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Student deaths raise flu anxiety level at Miami U.

Miami University students Annie Colavincinzo and Joe Scherger sit behind the HAWKS (Health Advocates for Wellness, Knowledge and Skills) information table inside the Office of Health Education clinic ready to pass out information about the flu Monday, Sept. 28, in Oxford.

Staff photo by Gary Stelzer Miami University students Annie Colavincinzo and Joe Scherger sit behind the HAWKS (Health Advocates for Wellness, Knowledge and Skills) information table inside the Office of Health Education clinic ready to pass out information about the flu Monday, Sept. 28, in Oxford.

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By Dave Larsen, Staff Writer Updated 11:49 PM Monday, September 28, 2009

OXFORD — Miami University students are coping with two deaths three days apart, one involving a current student, the other involving a recent graduate.

“Miami is a pretty close-knit community so when things do happen it’s upsetting to all of us,” said Olivia Dolan of Minneapolis, a Miami senior and Associated Student Government spokeswoman.

Miami freshman Matthew Healey, 18, of Boston, Mass., died Saturday, Sept. 26, at University Hospital in Cincinnati, according to university officials. The Patriot Ledger in Quincy, Mass., said Healey died of swine flu, or the H1N1 virus.

Kimberly Young, 22, of Oxford died Sept. 23 at University Hospital. Young graduated from Miami in December and worked at a coffee shop and deli in Oxford. Her family said she died of complications from viral pneumonia.

It’s unusual for the campus to experience health-related student deaths, Dolan said. “It is very tragic to hear,” she said.

Approximately 100 students attended a meeting with counselors on Sunday night at Morris Hall, Healey’s residence, according to Gail Walenga, assistant vice president for student health and wellness.

On Monday, Miami junior Annie Colavincenzo of Kettering was hanging posters about H1N1 prevention with Joe Scherger, a sophomore from Tiffin, Ohio. Both students are peer health educators.

Scherger said there is a lot of anxiety about the swine flu on campus.

“Don’t panic,” Colavincenzo said. “This is something that can be treated.”

Jessica Gisewhite, a resident assistant at Minnich Hall, said several of her residents had been sick with swine flu symptoms.

“It was just very mild,” said Gisewhite, a junior from Flemington, N.J. “A few days of just a fever and not feeling well.” The students were treated at the campus health center or a hospital and improved within a few days, she said.

Most of the roughly 400 students seen since August with suspected swine flu symptoms at Student Health Services have recovered and returned to class, Walenga said.

Students with continuing symptoms or persistent high fever are told to get emergency medical care, she said.

“We’re usually not this busy this early in the year,” Walenga said. “We anticipate that this is going to continue to be present in our community between now and March.”

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