Bird flu paperwork mistake puts college student and her parents in a panic

BROCKPORT, N.Y. (WHEC) — A paperwork mistake by an urgent care clinic after a local college student tested positive for the flu put her and her parents into a panic.

When WellNow Urgent Care in Brockport sent Maddie Scott on her way, the discharge papers made it appear as if she had bird flu. The mistake got the county health department scrambling Sunday night.

We know the student. She’s at SUNY Brockport and she’s a News10NBC intern and when she called in sick on Sunday she shared the discharge papers which said she has bird flu.

"My body hurts and my eyes hurt so bad," Scott said.

Maddie Scott got so sick on Sunday that she went to WellNow Urgent Care in Brockport, a place that accepted her insurance.

"The doctor came in with the flu test and she was like, ‘Yes so you have the flu. You have flu A,’" she said.

Flu "A" is not avian or bird flu.

Brean: "Show me the documents they gave you when you left."

Scott: "This is like the diagnosis sheet I guess."

Under "diagnosis" and "discharge instructions" it says "avian influenza." And then there was page two.

"And then over here is says avian influenza, also known as the bird flu," Scott said. "And I was like, ‘The bird flu?’ I was like ‘What?’"

As soon as we got the documents Sunday, we contacted Monroe County Public Health Commissioner Dr. Michael Mendoza.

Monday his office said he was unavailable to talk but that "There are no confirmed cases of avian flu in humans in Monroe County."

In mid-February, the USDA said there was bird flu in chickens on Long Island.

Brean: "How would you feel about that, if it was a clerical mistake?"

Scott: "Definitely really annoyed because my dad’s already here in Brockport. He drove down here this morning to take me home because my parents have been freaking out about it. My roommates are kind of freaking out about it."

Scott was called by WellNow Monday afternoon. She said they apologized and said the bird flu information was a mistake.

WellNow told me it can’t talk about patients but writes "we can confirm we have not seen any cases of avian flu at WellNow.
general testing for influenza is available at WellNow; however, we do not have the capabilities to test for specific flu strains at this time."