Parent Letter Concerning the H1N1 Flu Virus

August 24, 2009

Dear Parents,

There is a great deal of media attention concerning the H1N1 Flu Virus. Our number one priority is to provide a safe and healthy school environment for your child. As you may know, flu can be easily spread from person to person. Therefore, we are taking steps to reduce the spread of flu in the West Clermont Schools. We want to keep the schools open to students and functioning in a normal manner during this flu season. But, we need your help to do this.

We are working closely with the Clermont County Health District and the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) to monitor flu conditions and make decisions about the best steps to take concerning our schools. We will keep you updated with new information as it becomes available.

For now we are doing everything we can to keep our schools functioning as usual. Here are a few things you can do to help.

• Teach your children to wash their hands often with soap and water or an alcohol-based hand rub. You can set a good example by doing this yourself.
• Teach your children not to share personal items like drinks, food or unwashed utensils, and to cover their coughs and sneezes with tissues. Covering up their coughs or sneezes using the elbow, arm or sleeve instead of the hand when a tissue is unavailable.
• Know the signs and symptoms of the flu. Symptoms of the flu include fever (100 degrees Fahrenheit, 37.8 degrees Celsius or greater), cough, sore throat, a runny or stuffy nose, body aches, headache, and feeling very tired. Some people may also vomit or have diarrhea.
• Keep sick children at home for at least 24 hours after they no longer have fever or do not have signs of fever, without using fever-reducing drugs. Keeping children with a fever at home will reduce the number of people who may get infected.
• Do not send children to school if they are sick. Any children who are determined to be sick while at school will be sent home.

For more information about the H1N1 Flu and what our schools are doing, visit our District website at www.westcler.org. We will notify you of any additional changes to our school’s strategy to prevent the spread of flu.

Sincerely,

Gary E. Brooks E.D., Superintendent

Cathy Martens, R.N., District Nurse


Click here to visit the Center for Disease Control

CDC H1N1 Flu | Action Steps for Schools to Prevent the Spread of Flu

Click here to visit the Clermont Health District

Click here to view the West Clermont H1N1 Plan