DAILY LOBO new mexico
wednesday January 22, 2014
The Independent Student Voice of UNM since 1895
Flu season called ‘average’
Photo illustration by William Aranda / Daily Lobo Masks adorn the faces of two statues outside of the SUB on Monday evening. UNMH reported that 81 percent of cases of the flu occurring from late fall to early spring were caused by the H1N1 virus, otherwise known as swine flu.
by Manuel Sandoval news@dailylobo.com @sandovalmanny
Out of 43 cases of the flu found at UNM Hospital so far this flu season, more than half have been confirmed as swine flu. Dr. Meghan Brett, the leading epidemiologist at the hospital, said 81 percent of the cases reported from late fall to early spring
were caused by the H1N1 virus. Brett said it’s not as bad as most people might think. “There are two types of influenza: influenza A and influenza B,” she said. “And there’s actually multiple types of influenza A. For instance, last year, H3N2 was circulating. That was the strain of influenza that was affecting us, and now this year, it’s H1N1.” The H1N1 strain of influen-
za is the same virus that sickened UNMH patients in the 2009 to 2010 flu season and again in 2010 to 2011, Brett said. This has been a very typical flu season, she said. She said H1N1 is just as transmissible and contagious as last season’s flu strain was. “It’s probably no different, in many regards, from most flu seasons,” says Brett.
Influenza A viruses are named for the number of proteins on the surface of the virus: hemagglutinin and neuraminidase. H1N1 has one hemagglutinin protein and one neuraminidase protein on the surface of each virus. H2N3 has two H proteins and three N proteins. For an average flu season such as this year’s, UNMH takes certain precautions to make sure the
students were working together to make sure that the classrooms were running smoothly and that everything was as it should be.” The SLI Program is one of 14 programs in the United States to receive accreditation from the CCIE. This accreditation applies to the SLI program’s Bachelor of Science degree. “SLI accreditation has only been happening for about six years,” Sherman Wilcox, a professor for the SLI program and former Linguistics Department chair, said. “We are the 14th accredited program in the United States. It’s a nice accomplishment.” Wilcox said this recognition for UNM and the SLI program will
mean a lot for the future of the program and for those going into the SLI career field. “Sign language interpreters have to be certified depending on which state you are in.” Wilcox said. “In order to become certified you have to graduate from a four-year degree program... And beyond that they will certainly require a four-year degree from an accredited interpreting program. In other words, if you want to interpret in New Mexico, you have to be certified, and soon, that certification test will only be available for those who have graduated from a four-year accredited program.” Miller said attaining a degree from accredited program would be
important for future opportunities.. “If any student were to achieve a bachelor’s degree in signed language interpreting, the accreditation would mean a whole lot to any kind of job they were looking to apply for,” she said. Wilcox said that the program is going to grow as a result of this accreditation.“We really feel like the raising standards of the entire field of SLI and the continuing need of interpreters in the community is going to impact the program,” he said. “We are going to have to expand and grow and serve out-of-state students.” Wilcox added that out-of-state students will now be attracted to UNM because of this accreditation.
flu does not spread among employees or patients, Brett said. She said UNMH advises people in the hospital to have good hand hygiene, and requires doctors and nurses who attend to hospitalized flu patients to wear masks, gloves and gowns to protect them from the virus. Some students have expressed concerns about the number of
see H1N1 PAGE 2
UNM signing program gains accreditation SLI program one of only 14 in US to be certified by Travis Gonzales news@dailylobo.com
The Signed Language Interpretation Program at UNM has received a 10-year accreditation from the Commission on Collegiate Interpreter Education. Rebekah Miller, an SLI program applicant, said this achievement is the product of work by both the faculty and the students of the SLI program. “All of us were really giving our best,” she said. “Professors and
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“For most of our existence we have primarily served in-state students, the majority of our students are from New Mexico,” he said. “I think we are going to see a change in that, we are going to see out-of-state students wanting to come to New Mexico.” Wilcox hopes to attract students to New Mexico and keep them in the state, where much help is needed concerning the deaf community. “We will have to be careful because we serve the New Mexico community, so we have to be concerned about producing interpreters that will stay in New Mexico,” he said.
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