Schools Ready for Swine, Seasonal Flu

The Westfield School District will be sending out to parents more information about how the district is prepared for the potential for a flu epidemic as federal officials have made dire predictions about the risks facing the nation.

Administrators, nursing staff and maintenance personnel have all been preparing for students to return to school on Wednesday, Sept. 9, with specific advice to avoid and identify swine flu, officially called H1N1 flu, and the more common seasonal flu, Schools Superintendent Margaret Dolan told the Board of Education on Tuesday.

Federal officials say the H1N1 strain hasn’t become worse since it appeared last spring. Still, caution will be important, Dolan said.

Among what will be suggested to parents and school staff, “hygiene is the best defense,” she said, including washing hands and covering your mouth when coughing. Also, she asked teachers and district employees to be extra cautious about staying home if they think they have the flu instead of coming to work and risking spreading the disease.

In addition, many schools have added hand sanitizer dispensers in public areas include cafeterias and gymnasiums, she said.

“I’m very confident in our public health system” at the schools, Dolan said. “It worked well in the spring.”

Lincoln School was closed briefly in June after several students and teachers showed flu-like symptoms. Town Health Officer Megan Avallone said at the time that it was not known if the cases were confirmed as H1N1 since none of the students or teachers was officially diagnosed with the illness. There is no requirement that an individual be tested for H1N1 unless they are in a hospital.

Already a vaccine for the seasonal flu is available and one for H1N1 is expected to be available in October, Dolan said. The school district is discussing with officials if it can make vaccines available at some schools to make it easier for parents to have children vaccinated.