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Updated Federal Guidelines for 2009 H1N1 Influenza in Schools Offer Many Options
Guidance Says Officials Should Consider Local Needs in Making Decisions
Updated federal guidelines offer state and local public health and school officials a range of options for responding to 2009 H1N1 influenza in schools, depending on how severe the flu may be in their communities. The guidance says officials should balance the risk of flu in their communities with the disruption that school dismissals will cause in education and the wider community.
The guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) was announced today at a joint news conference by Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, Education Secretary Arne Duncan, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, and CDC Director Thomas R. Frieden, M.D., M.P.H.
The school guidance is a part of a broader national framework to respond to novel H1N1 influenza, which includes encouraging people to be vaccinated against the virus and to take other actions to avoid infection. The CDC anticipates more illness after the school year starts, because flu typically is transmitted more easily in the fall and winter.
``Were going to continue to do everything possible to keep our children and all Americans healthy and safe this fall, Secretary Sebelius said. ``But all Americans also have a part to play. The best way to prevent the spread of flu is vaccination. A seasonal flu vaccine is ready to go, and we should have one for the 2009 H1N1 flu by mid-October.
The federal government continues to coordinate closely with state and local governments, school districts and the private sector on H1N1 preparation as we head into the fall flu seasonand the upcoming school year, said Secretary Napolitano. Readiness for H1N1 is a shared responsibility, and the guidance released today provides communities with the tools they need to protect the health of their students and teachers.
For an outbreak similar in severity to the spring 2009 H1N1 infection, the guidelines recommend basic good hygiene, such as hand washing. In addition, students or staff members with flu-like illness (showing symptoms of flu) should stay home at least 24 hours after fever symptoms have ended.
We can all work to keep our children healthy now by practicing prevention, close monitoring, and using common sense, Secretary Duncan said. We hope no schools have to close. But if they do, we need to make sure that children keep learning.
The guidelines also recommend schools have plans in place to deal with possible infection. For instance, people with flu-like illness should be sent to a room away from other people until they can be sent home. Schools should have plans for continuing the education of students who are at home, through phone calls, homework packets, Internet lessons and other approaches. And schools should have contingency plans to fill important positions such as school nurses.
If H1N1 flu causes higher rates of severe illness, hospitalizations and deaths, school officials could add to or intensify their responses, the guidelines say. Under these conditions, the guidelines advise parents to check their children every morning for illness, and keep the children home if they have a fever.
n addition, schools could begin actively screening students upon arrival and sending ill students home immediately. If one family member is ill, students should stay home for five days from the day the illness develops, the guidelines say.
Influenza can be unpredictable, so preparation and planning are key, said Dr. Frieden. We can't stop the tide of flu, but we can reduce the number of people who become very ill by preparing well and acting effectively.
For more information visit www.flu.gov.
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HELP IS JUST A PHONE CALL AWAY
You may have heard the story of the missing 3 ˝ year old boy in the nearby Village of Oswego. Thankfully the story ended happily with the toddler being found by an observant worker from the Fox Metro Water Reclamation District. However, the night he went missing, a call to the neighbors within in a two mile radius was placed using an automated call system. This call immediately alerted the community that he was missing and rallying hundreds of volunteers. Hearing this story reminded me that in Sugar Grove this type of phone notification is also available and how important it is to insure that everyone is signed up for it.
You may be familiar with 911, the system which is used to report emergencies. However, Kane County has an emergency telephone notification system that covers the entire county called CodeREDŽ that notifies you in the event of an emergency. The system allows local officials to phone targeted areas or the entire County. CodeREDŽ is capable of dialing 50,000 phone numbers per hour and delivers a recorded message to a live person or an answering machine, making three attempts to connect to any number.
CodeREDŽ is used only when a determination is made that a substantial risk exists such as a transportation accident, severe weather, industrial accident, or terrorist attack. It can also be used for search and rescue operations, a missing person alert, prison escape alerts, and sexual offenders or predators alerts.
If you currently have a listed phone number, you are already in the system. If you have an unlisted number, use a cell phone, use a Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP) phone system or an have an automated attendant you must request to be added to the system. You may also add other contact phones, as many as you desire, to the system. To sign up or for additional information please visit the CodeREDŽ Emergency Telephone Notification website at www.kcoem.org/CodeRED/CodeRED.htm. If you do not have internet access you may call 630-232-5985.
May you never need it, however, if you do, help truly is just a phone call (or a click) away.
Cynthia L. Welsch
Village Clerk
10 Municipal Drive
Sugar Grove, IL 60554
630/466-4507 extension 24
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