Center for Disease Control Flyer – Update October 12, 2009 - Click Here
For information in Spanish - click here
Important Information Regarding the H1N1 Flu
The following information was provided to District Thirteen from the New York State Education Department and the New York State Department of Health. All members of the school community – staff, parents, and students – are encouraged to take an active role in limiting the spread of infection. This will require increased vigilance among parents, caregivers, and school staff to identify students and staff with influenza-like illness (ILI), in particular looking for respiratory symptoms associated with fever.
It is critical to keep in mind that even “routine” seasonal flu can be a severe disease. Each year in the United States, more than 200,000 people are hospitalized for flu-related complications; and about 36,000 people die from flu-related causes. Given this fact, unfortunately, as in every flu season, there is a need to be prepared for the possibility of additional cases including severe cases and even deaths.
ILI is defined as a fever of (100° F [37.8° C]) and cough or sore throat. Parents and guardians should monitor their school-aged children, and faculty and staff should self-monitor every morning for fever, or signs of fever, and sore throat, or cough. Students/staff members should be alert for signs such as trouble breathing or not drinking enough fluids. They should also be alert for skin rashes or any signs that they are more uncomfortable than expected with the flu. Some people also experience a runny nose, congestion, vomiting, diarrhea, headache, fatigue, and muscle aches.
Frequently Asked School and Flu-related Questions and Answers
1. Are schools required to close if any students or staff are diagnosed with H1N1? Any decision on school dismissal or closure is made at the local level by school and health officials. Factors to consider include how school absenteeism and staffing shortages could affect school operations. School closure is generally not advised unless a large number of staff or students are absent and their absence interferes with the school’s ability to function safely.
2. How long should students or staff diagnosed with flu stay out of school? Students or staff with flu-like illness symptoms and a fever of 100° F (37.8° C) should stay home. They should not attend school or go into the community, except to seek medical care, until at least 24 hours after they are free of fever, or signs of a fever, without the use of fever-reducing medication. In some cases, local officials may determine that the exclusion period should be longer.
3. What if someone comes to school and then begins to show flu-like symptoms? Students and staff who appear to have an flu-like illness when they come to school—or who become ill during the school day—should be isolated in a room separate from other people if possible, or kept a minimum of 6 feet away from others while wearing a surgical mask until then can be sent home in accordance with district procedures.
4. What is the best way to be sure individuals who have the flu do not go to school? Parents and guardians should monitor their school-aged children and, every morning, staff should check themselves for flu-like symptoms. Ill persons should stay home.
5. If my child shows flu-like symptoms, should he or she still attend day care or other after-school activities? Ill students should stay home. They should not attend alternative childcare, after-school activities, or other group activities.
6. What can school administrators do to control the spread of any influenza virus in their schools? Schools can help reduce the spread of any flu - whether it is the novel H1N1 flu virus or seasonal flu - by promoting good hand hygiene and respiratory etiquette.
a) What should students and school staff do to follow “good hand hygiene” and “good respiratory etiquette”? Students and staff should frequently wash their hands with soap and warm water, lathering for a minimum of 20 seconds, or if hand washing with soap and water is not possible, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer. If alcohol-based hand sanitizers are not allowed in the school, other hand sanitizers that do not contain alcohol may be useful for killing flu germs on hands. They should carefully cover their mouth or nose with a tissue when coughing or sneezing. (If a tissue is not available, they should cough or sneeze into their sleeves).
Health Resources
The NYSDOH Novel H1N1 Flu Telephone Hotline: 1-800-808-1987 (New York City residents call 311)
Frequently updated information is available on the CDC website at http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/general_info.htm or www.flu.gov.
Links and contact information for your local (county) health department is available at http://www.health.state.ny.us/nysdoh/lhu/map.htm.
