University Park

Penn State responds to global threat of SARS with precautions, advice

University Park, Pa. - Penn State health administrators and international study and travel officials are keeping a watchful eye on federal warnings and advisories about the spreading risk of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and its potential impact on University people and programs.

The U.S. Department of State has issued travel advisories for nations currently at the highest risk for spreading SARS, including a recent warning recommending that U.S. citizens defer non-essential travel to China. Other locales identified as high-risk travel destinations to avoid include Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam. In addition, Toronto, Canada has experienced an outbreak of SARS resulting in significant health measures there.

At an institution of Penn State's size and scope where international travel by faculty and students for research and scholarship is significant - as is the number of incoming foreign students for study here - every contingency relating to SARS is being addressed at all levels within the University community.

University Health Services is closely monitoring the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and World Health Organization (WHO) updates and bulletins in order to stay well-informed about the changing epidemiology, advances in testing and other aspects of this emerging infectious disease. Each organization has Web sites offering the latest information on SARS:

- CDC: http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/sars/
- WHO: http://www.who.int/csr/sars/en/

In addition, Penn State has tailored information specific to the University community and detailing the preventative steps being taken against SARS here.

"We have a fact sheet and Q&A that we are providing to anyone with questions, and we are always available to consult with anyone in the Penn State community with specific concerns about SARS," says Peg Spear, director of University Health Services. "Students returning from study abroad in areas where SARS is prevalent can be seen and evaluated by our staff if they have any concerns about their own personal health."

Faculty and staff returning from travel, study or work in high-risk SARS areas are advised to follow CDC recommendations. If they are well and not having any respiratory symptoms, they can return to work without any particular precautions.

Spear advises all employees at risk for SARS to be particularly vigilant about how they are feeling and have a low threshold for reporting symptoms to their personal health care providers. It is important to recognize that the symptoms common in early cases of SARS - fever greater than 100.4°F, cough, shortness of breath and body aches - are similar to the symptoms of pneumonia and other less serious respiratory illnesses. However, symptoms of the common cold - stuffy nose, head congestion and sore throat - are typically not indicators of SARS, although there can be some overlap in symptoms.

If someone in the Penn State community becomes ill with SARS, University Health Services Staff will work closely with the Pennsylvania Department of Health, the CDC and infectious disease specialists to determine what preventive measures may need to be taken to protect the health of the community. People who have had close contact with someone having the disease will need to be evaluated and there may be situations in which limited quarantine is the appropriate response.

With 675 Penn State students currently in study abroad programs around the world, the challenges wrought by SARS are just as crucial for those overseas as they are for those on campus. The University's office of international programs has been regularly passing along federal travel advisories to students and program advisers throughout the semester, and will continue to do so as new alerts are issued by the U.S. Department of State.

To date, no study abroad program administered by Penn State has been cancelled or suspended due to the outbreak of SARS. However, an international study curriculum in Beijing administered independently from the University has decided to complete its program a couple weeks early, on April 19. Seven Penn State students are currently participating in this program, and they have been advised to avoid travel in and around China upon completion of the program and return directly home.

"We are trying to be as prudent as possible with students without causing any unnecessary alarm," says Lewis Jillings, associate vice provost for international programs. "It's difficult for us to imagine that if students follow the advice we are constantly providing, they would not be safe."

In its contacts with students and on-site coordinators, the office of international programs is providing U.S. Department of State advisories as they are issued, emergency contact information, and Web sites for national and global health organizations and U.S. embassies in the countries where students are studying. Information is also posted on the office's Web site: http://www.international.psu.edu/

Jillings notes that Penn State continues to consult with peers in the Committee on Institutional Cooperation - the academic arm of the Big Ten - about any programming decisions that may be required in response to SARS.

Penn State will continue to monitor the SARS epidemic and heed warnings of government and health agencies. Should events warrant, further advisories and program alterations both on campus and abroad may be issued in the future.

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For a fact sheet on SARS provided by Penn State's University Health Services, go to http://live.psu.edu/story/2674

For a Q&A about SARS with specific information for the Penn State community, go to http://live.psu.edu/story/2673

For a medical explanation of SARS from the Medical Minute, a service of Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, go to http://live.psu.edu/story/2855

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Please be advised that information about SARS is changing daily. Please refer to the CDC Web site (http://www.cdc.gov) for the most up-to-date information about SARS.

This page was last updated on Friday, May 2, 2003.

Last Updated March 20, 2009

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