UF students, faculty and staff received an email Friday about the deadly coronavirus outbreak with preventative information for students.
UF officials sent an email about the deadly coronavirus outbreak in the wake of several confirmed cases of the illness around the world.
UF spokesperson Steve Orlando said about 1,800 UF students are from China and may be traveling to and from these areas, but the focus is on monitoring travel in general rather than China itself.
Orlando said he encourages students to register with the UF International Center if they plan to travel abroad so officials are aware of anyone traveling to affected areas.
“We want people to know that there are resources and information available that we want them to be aware of,” he said.
The email mentioned that some UF sponsored programs like study abroad may be affected in impacted areas, but Orlando said no decision has been made to alter them yet.
Coronavirus is the name of a group of viruses. It includes common cold viruses, said Dr. Ron Berry, the interim director of UF Student Health Care Center. He said the emerging cases are more serious because there is no current vaccination or cure.
The email lists prevention methods and possible symptoms from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The symptoms include fever, coughing and difficulty breathing, with extreme cases leading to respiratory illnesses, worsened by the current lack of treatment.
The outbreak began in early December in Wuhan, China. Those who have been in Wuhan in the past 14 days and are experiencing symptoms should seek medical attention immediately and not have contact with others, according to the CDC. Chinese officials closed ports to enter and leave Wuhan.
Dr. Berry said the new virus has never been seen in humans. It was likely an animal virus that was transmitted to humans, according to the CDC.
Dr. Berry said Gainesville residents are more likely to catch the cold and flu than the coronavirus. He said updates will be given as necessary, and ongoing knowledge is being provided by the CDC, which has issued a level 3 health warning to avoid all nonessential travel to the Chinese Hubei Province, including Wuhan.
He said he is glad that UF has been proactive in releasing the preventative information for students to be aware of.
“We don’t want it to be an alarm,” Dr. Berry said. “There’s no expectation that we’ll be having this here.”
Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)
