January 16, 2020
Dear Parent/Guardian,
We are starting to see an increase in illnesses throughout the school and community. Among these are flu like symptoms, gastrointestinal illness, and strep throat.
The flu season is upon us and there have been some documented cases of influenza, even for those who received the flu vaccine. If your child develops a headache, body aches, fever and sudden onset cough, suspect flu and do not send to school. For children with compromised immune systems or underlying medical issues such as asthma, ensure you contact your pediatrician as soon as possible. Early initiation of antiviral flu medicine can prevent severe flu symptoms or complications of the flu. For more information click here for flu facts from the CDC.
I have been informed of cases of strep throat in different classrooms as well. This is to make you aware should your child develop symptoms of illness as they may have been exposed. Symptoms of strep throat may include: fever, sore throat, headache, swollen glands in the neck, and sometimes stomach ache and/or vomiting. Some children may have only a few symptoms while others may have all.
If you suspect strep throat, call your pediatrician to have your child evaluated. Treatment is with an antibiotic which must be taken for the full course prescribed. Untreated strep can lead to more serious complications. After your child has been on antibiotics for 24 hours, they are no longer contagious. Be sure to discard the old toothbrush and replace with a new one to prevent reinfection.
If your child has been diagnosed with an illness such as flu or strep throat, or GI illness such as vomiting/diarrhea, please make me aware so I can watch for trends of illness in classes. For any illness with a temperature over 100 degrees, please keep your child home until fever free for 24 hours without fever reducing medications. They may return to school when symptoms have subsided and they are feeling well enough to fully participate in the day. Thank you for your help in keeping our student population healthy!
Please remind your child to practice healthy habits such as coughing into the elbow instead of their hands when covering their cough/sneeze and good handwashing. If you have questions please contact me.
Jennifer Carlson, RN carlsonj@barringtonschools.org or 247-3170