Coughing, sneezing, vomiting, diarrhea, oh my! Winter illness is abounding, as is often the case during the colder months.
Here are some Stay Healthy Tips:
Handwashing is one of the best ways to prevent the spread of illness.
- Wash your hands often -- when they are dirty, before eating, after using the restroom and after sneezing into a tissue
- Use soap and warm water and rub your hands together for at least 20 seconds before rinsing and drying.
- Alcohol-based hand sanitizers are ok to use when your hands aren’t visibly dirty, but hand washing is preferable
- Make it fun with kids – sing a song and model thoroughly soaping up!
- Vomiting and/or diarrhea -- “the stomach bug” – are often transmitted via a fecal/oral route, meaning virus is shed in the stool, gets on hands, and then enters the body through the mouth. Thorough hand washing after using the bathroom helps prevent this type of illness.
Cough Etiquette
- Avoid coughing or sneezing into your hands – use a tissue or your elbow
Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth. Germs spread this way.
Stay away from people who are sick.
Stay home when you are sick.
If your child unfortunately does get sick, please follow the illness policy. A student will be excluded from school if he/she has:
- A fever of 100° or greater in the past 24 hours
- A communicable disease diagnosis
- A cold in the active stages – coughing, sneezing, nasal drainage
- A sore throat and/or swollen neck glands
- Vomiting or diarrhea in the past 24 hours
- Acute pain that requires relief by narcotic medication
- An undiagnosed rash or skin eruption
Nurses monitor illness patterns so please contact the school nurse:
- If you are uncertain if your child should come to school
- To report illness when keeping your child home
Adapted from cdc.gov/handwashing