Another great write up about the study, this one from NBC News, Health:
C.A.T.C.H. [Characterizing And Tracking College Health] - the virus study
Snot your average research $tudy
Month: February 2018
This Week in Virology (more affectionately known as TWiV), had a recent episode reviewing the current flu season and discussed our recently published work in PNAS concerning flu in exhaled breath!
The NBC team with Dr. John Torres is just packing up and leaving campus now. Watch us on the Evening News with Lester Holt soon. (We will post an update when we know which night it will broadcast.)
The Centers for Disease Control now report that a total of 63 children have died from the flu this season and this is the highest rate of flu-like illnesses since the 2009 swine flu pandemic. Part of the reason is the prominence of the H3N2 virus, a particularly deadly influenza virus, and the low efficacy …
Source: Dr. Fauci: A Universal Flu Vaccine is Possible – Matter of Fact with Soledad O’Brien
An important part of the research study involves students who are eligible downloading and running our smartphone app. Each time the app sends a data point, we also count that data point as an entry into a lottery. Twice each month we’ll be randomly selecting a winner from this lottery pool to win $20 and a Giant Microbe. Our first winner was announced this week!
Despite also coming in as a case because she wasn’t feeling well, our winner smiled for a photo op with her Influenza Giant Microbe.
Congratulations, and we hope you have enjoy your flu (but only the stuffed one!)
The study was highlighted in a segment on CBS This Morning! CATCH it here!
The CATCH study has been getting some local press! The study was recently featured in a story on ABC7 WJLA:
The spring semester is well underway, and CATCH is up and running again!
In the past two weeks we’ve been working to get participants into the clinic. Dr. Milton visited the GPH and STS freshmen colloquia to remind students the study is on-going, and how to contact us when they get sick.
CATCH also sponsored several informational events, with hot cocoa and Insomnia Cookies.
We had study staff and research assistants on had to answer questions and help people download the phone app.
We were also able to award our fall semester phone app download prize of $500. Our lucky winner was on hand to collect his prize and get his picture taken. Congrats again to him, and remember, when you download the app, each data point you collect goes into our lottery for a bi-monthly $20 prize, and for another $500 prize at the end of the spring semester!
So far this semester, the CATCH study has seen 8 cases and seen cases of Flu and Coronavirus. With this flu season shaping up to the worst in almost a decade, we expect to see even more cases as the semester continues.
Remember, if you’re a freshman living the Cambridge community and in the STS, LS, or GPH scholars program, or a roommate of one of these students, and you start to feel sick, we’d love to see you! You can make a little cash, find out what you’re sick with, and most importantly, help us as we try to CATCH the virus!
