District offers flu reminders

We are experiencing higher than normal absentee rates at some schools on some days. We know that a number are reported to be due to flu-like symptoms. Health officials have told us that H1N1 is the most prevalent flu so far this season. There are some steps you can take to reduce the spread of flu regardless of which strain it might be:

• Remind your student to wash their hands often with soap and water or an alcohol based hand rub.
• Remind your student not to share personal items like drinks, food, or unwashed utensils, and to cover their coughs and sneezes with tissues. Covering up their coughs or sneezes using the elbow, arm or sleeve instead of the hand when a tissue is unavailable.
• Know the signs and symptoms of the flu. Symptoms of the flu include fever (100 degrees Fahrenheit, 37.8 degrees Celsius or greater), cough, sore throat, a runny or stuffy nose, body aches, headache, and feeling very tired. Some people may also vomit or have diarrhea. They should not treat flu like symptoms with aspirin or aspirin-containing products due to the risk of Reye syndrome.
• Keep sick students at home for at least 24 hours after they no longer have fever or do not have signs of fever, without using fever-reducing drugs. Keeping students with a fever at home will reduce the number of people who may get infected.
• Do not send students to school if they are sick. Any students who are determined to be sick while at school will be sent home.

Also, if your student is ill, regardless of whether he or she is at higher risk of complications from the flu, watch for the following and seek medical care right away from his or her doctor if he or she has:

• Fast breathing or trouble breathing
• Bluish or gray skin color
• Not drinking enough fluids
• Severe or persistent vomiting
• Not waking up or not interacting
• Increasing irritability
• Flu-like symptoms improve but then return with fever and worse cough.

If your student is at higher risk of complications from flu, he or she should be medically evaluated as soon as possible. Children under the age of 5 years, pregnant women, people of any age with chronic medical conditions (such as pulmonary disease, including asthma, diabetes, neuromuscular disorders or heart disease), and people age 65 years and older are more likely to get complications from the flu.

If you have questions, please contact your health care provider or our Nurse Help line at 503-399-3376.