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The flu has hit local colleges with varying degrees of intensity, ranging from 76 cases at Franklin & Marshall College to none at Lancaster Bible College and Harrisburg Area Community College.
Schools that haven't seen an outbreak yet are bracing for it.
Millersville University has seen just five confirmed cases of Influenza A, which colleges suspect is swine flu, including one Monday. All five students went home to recuperate, said MU spokeswoman Janet Kacskos.
In the meantime, MU's health center is seeing lots of sick students. During a normal flu season, it sees 50 a day. Now the center is seeing 80 a day, and 30 to 40 percent of those students have flu-like symptoms.
"We'll keep our fingers crossed we don't have higher numbers," Kacskos said. "It seems to be so prevalent everywhere, it's probably only a matter of time."
Similarly, Elizabethtown College has seen just one confirmed case of Influenza A.
"We have to be at the beginning of it," said Sandy Spayd, director of student wellness and campus health. "I keep waiting for it to hit but it hasn't actually hit yet."
Elizabethtown will give sick students "flu kits," which include a mask students can wear if they have to leave their room, Tylenol, Gatorade, tissues and packets of hand sanitizer.
Also, the college has set up a system where sick students will be assigned a "flu buddy," who will deliver their meals.
Health officials at Elizabethtown are encouraging well students to keep a 6-foot "social distance" from sick students but are not relocating roommates, as the college does not have available rooms.
If sick students are able to go home, the college also is encouraging them to do so, she said.
At Lancaster Bible College, no reported cases of the flu have surfaced but students, faculty and staff apparently are anxious to stay well.
The college saw a higher-than-normal turnout when it administered seasonal flu shots Monday, said Mary Lou Joline, director of health services.
Almost 70 people showed up, compared to less than 50 last year, she said.
"Even if you have the (seasonal) flu shot, it does give you some protection if you get the swine flu," she said. "You're likely to get a less severe case."
F&M, which has had the worst outbreak to date among local colleges, is delivering meals to ill students. It is offering to relocate roommates as well, and notifying faculty members that sick students are not able to attend classes, spokeswoman Nancy Collins said.
The college hopes the worst is over for its campus, which saw its first suspected swine flu case back on Aug. 31.
"We have noticed a tapering off in the past week," Collins said. "The peak was right around Labor Day. After that, it definitely seems the pace is slowing."
E-mail: cstauffer@lnpnews.com
