Deseret News | U. hospital gears up for a surge of flu patients

Reader comments
U. hospital gears up for a surge of flu patients

KVC | 5:15 p.m. Oct. 16, 2009

As a physician I find it utterly ridiculous that parents would intentionally expose their children to the flu. That is pretty stupid, especially considering the flu does kill people.
People don't understand that it is not only their children that would be affected, but also anyone who comes in contact with their children, or their children's germs, including those who are at high risk of complications from the flu.

Parties? | 5:28 p.m. Oct. 16, 2009

The content of this article does not match that of the title. What are the benefits/risks of such parties? Who is having them? Did you interview anyone that had such party?

The article only contains information about what schools and universities are doing to prepare for an outbreak or limit exposure.

I'd be interested in a follow up article with information matching the title.

A concerned mother | 5:38 p.m. Oct. 16, 2009

I find that totally awful to hear people would purposely harm their child to such awful extremes as a deadly flu! What do they think next would be novel or fun? A trip to watch nuclear explosions because of the pretty mushrooms clouds, come on! I would never do that because I care about my children way to much to "get it over with", this isn't a novel thing or something that should taken lightly what they are doing is really, really gross! Show some love, your kids need it more than "getting over it" with the virus!

Comments continue below

blah | 5:44 p.m. Oct. 16, 2009

the swine scare is so stupid. people die from the flu all the time...wish the media would get over it and report the truth about it that it is basically the flu and people with pre existing conditions could die..DUH!

Anonymous | 5:55 p.m. Oct. 16, 2009

My question is this isn't sending them to school the same? I mean you could think of the school bus as the BIG Yellow Germ Incubator.

xscribe | 8:31 p.m. Oct. 16, 2009

@Blah: Maybe you don't have kids to understand the concern. So far, deaths of children from swine flu have surpassed that of the so-called regular flu, and the season has only just begun. Maybe it will get a lot worse or maybe it won't, but to just cavalierly say people die from this - it's mostly children by the way - says something about your mental state, especially if you're one of those people who pretend to care so much about children. By the way, quite a few of these kids are dying with otherwise unknown pre-existing conditions.

Artes Liberalis | 2:04 a.m. Oct. 17, 2009

I have seven children, two left at home. I would no sooner put them on a "big yellow incubator", send them to the local germ pool (school), nor have an exposure party. What can people be thinking.

At this point, I am happy that are local schools were a year behind our last school. It prompted a request from my daughter to school at home so she could get an education. Worked great education wise and illness to our family drastically decreased. Just in time too. Right after I brought her home they had a hepatitis A breakout at the school and in the neighborhood. Seems the school had taken all the soap out of the restrooms before the outbreak.

I teach my family to wash their hands with soap. I buy for more than a week's worth of food at a time, so I spend less on impulse, save more, and have less exposure to colds and flu. We watch our nutrition too. The body cannot defend itself from viruses if it does not have its nutritional needs met.

TheMonitor | 6:14 a.m. Oct. 17, 2009

I have never seen a bunch of people that are so ignorant!
That is why this Country is in so much trouble today! I am 52 and I went through the Swine flu Epedemic in the 70's and seen many die from it who were young and old. Why not take a gun a shoot the Young and Old and Immune surpressed!Just get the SHOTS ! Everyone should get both SHOTS! FLU AND SWINE FLU!Stop making stupid excuses!People have NO CONSIDERATION FOR ANYONE ELSE! Not getting the shots is like taking a gun and killing others you do not even know!GOD help us all!!!!!

Not the chickenpox | 7:02 a.m. Oct. 17, 2009

Hey Blah...try reading. The new information is that the H1N1 can cause pulmonary embolism. Look it up. Oh nevermind...those are blood clots to the lungs. Yep. It's a new complication. A mean one and a killer.

So sorry these kids are disturbing their parents' schedules to the point they'd "expose" them as if this were a chickenpox outbreak! What uninformed, callous parents. Idiotic. I'd be willing to bet they're not even educating their kids about hand washing, covering their face with their sleeve instead of their hand while coughing...all those little things that help to not spread disease.

Hopefully, they won't take their "exposed" kids to the grocery store, movies, and, of course, their doctor's office once the kids are seriously ill and demand attention first. Get in line.

cjmagann | 7:41 a.m. Oct. 17, 2009

My teenager has underlying health conditions and he hasn't been in school since the first announcement of a flu without a vaccine.
Sure, we have cabin fever; but, we've already spent time in ICU on 3 separate occasions with RSV and similar diseases. School and church are the worst places you can take your vulnerable kids during this time.

yep | 3:33 p.m. Oct. 17, 2009

just keep it going , already it is hittig my college at an alarming rate so just wait!

Anonymous | 3:37 p.m. Oct. 17, 2009

The vaccine is given out free, but the test to confirm H1N1 is $120 with insurance! How are parents going to be able to afford to test their children once they are exposed?

Anonymous | 9:25 a.m. Oct. 24, 2009

Does the ($120) test distinguish accurately between the novel H1N1 (swine flu) and the seasonal H1N1 that is in the seasonal flu vaccine. There are reports that the testing is quite inadequate to distinguish the two. Certainly the rapid flu tests in the ER and urgent care centers cannot distinguish.

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