appleblossom
Senior Moderator
Norovirus possible cause of outbreak of flu-like symptoms at Christian Reformed Church Synod
by Charles Honey | The Grand Rapids Press
Wednesday June 17, 2009, 8:44 PM
PALOS HEIGHTS, ILL. -- It sickened students at Hope College and distressed diners at a Grand Rapids restaurant.
Now it may be messing with ministers of the Christian Reformed Church.
It's called a norovirus, and it could be what made this week's CRC Synod miserable for close to one-third of the 260 delegates, staff and advisers gathered at Trinity Christian College near Chicago.
Though health officials had not confirmed the cause, the symptoms appear similar to the norovirus that afflicted 518 people at Hope College in November, forcing the college to shut down for several days.
The same virus hit at least 166 customers attending an Easter brunch at Noto's Old World Dining, apparently brought in by a person infected with a common gastrointestinal virus.
Whatever it is, it's nothing you want while running an annual church meeting.
"On a scale of 1 to 10, where you're experiencing it at its worst it's probably a 7 or 8," said the Rev. William Koopmans, an Ontario minister and president of the CRC Synod. "It's miserable."
While many sick delegates were confined to their rooms, Koopmans played through the pain for two days. Most who were sick have returned to the meeting, he said, adding, "I think the worst wave of it has gone through."
As of Wednesday, 76 Synod participants had been stricken with the painful, flu-like illness while meeting to conduct the business of the Grand Rapids-based CRC. A dozen new cases were confirmed Tuesday, even as delegates waded through weighty church matters in the week-long meeting.
Close to a dozen college staff also were felled by the illness causing vomiting and nausea.
The Synod news service reported health inspectors said they were 90-percent sure the culprit is a norovirus, a group of viruses causing so-called stomach flu or gastroenteritis. However, officials with Trinity Christian College and the Cook County Department of Public Health would not confirm that.
"We're not ruling that out," said spokeswoman Amy Poore, but added, "We do not have any confirmatory testing to determine what the illness is."
She said the department hopes to have test results by Friday.
"At this point, we cannot rule anything out," said Trinity Provost Liz Ridding. "We are not speculating about the source. We just do not know."
Health officials inspected the Trinity College cafeteria and kitchen for contamination, and the facilities "scored quite well," Poore said. Health officials also reviewed sanitary procedures with kitchen staff and guided workers on environmental cleaning, she said.
Although close to a dozen delegates are absent at any time, it has not held up the work of Synod, Koopmans said.
"We've never had a close vote yet on any of the issues we've had," he said. "So the number of absentees has not affected anything."
One vote delegates took Wednesday showed their confidence in Trinity Christian College. They voted to hold next year's Synod there, too, while the Calvin College Fine Arts Center undergoes renovation.
E-mail Charles Honey: choney@grpress.com
http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2009/06/norovirus_possible_cause_of_ou.html
by Charles Honey | The Grand Rapids Press
Wednesday June 17, 2009, 8:44 PM
PALOS HEIGHTS, ILL. -- It sickened students at Hope College and distressed diners at a Grand Rapids restaurant.
Now it may be messing with ministers of the Christian Reformed Church.
It's called a norovirus, and it could be what made this week's CRC Synod miserable for close to one-third of the 260 delegates, staff and advisers gathered at Trinity Christian College near Chicago.
Though health officials had not confirmed the cause, the symptoms appear similar to the norovirus that afflicted 518 people at Hope College in November, forcing the college to shut down for several days.
The same virus hit at least 166 customers attending an Easter brunch at Noto's Old World Dining, apparently brought in by a person infected with a common gastrointestinal virus.
Whatever it is, it's nothing you want while running an annual church meeting.
"On a scale of 1 to 10, where you're experiencing it at its worst it's probably a 7 or 8," said the Rev. William Koopmans, an Ontario minister and president of the CRC Synod. "It's miserable."
While many sick delegates were confined to their rooms, Koopmans played through the pain for two days. Most who were sick have returned to the meeting, he said, adding, "I think the worst wave of it has gone through."
As of Wednesday, 76 Synod participants had been stricken with the painful, flu-like illness while meeting to conduct the business of the Grand Rapids-based CRC. A dozen new cases were confirmed Tuesday, even as delegates waded through weighty church matters in the week-long meeting.
Close to a dozen college staff also were felled by the illness causing vomiting and nausea.
The Synod news service reported health inspectors said they were 90-percent sure the culprit is a norovirus, a group of viruses causing so-called stomach flu or gastroenteritis. However, officials with Trinity Christian College and the Cook County Department of Public Health would not confirm that.
"We're not ruling that out," said spokeswoman Amy Poore, but added, "We do not have any confirmatory testing to determine what the illness is."
She said the department hopes to have test results by Friday.
"At this point, we cannot rule anything out," said Trinity Provost Liz Ridding. "We are not speculating about the source. We just do not know."
Health officials inspected the Trinity College cafeteria and kitchen for contamination, and the facilities "scored quite well," Poore said. Health officials also reviewed sanitary procedures with kitchen staff and guided workers on environmental cleaning, she said.
Although close to a dozen delegates are absent at any time, it has not held up the work of Synod, Koopmans said.
"We've never had a close vote yet on any of the issues we've had," he said. "So the number of absentees has not affected anything."
One vote delegates took Wednesday showed their confidence in Trinity Christian College. They voted to hold next year's Synod there, too, while the Calvin College Fine Arts Center undergoes renovation.
E-mail Charles Honey: choney@grpress.com
http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2009/06/norovirus_possible_cause_of_ou.html