A letter with flu prevention details was sent to homes in the district at the commencement of the school year and again, another memo was sent a few weeks ago to remind parents of health precautions, such as necessary hand-washing, Spadafora said.
The district reported 600 absences Oct. 19, with the high school taking on the most, with 270 absences. Activities and athletic practices were cancelled Oct. 19, 20 and 21 throughout the district. Athletic completion Oct. 20 was also cancelled, causing soccer and field hockey teams to take the day off.
As of Wednesday Oct. 21, the high school kept the top spot in the district with a reported total of 257 absences. The entire district reported almost 600 absences once again Oct. 21, according to Spadafora.
However, today Thursday Oct. 22, Spadafora said the district delivered better news with absences down by about 25 percent and the high school reporting 70 less absences and 50 less absences at the middle school, which were the two schools with the highest number of absences. School activities, including athletics, will resume from here on, unless coaches and program leaders are advised otherwise, Spadafora said.
“It looks like we’ve peaked,” Spadafora said. “There are other things going on, like sinus infections and strep throat.”
While keeping a child at home can be difficult for child care reasons, Spadafora said the district cannot facilitate sick children that cannot attend school, and there is no other option but to keep them at home until they are over the illness.
Several county agencies such as the American Red Cross Madison-Oneida Chapter and the Madison County Health Department have repeatedly announced reminders in the community regarding health precautions that could help prevent the spread of the illness.
These precautions have been advised for those not experiencing symptoms, and especially for those that are taking caring of someone who has flu-like symptoms.
When caring for individuals at home, give them medications such as acetaminophen or Tylenol to help reduce fever, and make sure they get rest and plenty of fluids.
Individuals who are sick should stay at home until his or her fever has disappeared for at least 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medicine.
“We realize that many people are concerned because of the increase in flu-like illness occurring in our area,” said Eric Faisst, Public Health Director of Madison County Health Department. “That’s understandable. It may help to know that for most individuals, novel H1N1 flu will be no worse than the seasonal flu we are used to. Most people recover from seasonal or novel H1N1 flu without needing medical treatment. In fact, most flu patients can be cared for best at home.”
The Oneida City School District has taken extra measures to “hopefully” prevent the spread of any illness, but especially the H1N1 influenza, Spadafora said. Using the designated cleaning chemicals, Spadafora said the schools’ janitorial crews have been advised to clean hard surfaces, door knobs, keyboards and other areas of the school that receive the most student contact in a repeated manner.
Spadafora said there have not been any official reports of the H1N1 within the district, while some absent students have been tested at medical facilities for the virus. If anything, Spadafora said there has been “word of a mild version of the H1N1” that doctors are treating as flu, nothing more.
“It’s essentially a mild enough version of H1N1,” Spadafora said. “I haven’t heard any reports.”
Each school in the district has installed hand sanitizer stations in classrooms to encourage cautious hygiene, Spadafora said.
If parents have any questions about the measure being taken by the district, they can call the principal at their child’s or children’s schools.
