Along with a recent incident of chickenpox at CHS has come confusion about the severity of the incident.

According to Freshman Center nurse Julie Beihold, there has been only one reported case of the disease to the Hamilton County Health Department, which was reported a few weeks ago.

“We (the CHS health staff) aren’t even sure there is an actual incident, but since the disease is so contagious, the parents can only call the doctor’s office and tell them the symptoms. (Chickenpox) is an airborne disease, so yes, you can get it just by having someone either cough or sneeze on you,” Beihold said.

According to Beihold, some symptoms to look for are slight blisters and bruising everywhere, intense coughing and wheezing and high fevers. The disease can also be spread by direct touch as well because blisters are infected with the disease, so just coming in contact with an open pore can infect someone.

Beihold also advises that all staff members and students who haven’t had the disease in their lives yet, especially those who are pregnant, get two vaccines as soon as possible.

“Although it is very rare, it is still possible that someone can die from the disease. The good thing is, there hasn’t been an outbreak yet, because in order to have an outbreak, the health department needs to report at least three incidents to the school. If there were to be an outbreak, then those students and staff who have neither been vaccinated nor had the disease when they were young would have to temporarily leave school for at least 21 days until they have gotten their vaccinations. We hope that an outbreak will not occur,” Beihold said.