Special Report
STAYING AHEAD OF AN
School districts and transportation departments prepare for the renewed threat of swine flu and other viruses
By Michelle Fisher With health officials expecting the spread of the H1N1 virus to
intensify this fall, school districts and transportation departments are on high alert. Because the novel H1N1, or swine flu, virus has struck the young at unusually high levels, “schools have become a major locus of infection,” reports Time Magazine. Nearly 44,000 swine flu cases were reported nationwide as of July 24, accord- ing to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), with the highest rates in California, New York, Florida, Illinois and Wisconsin. As of Aug. 7, there were more than 6,500 hospitalized cases and nearly 450 deaths. At the NIH Swine Flu Summit in July, federal officials announced that a vaccine would not be available until mid-October — several weeks into the new school year. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said, “One of
the lessons we learned this spring was how critical schools are, particularly for a strain of flu like this one, where school-age chil- dren are disproportionately affected. So working through the guidance for school districts, it’s not easy.” Artealia Gillard of the CDC said that schools can access up-
dated guidelines at its Web site,
www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/schools. Te CDC no longer recommends school closures until absentee- ism reaches levels that disrupt learning, but is requesting that school districts report any dismissals by filling out a online form at
www.stnonline.com/go/281. “For now, we want to emphasize the tried and true measures
that can be taken to minimize the spread of novel H1N1 — that is, covering coughs and sneezes, washing hands and keeping sick children home from school, especially if they have a fever,” Gillard said. “It’s also important for parents to make sure the school has plans in place to notify parents when a child be- comes sick at school.” Tess Benham of the National Safety Council noted that the
swine flu is “equally dangerous” as the seasonal flu, with one key difference: No one has immunity because it is a completely new virus, which places younger and older people, especially those with underlying health conditions, at increased risk. “It’s going to be really challenging for schools this fall,” said
Benham. “As school starts, they have the important job of edu- cating teachers and partners in school transportation, mainte- nance and housekeeping about some ways they can stop the transmission of flu.” Benham agrees that frequent hand washing and proper cough
and sneezing etiquette are key to prevention. She suggests teach- ing children the “Dracula” cover, so named by camp counselors whereby you cough into your elbow. “Parents and schools need to educate children to not get on
the school bus if they’re feeling ill,” Benham said. “Te key is to stop mixing ill kids with healthy ones.”
‘Season of Constant Cleaning’ Benham knows it is impossible, logistically, for school bus driv-
ers to constantly disinfect often-touched areas like handrails and seat backs. “Drivers have access to hand-sanitizer gel to protect them-
selves. When children are off the bus, they can give it a sweep- down with cleaners and disinfectants,” she said. “Tis will be a season of constant cleaning.” John Schmidt of Safety Outsourcing, who specializes in pre-
venting disease transmission, emphasizes personal responsibility in protecting others from the flu and other diseases such as TB and hepatitis. “It’s the responsibility of the transportation provider to supply
drivers with gloves, hand sanitizers and other protection,” said Schmidt. “Drivers should be wearing rubber gloves if they are going to make direct contact with students, like if the student vomits. Also, I think masks are very effective because we might not know who’s carrying the virus.” But Schmidt also cautions against becoming paranoid about
catching the swine flu. “We need to remember that it’s basically the flu,” he said. “Pre-
cautions need to be taken, but a lot of it is common sense. When a child coughs on the seat in front of him, that virus is only going to live four to eight hours. Kids will not come back the next day
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