H1N1 Information

Dear Parents and Guardians,

The cold and flu season is beginning and with concerns about H1N1 we wanted to let you know what we are doing at Hawthorne Valley to help prevent the spread of flu and also to provide you with some information resources on the topic.

We do not have any confirmed cases of the H1N1 flu at HVS, however, we have had a number of children going home with illness. Please keep your children at home if they have any flu like symptoms:

Symptoms of H1N1 flu include fever, sore throat, and cough.

Some people also have a headache, runny nose, fatigue, body aches, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea.

The virus is transmitted through the coughing or sneezing of people infected with the virus.

People may also become infected by touching something with flu viruses on it and then touching their mouths or noses.

If your child has a fever, please keep your child home for a minimum of 24 hours following the end of the fever and consult your physician to determine whether a longer stay at home is recommended. If your child is immuno-compromised in any way such as suffering from asthma, please take extra precautions and seek medical advice if your child appears to be getting ill with flu-like symptoms.

General Recommendations for the Prevention of getting or spreading the flu:

Wash your hands often with soap and warm water or use a hand sanitizer.

Avoid people who are ill and stay home if you are sick.

Use tissue when you cough, sneeze or spit, or cough and sneeze into your elbow/upper sleeve.

Dispose of tissues in no-touch trash receptacles.

Keep hands away from your face. Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth.

Clean shared space more often such as door knobs, phone receivers, keyboards, steering wheels and office equipment.

Here at school we are attempting to minimize the possible spread of flu by increasing our cleaning of commonly touched areas such as door handles and faucets with sanitizing cleansers.

Below are several links to websites that have useful information about the flu and also can keep you updated.

This is the Taconic Hills School district information which provides insight into what the public school children and families in our area are receiving in the way of H1NI information: http://www.taconichills.k12.ny.us/highschool/flu.htm

Here is another helpful link from the NYSED: http://usny.nysed.gov/swine-flu-info.html

This is the link to the Columbia County Health Department site:

http://www.columbiacountyny.com/depts/health2/

This is the link to the Center for Disease Control site: http://www.cdc.gov/H1N1FLU/

Should your child or a member of your immediate family have a confirmed case of H1N1, please contact me directly at 518-672-7092 ext 105, or cgeisler@hawthornevalleyschool.org.

Thank you for your cooperation and best wishes for good health to everyone.

Sincerely,

Caroline C. Geisler

Administrator