"The symptoms of swine flu are relatively mild for most people at this point, but we definitely want to keep it contained," Turco said. "The more people catch it, the higher the chance there is that somebody will develop a more serious form of the illness and cause more disruption on campus."
Turco said that he does not know how many of the new cases are related to the H1N1 virus, but that he hopes to have an estimate at some point in the next few weeks. As one of New Hampshire's surveillance centers for the flu, the College is sending random culture samples from patients with flu-like symptoms to state health officials for analysis to confirm H1N1, Turco said.
There is only one laboratory in New Hampshire that can identify the relevant H1N1 strain of the virus, making an analysis for all 47 people impossible, Turco said.
"We're looking to get approximate percentages from these samples and get an idea of how many people have the H1N1 strain," Turco said. "It's important to note, however, that everyone who is diagnosed with [influenza-like illness] has a viral infection that's possible to pass on to others."
The H1N1 flu vaccine will not arrive on campus until late September or October, although seasonal flu vaccine is currently available on campus, Turco said, adding that supply of the H1N1 vaccine is likely to be limited.
"If there is a limited amount, we're going to need to follow the priority levels set by the state public health department," he said. "Priority will be given to medical personnel so that they are able to treat patients effectively."
Individuals at risk to experience more serious effects from the virus, including those who have had active asthma in the past two years, will also be given priority access to the H1N1 vaccine.
The College has also asked undergraduate advisors to help prepare for the flu, calling on them to estimate the number of students on their floors that have flu-like symptoms, according to Cindy Guo '10, a UGA in the McLaughlin residential cluster.
"We were also told to encourage everyone to get flu shots and call Health Services if they felt sick," Peter Hagan '11, a UGA in McLaughlin, said.
Dick's House's web site also requests that students inform the College about their health status.
Dick's House officials have also asked Dartmouth Emergency Medical Services, a group of EMT-trained and CPR-certified students, to be prepared to help if necessary, EMS President Jeffrey Spielberg '10 said in an e-mail to The Dartmouth.
Dartmouth Dining Services is also working to prevent the spread of the flu by more frequently changing the equipment that customers touch, among other measures, associate director of dining services David Newlove said in an interview with The Dartmouth.
"I think we've done an excellent job trying to preparing ourselves for this," Turco said. Most students interviewed by The Dartmouth said they were not overly worried about the flu.
"It's not a serious concern for me right now, but I'm waiting for more information," Jeremy Kaufmann '12 said.
