Raymond Plotkin exhibited flu-like symptoms five days before checking into UNM Hospital, where he died Wednesday with what appears to be the H1N1 virus.
Plotkin’s roommate, Esteban Martinez, said the freshman locked himself in his room and stayed away from classes to avoid spreading the illness before he was hospitalized. Martinez also said Plotkin had chronic health issues.
“He’d had medical problems in the past,” Martinez said. “He seemed fine when he came here, and then it just hit him, and we weren’t expecting it to happen.”
Martinez said Plotkin isolated himself in his room in the Redondo Village Apartments on Monday or Tuesday, staying away from classes and large groups, before going to UNM Hospital on Saturday morning.
Student Health and Counseling Director Beverly Kloeppel said the University has done everything in its power to prevent an H1N1 outbreak.
“Everything else that’s been possible for us to do, I think we’ve been doing,” Kloeppel said.
Kloeppel said she was not aware of any underlying medical conditions that might have contributed to Plotkin’s death, and the Department of Health determines the relevance of any illness to cause of death.
The Department of Health told the Albuquerque Journal that an 18-year-old man with chronic health conditions had died of the H1N1 virus but could not confirm the man was Plotkin.
H1N1 vaccines were slated to arrive on campus in October but have been delayed. Kloeppel doubted an on-time delivery would have prevented Plotkin’s death.
“It would have had to have been quite a bit earlier,” she said. “That’s one of the tragedies of the whole thing, from my perspective.”
In a statement posted Friday to the UNM School of Engineering Web site, SOE Dean Arup Maji said Plotkin, who was an engineering major, had potential to go far in the field.
“The UNM School of Engineering is deeply saddened by the death of freshman engineering student Raymond Plotkin,” Maji said. “He was a conscientious student who had already exhibited an understanding of the dedication required to achieve excellence in the engineering profession.”
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An e-mail sent by Residence Life and Student Housing to all on-campus residents encouraged students to be careful not to spread the virus if they have flu-like symptoms.
“Everyone must remember that the flu is something to be aware of and to take precautions against,” the e-mail stated. “We are encouraging all residents to remain vigilant in regards to washing hands often and using hand sanitizers located in your main residence hall entrances and in the La Posada Dining Facility.”
Marlene Ballejos, director of admissions for the School of Medicine, said in an e-mail to students in Plotkin’s Living Learning Community that another student in the LLC is hospitalized with the illness.
“Please feel free to contact me and/or residence life staff if you have concerns about your living conditions,” Ballejos said. “Another LLC student has also been
hospitalized for the same illness. Make sure and use all of the appropriate cleanliness and safety issues.”
Martinez said Plotkin was careful not to spread the virus and was upbeat despite being ill.
“He really didn’t have a depressed side. He was really optimistic,” he said. “Even when he was sick with the flu and everything, he still made jokes and nothing really brought him down.”
