Seasonal Influenza

As school is now back in session and the flu season may be quickly approaching, Mt. Vernon Township High School District 201 would like to remind all of some precautions and actions to take to remain healthy.

What You Can Do to Stay Healthy
There are everyday actions people can take to stay healthy.

Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Throw the tissue in the trash after you use it.
Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze. Alcohol-based hands cleaners are also effective.
Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs spread that way.

Try to avoid close contact with sick people.

Influenza is thought to spread mainly person-to-person through coughing or sneezing of infected people.
If you get sick, CDC recommends that you stay home from work or school and limit contact with others to keep from infecting them.

Our school nurse is staying informed and monitoring the situation every day. Throughout the year as a precaution, any students presenting upper respiratory symptoms in combination with a fever of 100 degrees or greater will be removed from contact with others and will be immediately sent home. The MVTHS custodial staff members will take as necessary additional measures to sanitize common areas of the building. Desks, lockers, door knobs, etc. if necessary will receive extra “wipe downs” in an effort to eliminate the potential spread of germs.

Let me reassure you, the health and well-being of students and staff is a top priority. We will do everything possible to address the situation and to be prepared to prevent the spread of any type of flu. With your assistance, we can avoid the possibility of a flu outbreak in our schools by working together to keep students and staff healthy.

Please discuss the preventative actions attached on the document titled What You Can Do to Stay Healthy with your children and members of your household.
If your child is presenting any flu-like symptoms (fever, cough, sore throat, chills, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, etc.), please keep them home and contact your healthcare provider.

If you have concerns regarding the swine flu, additional information can be obtained at the Center for Disease Control Website at http://www.cdc.gov/swineflu/.

Thank you for your cooperation.
Michael E. Smith
Superintendent

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Recommendations for Infection Control in School Settings
from IDPH -- April 29, 2009
Parents should be advised to keep their children home if they become sick with flu-like symptoms and to notify their school principal of the child’s absence. Parents should contact their health care providers if their children have symptoms consistent with influenza.
Schools play a vital role in the process to prevent disease within their communities.

Because there is no vaccine available right now to protect against swine influenza, it is important to emphasize the importance of everyday actions that can help prevent the spread of germs that cause respiratory illnesses like influenza. Students, parents and faculty should take these everyday steps to protect their health:

Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Throw the tissue in the trash after you use it. Cover your nose and mouth with your sleeve if you do not have a tissue.
Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze. Alcohol-based hand cleaners also are effective.
Try to avoid close contact with sick people.

If you are sick, you should stay home and avoid contact with other people as much as possible to keep from spreading your illness to others.
If you become ill and experience any of the following warning signs, seek emergency medical care.

In children, emergency warning signs that need urgent medical attention include:

Fast breathing or trouble breathing
Bluish skin color
Not drinking enough fluids
Not waking up or not interacting
Being so irritable that the child does not want to be held
Flu-like symptoms improve but then return with fever and worse cough
Fever with a rash

In adults, emergency warning signs that need urgent medical attention include:

Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
Pain or pressure in the chest or abdomen
Sudden dizziness
Confusion
Severe or persistent vomiting

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has developed Interim Guidance for Non-pharmaceutical Community Mitigation in Response to Human Infections with Swine Influenza Virus. These recommendations are based on current information and are subject to change based on ongoing surveillance and continuous risk assessment and can be viewed at http://www.cdc.gov/swineflu/mitigation.htm.

Additional information can be viewed on the Illinois Department of Public Health’s Web site http://www.idph.state.il.us/.