Ten more students struck with Ursinus stomach bug this weekend
Ten more Ursinus College students reported symptoms of a stomach virus this weekend, bringing the total number of reports since Tuesday night to around 200, or 12 percent of the student population, a college official said Sunday.
Ten more Ursinus College students reported symptoms of a stomach virus this weekend, bringing the total number of reports since Tuesday night to around 200, or 12 percent of the student population, a college official said Sunday.
The small liberal arts college is still working with health officials to determine if the cause of the outbreak is food-borne or person-to-person contact. Tests of affected students could take up to a week.
In a new program called called JeffConnect On-Demand Virtual Care, Jefferson University Hospital is now offering Ursinus students free video consultations with emergency care doctors through Feb. 29.
University officials are encouraging students to use the Virtual Care program if they have similar symptoms to those reported in the outbreak - including diarrhea, vomiting, and abdominal pain - which can help them know if they should seek immediate care or wait out the symptoms.
"This has been a difficult time for students and their families, and the college is committed to making students aware of all the medical care resources available to them," university communications manager Esmé Artz said in a statement.
The Montgomery County Department of Health issued its second food inspection report of Ursinus on Saturday, disclosing that the school is in compliance with the county. On Wednesday, the department found 17 violations, none of which were necessarily related to the outbreak. The university voluntarily shut down its Wismer Dining Hall on Wednesday.
The dining hall re-opened on Thursday for dinner, and has remained operational since then. Classes, which were canceled on Thursday and Friday, will resume on Monday.
"I believe the measures we've taken will help to reduce the possibility of further illnesses," college president Brock Blomberg, who is eight months into his term, said in a statement Friday. "It is times like these that we see who we really are."
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