CAMPUS/AREA UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN Wednesday, September 4, 1996 5A Infections: a new problem Sickness can linger in child care centers By Ashleigh Roberts Kansan staff writer Students who work in daycare centers have a higher risk of catching viral and bacterial infections as the number of working parents increase, said Charles Yockey, Watkins Memorial Health Center chief of staff. He said that daycare centers were not a new phenomenon but that concerns about daycare sickness had become a concern in internal medicine. "Twenty years ago you wouldn't have heard anything about this," Yockey said, "But today it is a growing area of interest and research as big-city infectious disease specialists are beginning to concentrate in daycare infections." Most viral infections are passed from hand to mouth. Daycare workers have a hard time keeping the diseases from spreading, because it is impossible to keep children's hands off each other and everything around them. Yockey said. Many children contaminate daycare staff members and other children without their parents ever knowing they are sick, Yockey said. Everyone is contagious with a virus three to five days before feeling its effects. The problem is intensified when doctors cannot determine if children have a viral or bacterial infection. Viral infections cannot be treated with antibiotics, but sometimes doctors are unable to tell whether an illness is viral, he said. Yockey said that an estimated 70 percent of infections are viral and 30 percent bacterial. Prescribing antibiotics for viral infections produces resistant bacteria. It is possible for the bacteria to mutate and produce different strands of the infection. Yockey said. One of the most common, treatable bacterial infections found in daycare centers is mycoplasma, he said. The infection is treatable with antibiotics. "The infection is becoming so contagious that we frequently see students who have mycoplasma because they have roommates who work in davcare centers," he said. But there are many steps parents and staff can take to lower susceptibility. "We get minor illnesses," said Kathy Zanelli, co-director of Sunnyside Infant Toddler Program. "But everyone has germs. There are nearly 300 versions of the common cold. When everybody gets together, you are bound to have some problems." The Kansas Department of Health and Environment distributes a manual that outlines health and safety regulations, and the Douglas County Health Department enforces it at a local level, said Lynn Marotz, associate director of the child development center and health and safety coordinator. "I like to think that in our program we go well beyond the minimum regulations set out by the state," Marotz said. "To do that, we try to train our students in early detection techniques as well as safety precautions. I don't think it is that much more common than working in undergraduate or graduate classes with other students. The key is to wash your hands a lot." By Jeff Ruby Kansan staff writer Students active in Peace Corps Former KU students are among the more active college graduates nationwide in helping foreign countries. Fifty-five KU graduates are serving abroad in the Peace Corps. With that number, the University of Kansas ranks 20th among U.S. schools in Peace Corps volunteers. "You have to be able to give of yourself. But you get more than you give," said Barb Hilpman, a Peace Corps recruiter who set up an information table yesterday at the Kansas Union. "It's harder to come home than it is to stay there." Hilman will be the information table again today, and there will be a film about the Peace Corps shown at 4 p.m. today in the Governor's Room at the Kansas Union. In 1994, the Peace Corps received 10,044 applications. Only 4,310 people were asked to volunteer. Of those, 3,535 accepted the invitations. Hilman said the Peace Corps looked for college graduates who were capable of teaching skills, particularly graduates who were well-rounded and humorous. "The ones who succeed are the ones who keep a sense of humor," she said. "If you lose the ability to laugh at yourself, you're defeated mentally." The Peace Corps sends volunteers on 27-month appointments to underdeveloped nations for three purposes: to share their skills, to bring better understanding of the American people to others and to bring information back to teach other Americans. Volunteers teach people skills in language, the environment, health and other areas. "We're not trying to make them little Americans," Hilman said. "We're trying to show them a better life and help the people help themselves." Thane Thompson, a 1991 KU graduate, served from 1992 to 1994 in Sierra Leone in West Africa. Thompson said his experience completely changed his personality. "It was the best two years of my life," Thompson said. "It turned me from a foolish, self-centered American into a sensitive person who could suddenly perceive other cultures and languages." Thompson said adaptability was the key to a successful mission. "I imagine every detail about your country and then forget it." Thompson said. "Never think about it again. You need to come in with as few preconceptions as you can." Jeff Martin, a Peace Corps public affairs specialist who volunteered in Papua, New Guinea, said the challenge often brings out the best in volunteers. "It shows you just how far you can go in life," he said. "A lot of people go through their lives without being tested. In the Peace Corps you definitely see how much you can take." The Peace Corps, which has volunteers in 92 countries, pays volunteers $5,400 after they complete their service. The Corps pays for travel expenses to and from the country and for room and board during the stay. Volunteers live in conditions similar to those of the host countries' citizens. Everything. 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