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'I cried when I heard I had swine flu'
July 30 2009 at 08:20AM
By Angelique Serrao
A mother who believed her daughter could die from swine flu blames her child's university for not warning students and parents of a possible outbreak.
The woman said there were rumours of an outbreak of the virus at the University of Johannesburg during the mid-year holidays and she was worried about sending her daughter back for the third term.
"They rented out their residence rooms during the holidays and we heard that people who had stayed in their rooms had swine flu. But then an SMS went out telling parents and students not to worry, and that there was a very low risk of getting swine flu."
But less than one week later, her daughter contracted the disease, and some of her friends now have similar symptoms. The mother believes the virus spread from the cleaning staff to students.
Another student at the university said this week that lecturers had told them that they were aware of 27 students who had the virus.
The 20-year-old first-year student, who did not want to be identified, began feeling ill last Wednesday.
"It started off as a sore throat," the student said.
"I rested and thought it would go away."
But the next day she woke up with more severe flu-like symptoms.
"I was lethargic and had a bit of a cough. Throughout the day I felt worse and worse." She called her mother, who came to pick her up on Thursday night.
"She looked terrible. That night we went through hell. I have never seen my daughter so sick before. I thought I would lose her."
The student was shivering, had a temperature of 40?C and had back pain and a stiff neck.
"I felt dizzy and confused and could not climb the stairs. My back was so sore, I have never had backache like that, and I felt cold," she recounts.
Her mother gave her all sorts of medication and stayed up all night watching over her.
"She was shivering the whole time and sweating. I had to change her clothes," the mother said.
The next morning, the student had diarrhoea, and she went to the Life Fourways Hospital, where she was given an injection, and a mouth swab was taken to test for swine flu.
On Sunday, the test came back positive and the 20-year-old was admitted to hospital. She is back home now, in isolation, and will return to lectures next week.
"I wouldn't wish this on anyone," the student said. "I cried when I heard I had swine flu. I just thought this can't be happening to me."
The student has two friends who have gone home with severe flu-like symptoms. They are waiting for their swine flu results to come back.
A friend in her residence had to be carried out by her parents last Thursday because she was so ill.
"The doctor called me this morning and told me that another boy from the same university has tested positive for swine flu," the mother said.
"It seems as though it is spreading - and quickly. They have only been back for one week and already so many are sick. The university should have warned us or let people know there is an outbreak."
The mother believes the advice given by doctors that swine flu is just like any other flu is nonsense.
"This thing can so easily be fatal. My daughter struggled to breathe for days. I have two packets filled with medication, on top of her being admitted to hospital, that I have given her. If someone doesn't get medical attention, they can easily die from this."
University of Johannesburg spokesman Herman Esterhuizen said that during a squash tournament over the holidays, 16 cases of swine flu were reported by students from various universities.
Three of them were from the University of Johannesburg. He was not aware of the new cases.
"We appeal to students that if they have any flu-like symptoms, they must report to the health centre immediately," Esterhuizen said.
He said the university was in close contact with the National Institute for Communicable Diseases in an effort to try to control the spread of the virus.