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Flu is hitting DeKalb County By KATIE DAHLSTROM kdahlstrom@shawmedia.com The flu virus is already leaving its mark on DeKalb County, disrupting a holiday party for seniors and keeping hundreds of children home from school. DeKalb County isn’t alone in its battle against the flu. The Illinois Department of Public Health reported last week flu cases had been confirmed in at least half of the state, with more people getting sick than at this point last year. “We don’t really know how many cases of the flu are out there because it’s not reported, with a few exceptions,” DeKalb
an open house this past Saturday because some of its residents have the flu, according • What: DeKalb County Health to staff there. Lux said she’s Department flu clinic also received reports about • When: 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. and 1 to increased flu activity in lo4 p.m. Monday through Friday cal school districts, including • Where: DeKalb County Health Sycamore School District 427. Department, 2550 N. Annie Glidden Almost 9 percent of students Road in Sycamore’s public schools • Who: Anyone 6 months or older were absent Monday because • Cost: $38 of illness, which could include the flu, Superintendent Kathy Countryman said. County Health Department Lux touted a three-step apAdministrator Jane Lux said. proach to combating the flu. “But we do know the illness The first step, she said, is to get has started early this season.” vaccinated. The DeKalb CounThe DeKalb County Rehab ty Health Department runs and Nursing Home canceled a flu clinic daily for anyone 6
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months or older. Lux said so far the agency has given more than 1,000 vaccinations, with plenty left in stock. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last month reported the flu vaccine is less effective against one of the more common strains going around this season. Lux said that’s not a reason for people to forgo the shot. “The bottom line is, yes, the effectiveness of the vaccine is not as high against that drifted strain,” Lux said. “However, the vaccination will provide some protection and will be effective against other strains.” Lux added that elderly peo-
ple, children under 18, pregnant women and those with other conditions that make them more susceptible to the virus should promptly seek treatment if they suspect they have the flu. The final precautions, Lux said, are to wash hands often, to avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth and to avoid contact with sick people. Countryman said the school custodians have been cleaning more often than usual things such as doorknobs students frequently touch. All staff have been advised to clean technology such as iPads, keyboards and computer mice in between
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each student. But no matter how much they clean, Countryman said she knows some students and staff will still get sick, be it from the flu or another illness. “We’re monitoring each building with the number of students that are out sick,” Countryman said. “The biggest thing is that if students do feel sick, they should stay home.”
Local doctor suspended; drugs, files found in trash Vijay Marwaha had offices in Sandwich, Hinckley By KATIE DAHLSTROM kdahlstrom@shawmedia.com
Mary Beth Nolan for Shaw Media
The deputy city clerk greets DeKalb resident Michael Haji-Sheikh on Monday as he files as a candidate for 5th Ward alderman Monday in DeKalb.
Local office seekers have until Monday to file paperwork By KATIE DAHLSTROM kdahlstrom@shawmedia.com DeKALB – As 8:30 a.m. approached Monday, Michael Haji-Sheikh was the only candidate at DeKalb City Hall waiting to file his election petition. Haji-Sheikh, 54, of the 500 block of Park Avenue, is running for the Ward 5 seat on the DeKalb City Council, one of four council positions up for election on April 7. DeKalb voters also will choose a new city clerk. Similar scenes played out across DeKalb County with the beginning of the candidate filing period to run in the local election. From today until Monday, candidates can file election petitions to appear on the ballot in the April 2015 consolidated election. Local cities, villages and towns, school boards, park district boards and library boards are among the units of local government that will have seats up for election. Haji-Sheikh, an associate professor of
electrical engineering at Northern Illinois University, said he wants to see more focus put on the relationship between the city and its residents. He’s been part of ongoing and, at times, contentious discussions about redevelopment in the Ellwood Historic Neighborhood. “I think that’s an important aspect,” Haji-Sheikh said. “I think the neighbors and neighborhood should be involved. An alderman should represent the ward and then bring that forward to work within the city.” Ward 5 Alderman Ron Naylor is not seeking re-election; Ward 3 Alderwoman Kristen Lash also has said she will not seek to retain her seat. Incumbent Ward 7 Alderwoman Monica O’Leary, 48, turned in her petition Monday morning to retain the seat she won in 2011. Former city clerk Steve Kapitan, 61, who now works as the temporary scan coordinator at Jewel-Osco, filed for Ward 3. He served as an alderman from Ward 3 from 1995 to 2007 before being elected city
clerk in 2009. He resigned from that position in 2012 after failing to comply with the state’s Open Meetings Act. He unsuccessfully ran in a race among four write-in candidates for the clerk position last year. “It’s a different skill set,” Kapitan said. “I feel as alderman I did a very good job. If people want to raise specific concerns, I would answer those.” In Sycamore, four candidates filed petitions for seats on the Sycamore City Council on Monday morning. Incumbents Curt Lang, Ward 1; Chuck Stowe, Ward 2; and Rick Kramer, Ward 4, filed. Meanwhile, newcomer Becky Springer filed as a candidate for Ward 3. Springer, 39, is a real estate lending manager at Illinois Community Credit Union. A lifelong Sycamore resident, Springer said she’s always wanted to hold a public office so she could help the city thrive. “We need to draw in businesses,”
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SANDWICH – The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation suspended the license of a DeKalb County doctor Monday after he filled dumpsters with prescription pills and documents containing confidential patient information. State officials have been unable to locate Dr. Vijay K. Marwaha, who had offices at 208 E. Railroad St. in Sandwich and 142 W. Lincoln Ave. in Hinckley, according to court documents. Officials allege Marwaha tossed medical records, insurance claim forms and progress notes containing social security numbers and other confidential information in the trash bin behind his Sandwich office in November. Sandwich Police Department officers uncovered the trash bins after a woman told them on Nov. 2 her teenage son brought home several bags of medication he found in the trash behind the Sandwich office. “[The state] further alleges that the public interest, safety and welfare imperatively require emergency action, in that [Marwaha’s] continued practice of medicine constitutes an immediate danger to the public,” Chief Medical Prosecutor Laura Forestor wrote. Local and state officials said it appeared Marwaha had thrown the documents and pills away while closing his office because the Sandwich office was vacant. The number there has been disconnected. Calls to Marwaha’s Hinckley office and to his home phone were not answered. The federal Drug Enforcement Administration’s Chicago office is investigating Marwaha for inappropriately prescribing controlled substances to patients, according to the complaint. According to online records from the state, Marwaha was first licensed as a physician and surgeon in 1981. His license was most recently renewed in April and is set to expire in 2017. Online records show Marwaha was reprimanded once before, in 2008, for failing to identify renal failure and bladder cancer and failing to maintain sufficient records. That incident also resulted in a $1.6 million malpractice judgment against Marwaha in 2007. Susan Hofer, the spokesperson for the state financial and professional regulation department, said Marwaha’s license had been temporarily suspended. He has been asked to attend a hearing at 11 a.m. Dec. 23 in front of the state’s Medical Disciplinary Board. “At this point,” Hofer said, “it’s up to the doctor to explain what he was doing.”
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