AROUND CAMPUS
MONDAY, AUGUST 18, 2008
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Watkins physician discusses seasonal health tips
BY BRIEUN SCOTT bscott@kansan.com
It's the first year of college, but it's also a time for re-occurring viruses and illnesses. With students from different places and backgrounds, encountering different sicknesses is expected.
Alice Zarda, Manhattan freshman, said she couldn't believe that she had to get a meningitis shot to prepare for college.
"I freaks me out that we have to get a "shot to live in the dorm." Zarda said.
But this is one precaution students should take to prepare themselves for school.
Patricia Denning, physician and chief of medical staff at the Watkins Memorial Health Center, gave recommendations on how to prepare and avoid viruses and disease for the
school year.
Denning said the best way for students to prepare for school is to get an update on their health status.
"Students should make sure they're updated with all medications and shots before school," Denning said.
She said she also recommended students visit their regular physician.
FALL
The start of the school year always opens with various outdoor activities to welcome both new and returning students.
Denning said the fall was the peak season for outside-related illnesses such as allergies, asthma, poison ivy and sport injuries.
She said for students who didn't ordinarily live in Kansas, allergies could be a problem. She said students should be aware of symptoms and should try to remain indoors if they noticed them.
Poison ivy is at its peak during the start of the semester.
"Students should recognize what it looks like and should avoid getting in contact," Denning said. "If leaves are three, leave it be."
She said long sleeve pants and long sleeve shirts are good for areas where poison ivy would be located.
WINTER
The chill of winter brings in various colds and viruses. The most common during this season are the flu and stomach viruses.
Denning said the best way students could avoid viruses was making sure they washed their hands after coughing or sneezing and before eating. She said students should also avoid eating and drinking after friends.
Jennifer Jensen, Goodland senior, said she avoided illnesses by staying away from heavy-traffic areas.
"Any place where it's populated,
you should be concerned about viral things." Jensen said.
Jensen said she also regularly washed her hands and used hand sanitizer to minimize her exposure to germs.
Denning said getting a flu shots was another way to assure a virus-free school year.
The flu vaccination clinics, which will be set up in various locations around campus, will open from late October to early November. The clinics are also available in early January when students return from the holidays.
Denning said it would be convenient and cheaper for students than people not attending the University. Flu shots were $15 last year.
SPRING
This is the time of the year when students spend more time outside, socializing and enjoying the nice
weather. It's also the time for high hormones.
Denning said Watkins see more cases during spring of students coming in for sexually transmitted infection, or STIs, and pregnancy.
One way to avoid unplanned pregnancies and STIs is to get checked regularly.
Denning said that the health center had a gynecology department for women and the Wellness Center offered counseling for all students on how to be sexually safe. She said staff at the health center first tried to encourage abstinence, but different departments were available for students for guidance on safe sexual methods.
Clinics and counseling are also offered throughout the school year for students traveling abroad.
Edited by Sachiko Miyakawa
Weak U.S. dollar slows KU study abroad program
BY ASHER FUSCO afusco@kansan.com
The KU Study Abroad program is not growing as quickly as it used to, partly because of the weak U.S. dollar, which has made necessities such as food and transportation more expensive for students.
Susan Gronbeck-Tedesco, director of the Office of Study Abroad, said the weak dollar had caused a noticeable decline in study abroad interest.
"Summer 2008 enrollment is just 0.6 percent over Summer 2007,
Normally, we would expect a greater increase"
According to the KU Office of Study Abroad, participation in the program grew at an average of 8 percent each year from 2004 to 2007.
While the basic cost of enrollment in study abroad programs has not changed drastically, the dollar's weak exchange rate has raised the cost of overseas goods in comparison to domestic items. As of Monday, one euro was worth $1.56, meaning the dollar has depreciated by about 20 cents in the past year.
Jordan Kallas, a 2008 graduate who studied abroad in Australia last year, said the cost of food made his trip more expensive than expected.
"I'm still recovering from the trip, and it was a year ago" Kallas said.
John Keating, professor of economics, said that the exchange rate usually levels out in the long-run, but could be unpredictable in the near future — a bad sign for students planning summer or fall travel.
"When the value of the dollar goes down your dollars aren't going to buy as much foreign currency," Keating
said. "The consequence is a much bigger cost of living. It's got to be painful to go overseas right now."
In a national poll conducted last spring by the Institute of International Education, 43 percent of students said they had changed their travel plans because of the weakening dollar. Institute president Allen Goodman said studying abroad could be affordable if students altered their approach.
"Students should look for destinations like India or Southeast Asia, where their dollar will go further" Goodman said. "There are a lot of
ways to make it work."
Because of students like Kallas, who said his trip was worth the financial strain, studying abroad — expensive as it may be — has not gone out of style. According to the Institute of International Education, more than 2,000 students from the state of Kansas studied abroad last year.
"You want to travel when you study abroad," Kallas said. "You want to make the most of the trip, and that means spending money."
- Edited by Rustin Dodd
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