per week.

Welsh wrote that so far, about 600 students have consulted the Student Health Center with H1N1 symptoms, with cases peaking throughout the month of September. (A report from the President’s Office had expected cases to peak in October).

“There continues to be however, significant signs of illness and we remained concerned about further spread within the GU community,” Welsh wrote.

As Sommer wrote in September, since that number does not include students who were sick but did not seek treatment or advice, that number is likely higher.

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Trojan just released its annual Sexual Health Report Card for colleges and universities and once again Georgetown is near the bottom of the pack.  This year we received a “GPA” of 2.13 and we’re ranked 121 out of 141 schools that participated, up three from last year.

The rankings measure the “access and availability of sexual health information and resources.”  They are based on student opinion, health center policies, availability of contraceptives and STD testing, presence of advising and support resources.

Although Georgetown is lagging in the overall rankings, our standing improves when you look at how we’re doing compared to other religious schools.  Of the 14 religiously affiliated colleges and universities that were ranked, Georgetown was the 4th highest ranked.  We are also the high ranked Catholic school on the list.

250 of these guys running around campus

As of Monday, Georgetown has had around 250 cases of H1N1, or swine flu, according to an e-mail from Dr. James Welsh, Assistant Vice President for Student Health. Last Tuesday, Georgetown’s estimate was around 150, so the number has risen by 100 in 6 days.

Welsh’s estimates come from students who went to the Student Health Center with flu symptoms, students who called the H1N1 hotline or the Health Center’s doctor-on-call, and students  who went to the hospital’s emergency room.

Since the number doesn’t include students who were sick but never called the hotline or received treatment, the actual number of Georgetown students sick with H1N1 is most likely higher.

For avid swine flu watchers, check out the American College Health Association’s weekly updates on H1N1 at colleges. Georgetown and other universities submit their numbers every Monday, so it’s the place to be to monitor the flu’s spread District- or nationwide.