Good hygiene and strict wellness policies have kept local flu-related school absences to a minimum, area officials said.
Absences remain low at the schools in Allen County, despite reports of increased flu activity across the state and nation. Nurses and other officials at those schools give credit to liberal use of sanitation measures such as frequent cleaning and disinfecting of surfaces and using hand sanitizer, as well as strict adherence to wellness policies that ask parents to keep students home until 24 hours after a fever ends, without using fever-reducing medicine.
All districts said they started seeing more flu-like illnesses after students returned from the winter break. As of Monday, Iola’s Jefferson Elementary School seemed hardest hit with about 15 students absent, according to Kim Peterson, elementary school nurse for USD 257. McKinley and Lincoln elementary schools had about 10 absences each.
It’s difficult for administrators to know how many absences can be attributed to influenza or to other flu-like illnesses. Parents don’t always have children tested for influenza and don’t always tell the district the results of those tests when they do, nurses said. But overall, school officials said the most common symptoms seem to be fever (typically between 101-102 degrees) and coughing.
Illness rates in Marmaton Valley USD 256 have been steady but “not to crisis stage yet,” Superintendent Ken McWhirter said. He estimated absences at about 10 students per building, which was on par with other districts. That’s still higher than the normal absence rate, he said.
Humboldt USD 258 District Nurse Wendy Froggatte said the district’s absence rate is about 10 students per day, mostly among elementary and preschool students. That’s about 3 percent of the student population. Froggatte said she’s more concerned when absence rates reach 10 percent.
“It’s been pretty well contained,” she said. “We’re pretty strict about the 24-hour fever-free policy.”
Teachers have been diligent about using hand sanitizer when they enter and leave rooms, Froggatte said. Also, the district invested in a new “micro mist” system that custodians use to sanitize surfaces as needed.
Staff seem to take longer than students to recover from the recent bout of flu-like illnesses, Peterson said of the Iola elementary schools. Most students return to school within three to five days, while adults may be out a week or more.
This year’s influenza season seems to have hit children especially hard across the nation, though. That’s because the most prevalent type of influenza, the H3N2 strain, is associated with more severe illness in the elderly and young children. Flu seasons that featured a more dominant H3N2 strain also tend to be more severe. So far, 30 flu-like pediatric deaths have been attributed to the current flu season.
Every state in the continental U.S. has reported widespread influenza activity as of Monday, according to the CDC.
Health officials, including Allen County Regional Hospital CEO Tony Thompson, encourage people to get a flu shot even though this year’s vaccine is believed to be just 30 percent effective against H3N2 and 40 percent effective overall. But the vaccine still offers increased protection, Thompson said. That’s because the vaccine encourages an individual’s body to ramp up its ability to fight flu-type illnesses, even if it doesn’t fully protect against a particular strain, he said.
CDC officials said they believe the local flu season likely is at its peak but cautioned it will take several more weeks before flu activity slows down.
Thompson recommended anyone who starts to feel flu-like symptoms should immediately consult a physician or healthcare clinic and be tested for influenza. Antiviral drugs can prevent flu complications or shorten the severity and duration of the flu but are more effective when taken within 48 hours of the onset of flu symptoms.
PICTURE — Brad Piley, building and ground supervisor for the Humboldt USD 258 school district, uses an electrostatic sprayer to coat surfaces at the high school library with a sanitizing mist, Vital Oxide. The district invested in the sprayers for each building to protect students against flu and other viruses. REGISTER/VICKIE MOSS
