WOUB reporter Pat Henderson joins us live in the newsroom. Pat--you sat down with Kenneth Bolen today who lost his granddaughter to the virus unexpectedly.
That's right Sarah. Bolen and his family are still trying to cope with lost of 3 year-old Elizabeth Grace Bolen. He says his granddaughter had NO symptoms of the virus and that health care officials may need to change the way the virus is detected.
PACKAGE: [TAKE PKG] {***PKG***} [TAKE SOT NAME: Kenneth Bolen INCUE: a week ago OUTCUE: this virus is AT: 1:23:39 TO: 1:23:57 DURATION:0:18] {***SOT FULL***} [CG :Std Lower 3rd\Kenneth Bolen Sr.\GRANDFATHER OF VICTIM] <1:23:39 A week ago thursday my grandaughter who was three years old - died of the h1n1 virus -um- it came on very sudden and unexpected and I just want people to be aware of how bad this virus is. 1:23:57>
Kenneth Bolen's granddaughter was one of many victims of the H1N1 virus. According to the Center for Disease Control - more than 1,000 people have died in the U.S. Since the virus emerged last spring. The Athens County Health commissioner says this disease is different than the typical flu...
[TAKE SOT NAME: Dr. Gaskell OUTCUE: seem tob e immune from the disease AT: 1:11:51 TO: 1:12:06 DURATION:0:15] {***SOT FULL***} [CG :Std Lower 3rd\Dr. James Gaskell\ATHENS HEALTH COMMISSIONER] <1:11:51 Individuals who are most at risk from h1n1 disease are the very young people - actually from 6 months to about 45 years - the older people -people 65 and older - seem to be immune from the disease. 1:12:06>
Dr. James Daskell says people with the h1n1 virus feel more sick and the symptoms are more severe. But Kenneth Bolen says with his granddaughter it wasn't so obvious ...
[TAKE SOT] {***SOT FULL***} <1:26:50ish This flu does not show up as flu all the time. It does not have the classic flue symptoms in everyone. My granddaughter was one of them. The headaches, and sneezing, and runny nose was not here. 1:25:09>
He says his granddaughter had a headache that saturday and by the time she was taken to O'Bleness hospital on wednesday ... It was too late. Dr. Daskell says studies have shown that giving kids the treatment Tamiflu within the first 48 hours of symptoms can decrease the chance of death. Bolen says people need to be more proactive about the disease ... And says more needs to be done to prevent the spread of h1n1.
[TAKE SOT BOLEN DURATION:0:12] {***SOT FULL***} <1:29:24 Stay at home. Stay away from other people. Do not spread it anymore than we absolutely have to. Let's get some better diagnostic tests and some better treatments so that no one else has to ie from this. 1:29:44>
Health officials still say take the precationary measures for prevention. That includes hand washing, covering your mouth when coughing and staying at home if you feel sick. Reporting live form the news room--Pat henderson.