Local News
H1N1 flu forces policy change
School district tweaks attendance policy regarding sick students
OTTUMWA — For the first time since the Ottumwa school district’s attendance policy went into effect, the rules are being relaxed in order to help keep illness out of the schools.
“The bottom line is if [students] are ill, they need to stay home,” said the district’s head nurse, Nancy Emanuel. “Many students who are absent are experiencing flu-like symptoms.”
Superintendent Jon Sheldahl reports that as of Thursday, six Ottumwa schools have absentee rates of 10 percent or higher.
“Ten percent is high,” said Emanuel. “The Iowa Department of Public Health asked schools to report when they have a 10 percent absentee rate due to verified illness. That’s the [required number for reporting] with an outbreak of any illness.”
The Ottumwa policy adjustment says when parents or guardians call in to report an absence and state that their student has flu symptoms, such as a fever greater than 100 degrees and a cough or sore throat, the student will be excused for up to five consecutive days without seeing a physician.
This is a change from the normal policy which required a doctor’s excuse for an excused absence.
“It’s the right thing to do under the circumstances. The biggest concern with H1N1 is not that it’s really more dangerous, it’s that it’s more contagious,” Emanuel said.
While eight of Ottumwa’s 12 education buildings had the high absence rate Wednesday, it could be completely different story on Monday with different buildings experiencing high rates of confirmed illness.
“You’re contagious prior to becoming symptomatic. [Where it hits] seems random,” said Emanuel. “But because it’s so contagious, someone [in the crowd] who has been infected can cause a ‘cluster’ of incidences.”
That’s one reason a school building may show such a high absentee rate while another is lower. And it’s another reason the district won’t require kids to head to the doctor for an excused absence note.
“We don’t want to spread it any more,” Emanuel said. “Going to a doctor’s office or an emergency room with those symptoms [means] you are going to spread it even more.”
She said the district wants to cooperate with area professionals, who recommend those with a combination of fever symptoms (a high temperature or chills, for example) and a respiratory complaint stay home and avoid contact with other people until fever free. They should be fever-free for 24 hours (without using fever-reducing medication).
Parents with questions should contact their school nurse for additional information, Emanuel said.
Mark Newman can be reached at 683-5358 or by e-mail at mgnewman@mchsi.com.
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