Hays schools take flu precautions
By DIANE GASPER-O'BRIEN
School officials in Ellis County said they are taking precautions for H1N1 flu virus expected to infect more than a million Kansans in the next two years.
In response to last week's presentation to the State Department of Education by State Health Director Jason Eberhart-Phillips, Hays USD 489 is making plans for flu vaccinations to be given to school children when they become available.
Eberhart-Phillips said the Kansas Department of Health and Environment said there have been 10,000 cases of the virus, more commonly known as the swine flu, statewide in less than four months. However, he added, KDHE has confirmed only 281 cases in 46 counties through lab tests.
Some of those cases are from the area, but to date, there have been no reported cases in Ellis County.
Mary Ann Shorman, lead nurse for the Hays school district, said she is working closely with the Ellis County Health Department concerning a plan for the H1N1 vaccinations, expected to possibly be available later this fall.
She stressed local schools also are carrying out a number of precautions as well, explaining to students and parents to follow the simple acts of "get your rest, eat healthy food, and stay home and take care of yourself" when you start experiencing flu symptoms such as fever, sore throat, headache, runny nose and sneezing.
The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have targeted children and young adults as high-priority groups for vaccinations.
According to the state health department, more than half of the confirmed cases in Kansas have been in people ages 5 through 24, with the median age being 17.
"Although we don't have any reported cases in Ellis County, it's all around us," said Shorman, who works at Felten Middle School and Washington Elementary School.
"All the schools around the nation are gearing up, and we are going to try to be really vigilant about things to reduce chances of (an outbreak)," she added.
Like Shorman, other schools in the county are gearing up for a possible outbreak.
Some practices already are in place.
"We started using Clorox wipes in all the classrooms a few years ago, and it really made a difference in our illnesses," said Colleen Dickinson, school nurse for Victoria USD 432.
"We saw that it made a big difference in how many kids we had in going home sick, and how we just add (wipes) to our kid supply list for school," she added.
Jana Simon, principal at Holy Family Elementary School in Hays, said the school has added hand sanitizers to every classroom.
Mary Parke, school nurse for Ellis USD 388, said Ellis schools have added hand sanitizers and "that we will (follow) whatever recommendations there are from the county and state (health) departments."
Sister Mary Riedel, school nurse for Holy Family, gave a presentation to faculty and staff before school started and is planning a hand-washing demonstration at the school next month.
Riedel also plans to participate in a flu summit by Kansas Gov. Mark Parkinson.
The summit, which will talk about the threat of H1N1, is set for 1 to 5 p.m. Monday in Topeka but also is offering video conferencing from Hays, Garden City, Wichita and Kansas City.
"The more information, the better," said Riedel, who has registered for the Hays video conference at Fort Hays State University.
Simon said that while children can learn at lot about precautions in school, parents also need to be educated.
"We're trying to remind (parents) that if their child is sick, they absolutely have to stay home," Simon said. "A minimum of 24 hours fever-free without any type of medication."
Dickinson agreed.
"If you go to bed with 101 temp and wake up without one, you're still not OK," she said.
Shorman -- who plans to attend another session on the flu virus at a regional school administrators meeting Tuesday at FHSU -- said one important plan for parents will be to know beforehand what they will do should they receive a call from school that their child has flu symptoms.
If they get a call that their child is sick, "they may be out (of school) for several days," she said.