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Several swine flu cases confirmed in Horry County, Sept. 8, 2:40 p.m.
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First reported on the Chronicle's Facebook fan page at 10:40 a.m.
By Michael Smith, Charles Perry and Kathy Ropp
The Chronicle
Sharon Daisey knew something was amiss last week when one by one, her daughter’s classmates at Socastee High School began falling ill.
The Myrtle Beach area mom suspected swine flue, but said school officials told her swine flu wasn’t to blame.
The school attributed it to a simple case of “kids talking,” she said.
But when her daughter started running a fever two days later, Daisey took her daughter to the doctor, who diagnosed it as H1N1, or swine flu.
In the days that followed, her son who attends school at Forestbrook Middle was also diagnosed with swine flu. He has since recovered, while Daisey said her daughter is still fighting the illness.
The two Daisey family cases represent are among hundreds of swine flu cases statewide.
An exact count doesn’t exist because the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) only records a case when a patient is hospitalized or if a doctor reports it, officials say.
Although DHEC has confirmed more than 500 swine flu cases statewide, the agency no longer tracks every case.
In April and May, the agency tested every specimen that came its way. But because the disease is “grossly underreported,” the numbers didn’t mean anything, said Adam Myrick, a DHEC spokesman.
“It [swine flu] is here and it’s going to stay here,” Myrick said. “It’s no surprise that it’s [in Horry County]. We are in the middle of a pandemic.”
The Horry County swine flu cases contradict previous reports from state health officials and other media outlets that the sickness was confined to a couple of cases in Georgetown County.
The lack of an official swine flu count creates an unsafe situation by needlessly exposing school children to the disease, Daisey said.
She blames DHEC for not requiring tighter reporting procedures, and also Horry County Schools for apparently downplaying the growing swine flu problem, saying there are at least 10 likely cases of swine flu at Socastee High alone.
“My daughter was freaking out because one kid who sits in front of her is out with swine flu,” Daisey said. “Legally, they should have to report it. And you should be allowed to pull your kid out of school and not worry about them failing because of swine flu.”
Several Horry County school board members have asked to discuss swine flu and reporting policies at the board’s next meeting Sept. 14, said District 3 board member Joe DeFeo.
Meantime, DeFeo said parents should report confirmed cases of swine flu to the school and/or district office immediately.
Read the full story in the Sept. 10 edition of the Carolina Forest Chronicle.
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