New York University's independent student newspaper, established in 1973.

Washington Square News

New York University's independent student newspaper, established in 1973.

Washington Square News

New York University's independent student newspaper, established in 1973.

Washington Square News

A mural of a woman’s face holding up a chain with the word “LOISAIDA” and a gold cityscape. The words “el bohio murals” and “#BRINGARTBACK” are next to the woman alongside the words “CURATED BY … THRIVECOLLECTIVE.ORG.”
Activists’ 25-year fight to revive an East Village community center
Dharma Niles, Deputy News Editor • Mar 12, 2024
A front entrance with the text “Electric Lady Studios” written in a retro white font on two reflective walls.
‘An exploitative environment’: The interns behind Electric Lady Studios
Julia Diorio, Music Editor • Feb 20, 2024

Governor urges caution during flu crisis

NYU students returning to the city after winter break should brace themselves for a particularly brutal flu season in New York this winter.

This year, the New York State Department of Health confirmed 2,884 documented cases of the flu, compared to 1,169 in 2011.

Check out our tip sheet for a list of ways to prevent the flu and locations to get a free flu shot. 

In response to this year’s serious flu season, Gov. Andrew Cuomo declared a public health emergency last Saturday in New York and issued an executive order allowing pharmacists to administer flu vaccinations to minors for the next 30 days.

“We are experiencing the worst flu season since at least 2009,” Governor Cuomo said in a press release. “Influenza activity in New York State is widespread, with cases reported in all 57 counties and all five boroughs of New York City.”

The executive order suspends a State Education Law which prohibited pharmacists from administering the vaccine to patients under 18 years old.

Peter Constantakes, a spokesperson for the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, said researchers are still looking into the reasons why this year’s flu season seems to be particularly threatening. One reason may be that this flu season began earlier than usual.

“The flu season usually starts a little later and peaks around February,” Constantakes said. “A lot of times people would be vaccinated before it starts growing or when it just starts growing. This year I think it caught a lot of people off-guard.”

Constantakes said the best way to prevent the flu is by getting vaccinated, but he also advised simple preventative methods for college students such as washing hands frequently and being careful when sharing food.

This year’s flu emergency has even spurred the creation of a web app called Germ Tracker. Adam Sadilek, the app’s creator, explained how the app uses ‘geo-tagged’ statuses from social media websites to create a visual map that documents areas of New York City with a high concentration of those affected by the flu.

“As a result, we can track and predict the emergence of global disease epidemics from people’s day-to-day interactions,” Sadilek said. “For example, how would you count the number of sick people you have encountered yesterday? It’s hard. Germ Tracker allows you to do this by sifting through millions of tweets and showing you only the ones that are relevant to your health.”

A version of this article appeared on the Monday, Jan. 28 print edition. Su Sie Park is a contributing writer. Email her at [email protected].

View comments (1)

Comments (1)

Comments that are deemed spam or hate speech by the moderators will be deleted.
All Sort: Newest

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

 

  • C

    CJan 28, 2013 at 8:42 pm

    Are face-masks sold in new york city? It’s so unhygienic that even the nyu health center does not have any. it’s hard for international students to not get sick because their immune systems are not use to the bacteria & dirt that makes most of new york. …the flu is threatening, especially when sick people walk around coughing on people, because face-masks don’t exist.

    Reply