First day of school -- First day of Swine Flu

[CowboyCO]

Who in their right mind sends there teenage kid to school (on the first day) with a cough, aches and a 102 degree fever? My DW is a HS teacher and she sent a feverish kid to the nurses office this morning. Popped in during her planning to check on him and was told by the nurse that the kid has all the symptoms of the Swine flu and they had him quarantined with a mask on until his parents could pick him up.

We're leaving this weekend for a long-planned WDW vacation and of course she has to get exposed before we go... AAAH isn't life grand?

(Oh and for those that wonder why we're going to WDW when school just started - the district changed the calendar and started ten days earlier than they said it would in May when we booked the vacation and airfare. We were supposed to start the day after Labor Day.)

 

[freckles and boo]

Are the symptoms of swine flu different than the symptoms of the seasonal flu? I wouldn't panic quite yet. Unfortunately I know a few teenagers who seem to be raising themselves. The kid's parents may not have had a clue he was sick.

I hope your trip is germ-free.

 

[johnsontrio]

Who in their right mind sends there teenage kid to school (on the first day) with a cough, aches and a 102 degree fever? My DW is a HS teacher and she sent a feverish kid to the nurses office this morning. Popped in during her planning to check on him and was told by the nurse that the kid has all the symptoms of the Swine flu and they had him quarantined with a mask on until his parents could pick him up.

We're leaving this weekend for a long-planned WDW vacation and of course she has to get exposed before we go... AAAH isn't life grand?

(Oh and for those that wonder why we're going to WDW when school just started - the district changed the calendar and started ten days earlier than they said it would in May when we booked the vacation and airfare. We were supposed to start the day after Labor Day.)

New rule..

Pixie dust to you and DW that your vacation is illness free and that you both enjoy every minute. I know in my paranoia that I would be doing the Zicam and the Airborne throughout my vacation hoping to ward it off.

I was reading the Whitehouse briefing, released in early August and linked on the Swine Flu thread here on the CB, page 26 in case anyone wants to find it.., last night and am now very concerned..

It states that the cases will drastically rise with students reporting back to school and peak around the second week in October. I am very concerned about DD's health. The girls in her school eat each other's food, share drinks, chapsticks, you name it and because she bites her nails, her hands are always in her mouth. She is swimming double practices and already tired and worn down. I am afraid that she will be sick before the season even gets off the ground.

I hope that the schools monitor these sick kids closely as they show up for school (and send them home) and take whatever precautions they can such as shutting down the water fountains and institute extra cleaning.

Enjoy your vacation...

 

[Jennasis]

And what are the SWINE FLU SPECIFIC symptoms this child was experiencing that would make it not the regular flu?

 

[Ohiodislover]

And what are the SWINE FLU SPECIFIC symptoms this child was experiencing that would make it not the regular flu?

Thinking the same thing. Sounds like a whole lot of over-reacting to me. Yes the kid needs to go home- because he's sick- end of story, and all ANYONE besides his parents, and the nurse should be sharing with others.

 

[kpm76]

And what are the SWINE FLU SPECIFIC symptoms this child was experiencing that would make it not the regular flu?

Honestly, I don't think it matters if it was H1N1 or another strain of the flu. The fact is, the kid was sick and should have stayed home so as not to infect others around him.

 

[Feralpeg]

The same thing happened at a number of schools here this week. They've been running the story on the local news. All cases are being treated as if they are H1N1. The kids are sent home and told they are not to return until they have a note from a doctor saying it is safer for them to return.

 

[Jennasis]

Honestly, I don't think it matters if it was H1N1 or another strain of the flu. The fact is, the kid was sick and should have stayed home so as not to infect others around him.

Yes, but I find it highly irresponsible and downright alarmist for the school nurse to be telling people the kid has "all the symptoms of Swine Flu", when there are no Swine Flu specific symptoms. Send the kid home and shut your mouth before you create a panic.

 

[Ohiodislover]

Yes, but I find it highly irresponsible and downright alarmist for the school nurse to be telling people the kid has "all the symptoms of Swine Flu", when there are no Swine Flu specific symptoms. Send the kid home and shut your mouth before you create a panic.

Not to mention the breech of privacy of the student, and the nurse who is NOT a Dr, therefore unable to diagnose. She can report s/s, nothing more.

 

[kpm76]

Yes, but I find it highly irresponsible and downright alarmist for the school nurse to be telling people the kid has "all the symptoms of Swine Flu", when there are no Swine Flu specific symptoms. Send the kid home and shut your mouth before you create a panic.

You are right...the nurse should never have done that.

 

[Mellie2162]

Sigh...this is one of my biggest peeves...please keep your sick kids home and away from the healthy kids.

On the other hand, my DD15 will fight me tooth and nail to go to school. She absolutely refuses to miss a day. That being said I always overrule her when it comes to catchy stuff. This kid will literally get dressed and try to sneak out to go to school even when she is sick.

 

[3boymthr]

In defense of bad parents everywhere not every kid exhibits symptoms before they leave home I once sent my kid to school only to have the school nurse call 1/2 later saying he was coughing, running a fever and throwing up. Well, when I put him on the bus he wasn't warm and he wasn't throwing up - he had a cough but I just assumed it was a cold. And as a pp noted even if a kid is feeling achy if they feel getting to school that day is that important they may not tell a parent they don't feel well and hide symptoms; oldest DS hates school but went ballistic when I made him stay home the day they held MCAS exams.

ETA - yes, I'm one of those bad parents that sends her kid's to school with a cold - my kids get so many colds they'd miss too many days of school and never pass to the next grade if I didn't.

 

[Tinijocaro]

And what are the SWINE FLU SPECIFIC symptoms this child was experiencing that would make it not the regular flu?

The swine flu and seasonal flu share the same symptoms mostly. Swine flu can also have no fever, nausea and vomiting but doesn't always.

Since we are in a pandemic where swine flu has mostly taken over the seasonal flu, there is a very good chance that it is swine flu, but either way, the kid should have not been in school. The nurse was correct in assuming that it was swine flu, even if it wasn't, since that is the flu that we are all trying to slow the spread of.

I'm afraid that many, many kids are going to be sent into school with a healthy dose of fever reducer. Some parents will lose their jobs if they miss work, or be docked pay-it's a sad reality. I know many people who send their kids to school with a fever, hoping they'll get better, or trying to get them at least through half the day until the Tylenol wears off.

I have two kids(7 and 14) whose hands are constantly in their mouths, noses, eyes. My other two (10 and 11) and are able to keep their hands away for the most part. I know my own students constantly have hands near their faces-no way we are going to keep this thing from getting around, possibly slowing it down a bit, but will it be enough to keep us safe until the vaccine is available and/or proven to be safe? I don't think so.

 

[minkydog]

Who in their right mind sends there teenage kid to school (on the first day) with a cough, aches and a 102 degree fever? My DW is a HS teacher and she sent a feverish kid to the nurses office this morning. Popped in during her planning to check on him and was told by the nurse that the kid has all the symptoms of the Swine flu and they had him quarantined with a mask on until his parents could pick him up.

As a school nurse, this is my biggest pet peeve. You wouldn't believe how many parents dose their kids up with Motrin and send them to school sick anyway. Like it doesn't matter that they were running 102 fever and throwing up at 2am. Motrin apparently cures everything.

I've had parents send a kid to school with serious signs of a concussion(confusion, vomiting, off-balance) from a head injury sustained the night before--I had to threaten to call CPS to get the parents to pick him up. I required a note from the ER doctor, too. Idiot parent. The kid had a skull fracture. I had a parent who sent their kid to school with infected 2nd degree burns all over the tops of her feet, then got huffy with me because I insisted that she pick the child up--the kid couldn't even walk and the stench from the infection just about gagged me. I've had kids walk in and say,"My mom wants you to look at this rash and tell me if I have chicken pox." Not chicken pox, I'm afraid. STAPH infection. OMG, but I could go on and on. You wouldn't believe it.

Sigh...this is one of my biggest peeves...please keep your sick kids home and away from the healthy kids.

On the other hand, my DD15 will fight me tooth and nail to go to school. She absolutely refuses to miss a day. That being said I always overrule her when it comes to catchy stuff. This kid will literally get dressed and try to sneak out to go to school even when she is sick.

There are a lot of kids in my school who put themselves on the bus in the mornings. Their parents are already at work when they wake up so the kids just go ahead and get on the bus. They get sent to my office and I always ask "What did your mom/dad say about this?" And the answer is usually "I didn't tell them. They weren't home."

I've had to call plenty of parents about their sick kids and they get mad at the kid for not staying home! They're not upset that the child is sick; they're mad that they have to leave work and go to school when their child should have stayed home by themselves all day. What kind of parent makes their sick kid stay home alone? I'm not talking about 16 year olds. These kids are 11-14, middle school. They wouldn't know a Tylenol from a garden hose. They don't know anything about treating vomiting or diarrhea or back pain. Oh man, don't even get me started.

 

[Buckalew11]

School has been back here since at least the 1st week of August. Flu, strep, stomach bugs are rampant so far. Lots of sickness for so early on in the year!

 

[Jennasis]

The swine flu and seasonal flu share the same symptoms mostly. Swine flu can also have no fever, nausea and vomiting but doesn't always.

Since we are in a pandemic where swine flu has mostly taken over the seasonal flu, there is a very good chance that it is swine flu, but either way, the kid should have not been in school. The nurse was correct in assuming that it was swine flu, even if it wasn't, since that is the flu that we are all trying to slow the spread of.

I'm afraid that many, many kids are going to be sent into school with a healthy dose of fever reducer. Some parents will lose their jobs if they miss work, or be docked pay-it's a sad reality. I know many people who send their kids to school with a fever, hoping they'll get better, or trying to get them at least through half the day until the Tylenol wears off.

I have two kids(7 and 14) whose hands are constantly in their mouths, noses, eyes. My other two (10 and 11) and are able to keep their hands away for the most part. I know my own students constantly have hands near their faces-no way we are going to keep this thing from getting around, possibly slowing it down a bit, but will it be enough to keep us safe until the vaccine is available and/or proven to be safe? I don't think so.

I still say it was irresponsible for her to start crying "swine flu". Assume all you want, but keep your mouth shut until you have the facts (nurse...not you )

 

[lillygator]

here we are treating all flu symptoms as the swine flu since the swine flu test has been very less than accurate.

 

[C.Ann]

Considering it's not typical seasonal flu season yet, wouldn't it seem logical that most flu cases that are currently being reported are in fact Swine Flu?

I don't ever recall there being large numbers of children with "seasonal" flu in August before - and particularly in climates where it's still warm weather - but I could be wrong.. Please feel free to correct me if I am..

School starts here on September 8th.. I'm hoping we won't see large outbreaks right away, but based on what is happening in other areas of the country I'm not feeling very confident in that regard.. Hopefully parents will have the good sense to NOT send their children to school sick..

 

[luvmy3]

I still say it was irresponsible for her to start crying "swine flu". Assume all you want, but keep your mouth shut until you have the facts (nurse...not you )

We just got a letter stating that all students and faculty with flu like symptoms will be quarantined with masks to prevent the spread of possible swine flu. I wonder if this is part of the protocol for the district in the OP. While I don't believe the nurse should be *advertising* it as swine flu symptoms, I think she is correct in treating it as that.

 

[mumom95]

Considering it's not typical seasonal flu season yet, wouldn't it seem logical that most flu cases that are currently being reported are in fact Swine Flu?

I

It's been on the news here in the Cincinnati area that if the person has the flu, it's more than likely the swine flu.

The major Universities around (U of Cincinnati, Xavier and Miami University) all have confirmed cases of it (I think I saw Miami has 25 confirmed).

That being said, I also read that the treatment is the same as regular flu, rest and lots of fluids.