|
H1N1 Influenza News
Please let the school office know if your child will
be absent. This will save Wendy the time required to
try to get ahold of you to find why your child is away. We need
to inform the Health unit as to how many are away due to flu-like
symptoms, so it is important that you communicate that information
to the office.
For more information please visit:
October 28, 2009
Dear Parent/Guardian:
As you are no doubt aware, there have been
confirmed cases of Pandemic H1N1 Influenza virus in the KFL&A
area, and Dr Gemmill, Chief Medical Officer for KFLA has advised
school boards that parents and staff should make the assumption
that H1N1 is present in our schools, regardless of whether testing
has occurred in any specific school or classroom.
The Limestone District School Board is
committed to the safety of students and staff, and to prompt and
timely communication with parents about the status of the flu
in our schools. At Perth Road P.S. we will continue to let parents
know by regular home communication when our overall school absenteeism
rate related to influenza-like-illness exceeds 10% and we will
continue to report daily to KFL&A Public Health a greater
than 10% absence rate due to influenza-like illness. For the next
few weeks, we will also issue a weekly update letter to parents/guardians
via your child’s backpack, regardless of our level of absence.
However, since confirmation of H1N1 through lab tests is being
done by random sampling, it will be impossible for us to confirm
with confidence the presence or absence of H1N1 in a specific
class or school. Therefore, at this point in time, please assume
that there are cases in our school and in your child’s classroom,
as well as in the larger community.
H1N1 Influenza feels very much like the
regular seasonal flu. Symptoms include fever, new or worsening
cough, sore throat, joint and muscle pain, headache, chills and
fatigue.
The Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term
Care advise everyone to take an active role in protecting themselves
from H1N1. Here are a few things you can do:
- Teach your children to wash their hands
with soap and water thoroughly and often.
- Keep alcohol-based sanitizer (gel or
wipes) handy at work and in your car. Note that alcohol- based
hand sanitizer should contain at least 60% alcohol to be effective.
- Teach your children not to share personal
items like pens, pencils, drinks, or food.
- Teach your children to cough or sneeze
into their sleeve or a tissue, not their hand. This includes
teaching them to dispose of tissues in the garbage immediately,
and to follow-up by washing their hands or using an alcohol-based
hand sanitizer.
- Keep sick children at home until they
are fever free for 24 hours (un-medicated) and are feeling well
and able to fully participate in all normal day-to-day activities.
You do not need a medical note for them to return to school.
- If you have concerns about your child’s
health contact your health care provider.
Please see the Ministry
of Health and Long-Term Care’s website for current up-to-date
information.
We will continue to provide you with weekly
updates on the situation. Everyone’s combined efforts will help
us to reach the common goal of keeping students and staff well
and attending school.
Sincerely,
Mr. F. Leavitt Principal
Mrs. A. Croth Vice-Principal
H1N1 Flu Virus
Symptoms
Please see the
Ministry of Health and
Long-Term Care’s www.healthyontario.ca website or Kingston
Frontenac Lennox & Addington Public Health Unit's www.kflapublichealth.ca
website for the most current up-to-date information.
Medic
Alert Foundation
Recently you received a brochure from the
Canadian Medic Alert Foundation. Each child in the participating
school will receive a No Child Without bar-coded
prochure specific to the school. Please review the brochure; if
you choose to have your child participate in the program, please
follow the information provided in the brochure.
If your child is already a member, call
MedicAlert to see if you should transfer your child to the No
Child Without program. If you do participate, please
let Wendy know so we can ensure that the information is included
with your child's school records.
|
