Willamette’s health, housing officials explain university’s infectious disease protocols, provide flu season recommendations

Giant green viruses descend on dorms. Art by Addie Martin.

As Willamette University is in the midst of its flu season, health officials at the Bishop Wellness Center explained how they keep track of diseases and encouraged students to utilize Bishop Wellness in preparations for the upcoming semester breaks. Last year’s pertussis (whooping cough) outbreak remains a point of reference for campus health officials as they navigate this flu season.  

Willamette has several established means of tracking and managing infectious diseases, as noted by Lauren Carlson, the director of health services and lead nurse practitioner for Bishop Wellness, and Don Thomson, the associate dean for health and wellbeing. Carlson explained, “The state of Oregon monitors wastewater and the number of positive [influenza] cases that are reported.” Willamette then has access to the reported cases and is able to monitor them in relation to on-campus outbreaks. Bishop Wellness sends out reminders to prioritize personal health nearing travel-heavy seasons, before and after the academic breaks. 

Specific protocols at Willamette are managed through county and state public health officials and not the federal Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Expanding on this, Carlson said, “Historically, the CDC and OHA have been pretty aligned.” Thomson added, “But we [Willamette] defer to the Oregon Health Authority because of the regional context.” 

Beyond more common illnesses like influenza or COVID-19, Willamette experienced a whooping cough outbreak last year. Thomson was then in correspondence with the Marion County Health Department, which helped orchestrate an email response to the community. Among other things, the email noted, “Being vaccinated with Tdap [tetanus, diphtheria, and acellular pertussis] is effective at preventing pertussis or decreasing its severity, and is a critical protection.” The email provided contact information for medical advice and continued to explain early symptoms of pertussis, ending with a statement about the disease’s typical incubation period of 1-2 weeks. 

Jake Freeland (’26), a  public health major and student-athlete, contracted whooping cough last year during the outbreak. “I’m celiac and immunocompromised, which means certain vaccines I take at certain times might not be effective.” Freeland self-isolated and received antibiotics to combat the bacterial infection. As a student-athlete, however, Freeland was unaware of how long the cough would linger, which impacted his return to the Willamette tennis team. “The cough lingered for 3 ½ months. … I got it in November and was still recovering in February,” he said.

Freeland discussed the importance of understanding the severity of the whooping cough and advised other students to contact trace if sick and to wear masks. Containment protocols necessary for contact tracing include exposure notifications to those potentially infected. 

Bishop Wellness, in addition to antibiotics, can provide the flu vaccine across both the Willamette and PNCA campuses. Carlson also listed other communicable diseases Bishop can treat, including strep throat, sinus infections, pneumonia, ear infections and other symptoms that can accompany respiratory viruses. Students are able to purchase COVID-19 tests over the counter as well. In situations where Bishop Wellness cannot provide adequate resources for students, medical referrals can be provided. 

Additionally, a vaccine clinic partnership is in the works between Safeway Pharmaceuticals and Willamette University to offer vaccines not offered on campus. Carlson explained, “[Safeway] could do an MMR vaccine, meningitis vaccine, COVID vaccine and booster shots.” On Nov. 17, the Bishop Wellness and Safeway Pharmaceuticals partnership had a flu and COVID vaccine clinic for the Willamette community in the University Center, providing free or low-cost vaccines to students before holiday travel.

Bishop has recommended students to go to Safeway for other medical needs but acknowledges that it may be a barrier for some students. Soon, Bishop plans to further its partnership with Safeway. While health care at Safeway is billed through students’ direct insurance under preventative health care, in the future, if a student uses the school insurance with the partnership, there could be no additional cost. The anticipated continuation for the partnership is within the next academic year. 

Aaron Hukari, the director of residence life and housing, commented on housing's role in combating the spread of infections as well: “RA’s report up concerns coming from residents. Then, we can communicate [to the Willamette community] what the issue is.”

Hukari explained that housing follows Bishop’s recommendations, but challenges stem from congregate living. Hukari recommended that students stay home when sick, access health care services where possible and wash their hands.