New guidelines: Fight flu while keeping kids in school 

In preparation for the fall flu season, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has issued new guidelines to help decrease the chances of spreading H1N1 and seasonal flu while limiting the disruption caused by closing schools.

According to the new guidelines, local officials will decide when it is necessary to dismiss students. The CDC has provided a checklist to help local decision-makers evaluate the situation.

Generally, the new guidelines recommend that students and staff with influenza symptoms remain at home until any fever has subsided for 24 hours without medication. Wholesale school dismissals are not recommended unless absences significantly interfere with a school’s operation.

If the H1N1, or swine, flu is no more severe this fall than it was this spring, the CDC says the following precautions may be all that is necessary:

• asking those with symptoms to stay home
• keeping ill students and staff separated until they can be sent home
• washing hands frequently and covering coughs and sneezes
• cleaning common areas regularly
• considering extra precautions to protect high-risk individuals

In case of a more severe outbreak, the CDC suggests local health and education officials could take stronger measures such as:

• actively screening students and staff each day
• planning distance-learning methods for high-risk individuals who must stay home
• asking students with newly ill family members to stay home during the first five days
• moving students farther apart in the classroom and limiting activities that mix classes together
• extending the period for ill persons to stay home to at least seven days
• considering whether the risks make it advisable to dismiss students from school

If H1N1 or the seasonal flu turn out to present greater risks to public health than currently anticipated, the CDC may adjust its recommendations. In the meantime, the CDC advises school administrators to work closely with local public health officials as they monitor local conditions.

Related links:

CSBA’s comprehensive list of resources about seasonal and H1N1 flu, including links to the CDC’s new communications plan, “Preparing for the Flu: A Communication Toolkit for Schools,” is available under the Spotlight section @ www.csba.org