SISD School Nurses are following DSHS and CDC guidelines in sending these type of students home…….

1. SISD School Nurses are following DSHS and CDC guidelines in sending these type of students home……. • Send sick students, teachers, and staff home and advise them and their families that sick people should stay at home until at least 24 hours after they no longer have a fever or signs of a fever (without the use of fever-reducing medicine).

2. Families, students, and school staff can keep from getting sick with flu in three ways: • Practicing good hand hygiene. Students and staff members should wash their hands often with soap and water, especially after coughing or sneezing. Alcohol-based hand cleaners are also effective. • Practicing respiratory etiquette. The main way that the flu spreads is from person to person in the droplets produced by coughs and sneezes, so it’s important to cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. If you don’t have a tissue, cough or sneeze into your elbow or shoulder, not into your hands. • Staying home if you’re sick. Keeping sick students at home means that they keep their viruses to themselves rather than sharing them with others. • Students, staff, and their families must take personal responsibility for helping to slow the spread of the virus by practicing these steps to keep from getting sick with flu and protecting others from getting the

3. What You Can Do to Stay Healthy: PREVENT AND PREPARE! • Take everyday actions to stay healthy. You know what these are: getting enough sleep, eating well, avoiding stress, and drink plenty of fluids. • Cover your cough.  Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Throw the tissue in the trash after you use it. If you do not have a tissue handy, sneeze or cough into the inside of your elbow. Your elbow rarely touches anything else. • Clean your hands often. Soap and water is preferred, especially after you cough or sneeze. Alcohol-based hand cleaners are also effective and should be used when you can’t wash your hands. You can find this type of cleanser just about anywhere. It comes in different sizes that fit on your desk, car, purse, or pocket.

4. Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs spread that way – you can infect yourself. • Stay home when you are ill.  Do not send your children to school when ill. • Follow public health advice. Your local public health department will be looking at ways to reduce opportunities for exposure and to prevent infection, such as encouraging vaccination. • Develop a family emergency plan as a precaution. This should include storing a supply of food, medicines, facemasks, alcohol-based hand rubs and other essential supplies. Remember your pet’s needs. • Stay Informed:  Check the following websites often for information. • CDC website: www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu • DSHS website:www.texasflu.org

5. Clean surfaces and items that are more likely to have frequent hand contact. • Custodial services are cleaning individual desk tops and computer keyboards daily. • Child Nutrition Services are providing hand sanitizer for students to use before they eat.

6. High-risk groups: A person who is at high-risk for complications of novel influenza (H1N1) virus infection is defined as the same for seasonal influenza at this time. As more epidemiologic and clinical data become available, these risk groups might be revised. • Children younger than 5 years old. The risk for severe complications from seasonal influenza is highest among children younger than 2 years old. • Adults 65 years of age and older. • Persons with the following conditions: • Chronic pulmonary (including asthma), cardiovascular (except hypertension), renal, hepatic, hematological (including sickle cell disease), neurologic, neuromuscular, or metabolic disorders (including diabetes mellitus); • Immunosuppression, including that caused by medications or by HIV; • Pregnant women; • Persons younger than 19 years of age who are receiving long-term aspirin therapy; • Residents of nursing homes and other chronic-care facilities.

7. H1N1 Flu: Free Materials Ask Dr. Anne August 21 Brochure: CDC Says “Take 3” Steps To Fight The Flu July 31 Flyer: "Clean Hands Save Lives" [PDF 389KB] May 5 "Cover Your Cough" May 5 "Seasonal and Novel H1N1 Flu: A Guide for Parents" August 12 "Information about the Flu -including the new H1N1 Flu- for People with Certain Medical Conditions" August 12

8. Q. Who will be recommended as priority groups to receive the novel H1N1 vaccine?A. CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) has recommended that certain groups of the population receive the novel H1N1 vaccine when it first becomes available. • These key populations: • include pregnant women, • people who live with or care for children younger than 6 months of age, • healthcare and emergency medical services personnel, • persons between the ages of 6 months and 24 years old, • and people ages of 25 through 64 years of age who are at higher risk for novel H1N1 because of chronic health disorders or compromised immune systems.