H1N1 is out there, continuing to infect thousands of people worldwide. It will eventually get to Brandeis. And we're simply not prepared to block the potentially crippling effects of a campuswide outbreak. But we could be. If a quarter of the student population became infected, they'd cancel classes and beg us to please stay in our rooms. It'd be chaotic and hazardous, especially to those students and professors who have higher risks of complications. And with the way things are going internationally with the H1N1 virus, we could get to that point. But that doesn't really worry me at the moment. What worries me is how the University will deal with those first two or three infected students. That's going to be critical. If we can keep isolated cases of H1N1, well, isolated, then we're set. But the current University guidelines aren't going to accomplish that. It's really nice that we have some new hand sanitizer dispensers around campus. And it's great that the Health Center sent us an e-mail about washing our hands. But these things alone won't prevent an outbreak.

Our campus seems somewhat secluded, but with every passing day and weekend the odds increase that some students venturing through the greater Boston area will be exposed to H1N1 and generously bring it on campus for sharing. And once that handful of students on campus have flu symptoms, it'll be up to them to decide whether to stay in their rooms as much as possible or head out to that really, really important class. So right now, it's up to the University to make sure that those first few students remain the only few students and ensure that they choose to stay in their rooms.

Ideally, students with H1N1 should temporarily go home or be housed in one building while ill. But Brandeis students come from all over the country and the world, so going home is quite implausible. And there probably aren't many buildings on campus available to house the sick. (Or perhaps the pool could be used for something once again.) So let's stick with trying to keep sick students in their rooms. To do that, we're going to need some initiative on behalf of the University.

The Health Center's Web site lists the first symptom of H1N1 as a fever "lasting 3-5 days." And under the section, "What to do if you have flu symptoms," aside from resting and taking medicine, the Web site mentions that we should avoid public activities for at least five days.

There are several major problems with that current "plan." First of all, are we supposed to wait until we've had a three-day fever until we decide that we have the flu and then commit ourselves to isolation? That wouldn't work. It's not like you wouldn't have the flu the first two days. It'd be much safer to take the logical precaution and urge any student with a significant fever to stay away from others, but that isn't easy. There'll need to be incentive for sick to students to stay in their rooms. But as students, we have two basic needs: good grades and good food. To get those things, we need to leave our rooms. So as of now, staying inside only has disincentives.

The Center for Disease Control's H1N1 Web site makes the following recommendation to colleges and universities to help keep flu cases isolated: "Review and revise, as needed, policies, such as student absenteeism policies and sick leave policies for faculty and staff, that make it difficult for students, faculty, and staff to stay home when they are ill or to care for an ill family member,. [sic] Do not require a doctor's note to confirm illness or recovery." That needs to get done. Professors must be prepared to send PowerPoint slides and class notes to anyone claiming to have a fever, and even the strictest instructors should offer makeup exams and assignment extensions, no questions asked. Students need to have specific assurance from the University that flu isolation will not kill our GPAs.

The CDC also recommends separating ill students from their roommates. And if that isn't possible, we should have surgical masks ready for ill students with roommates, as the CDC also recommends.

And the CDC also poses the idea of bringing meals to sick students. An August New York Times article mentions that many schools already say that their dining services would do this. We need to make sure that we're one of them.

Last week, the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology publicly released its official report on H1N1. According to that report, the pandemic should peak around mid-October. With every passing day and week, we only increase our chances of joining that pandemic. The University should immediately get to work on creating and implementing a better H1N1 defense plan. We can't wait until mid-October to get serious about this. We need a better plan-now.