Prince Frederick, MD – Influenza season brings with it frets and worries from parents and educators of the potential spread of illness. Several media outlets have reported about a disturbing situation in Polk County, Georgia, where the public school system was forced to close down two days early for the holiday break due to the large number of students and teachers who are sick with the flu.
In Southern Maryland, officials have indicated the schools are approaching the holiday break in collectively good health, but there may be some concerns when classes resume in early January.
Calvert County Health Officer Dr. Laurence Polsky said so many local families traveling to various places during the school holiday break will possibly add to the vulnerability. “We may have an increase in viruses,” said Polsky.
Recently, Polsky spoke with officials from Calvert County Public Schools (CCPS) to remind them about the importance of good hand hygiene practices by students and teachers. There has also been a good rate of influenza vaccinations among Calvert students this fall. Polsky said his department vaccinated approximately one-third on CCPS students. However, there is no data on the number of students who have gotten their shots from family physicians and other vaccine vendors.
According to Donna Nichols, CCPS’s supervisor of Student Services for School Health, schools are reporting some students with fevers, sore throats or stomachaches, but no incidents where the symptoms are grouped together. Nichols said two parents have contacted school officials recently to say their child has a confirmed case of the flu. Most students with certain symptoms, however, don’t receive a diagnosis from a physician.
“Any student with flu-like symptoms is asked to stay home until they’ve gone 24 hours fever-free,” said Nichols.
“Charles County Public Schools has not seen any large spike in absences or reports about the flu, which is always a concern at this time of year,” school system spokeswoman Katie O’Malley-Simpson reported. Charles County Public Schools’ supervising nurse reported only seven confirmed cases of students with flu-like symptoms being set home from school since Dec. 1.
St. Mary’s County Public Schools’ (SMCPS) Supervisor of Health Services Patricia Wince R.N. reported a few of the system’s schools have reported two to five cases of a “variety of viruses.” Three St. Mary’s schools have reported an increase in absenteeism earlier in the week preceding the holiday break. Symptoms seen in students who have been checked by school nurses include sore throats, coughs, stomach virus effects—cramps and vomiting; strep throat.
Parents of SMCPS students are requested to keep children showing the signs of the flu or some other contagious illness at home until the symptoms are gone. Wince said parents who follow up by taking their children to a physician should keep school officials in the loop.
“There’s always opportunity for it to spread,” said Wince, who indicated she was also concerned about traveling students returning from the holiday break with a spreadable illness. She added, however, that family gatherings are “not as large as a school setting.”
Polsky admitted he wasn’t current with the details of the flu outbreak in Georgia so he declined comment. He did affirm that there is no guarantee that vaccinations will prevent everyone from contracting the flu. However, “it [vaccination] is still a tremendous benefit, better than not getting the vaccine at all.” Additionally, “the severity of the flu is usually less” for anyone who has gotten the shot but has still gotten the flu, said Polsky.
For more information on seasonal flu visit the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene’s web site at http://phpa.dhmh.maryland.gov/influenza/
Contact Marty Madden at marty.madden@thebaynet.com