Schools encourage sick kids to stay home

Some high school students are grumbling in Kalispell this week after a policy change that will require everyone to take final exams in January.

But school officials say the grumbles are worth it if it encourages sick students to stay home.

On Tuesday, Kalispell Public Schools changed the "incentive portion" of its high school attendance policy. Previously, students who had two or fewer excused absences in a class could opt out of that class's semester exam.

Now all students at Flathead and Glacier high schools will be required to take part in all end-of-semester assessments.

It's a move the district has been talking about since the beginning of the school year, Superintendent Darlene Schottle said.

"It's been very positively received by parents," she said. "Among students, there have been a few more moans and groans."

The policy is effective through Jan. 22, 2010, the end of first semester, according to an e-mail Schottle sent district administrators Tuesday.

Administrators made the change to encourage sick students to stay home instead of coming to school ill and contagious, Schottle said. The district has seen a "significant increase" in the number of absences attributed to flu-like symptoms.

Jody White, Community Health Service director at the Flathead City-County Health Department, said she was glad about the policy change.

"We've encouraged it," she said. "We're appreciative of that decision because of its benefit to the community."

Schottle said she did not know how many students have missed school, only that the numbers were higher than usual. Students have reported flu-like symptoms throughout the district, but cases seem to be more frequent in some schools than others.

"At this point, it seems to be more localized to areas," Schottle said. "For example, more Flathead High School students are out with it than Glacier High School students."

Flu has struck the Flathead cheerleading squad, Schottle said. The cheerleaders missed last week's crosstown football game due to sickness. Other teams have had sick players as well, but not enough to cancel games.

Kalispell's elementary schools haven't been immune, either. Schottle said some elementary schools had been hit harder than others, but she didn't know Wednesday which schools had higher flu-related absences.

Those who are sick with the flu likely have the swine flu virus, White said.

"We do not have seasonal influenza circulating," she said. "It's probably H1N1."

White said that while many schools do have students with confirmed cases of swine flu, she did not know how many students had the virus. Kalispell school officials said they did not know either.

"It's well under 100," said Andrea Baumgardner, the nurse at Flathead and Glacier high schools. One of the high schools had about 15 students absent Tuesday with flu-like symptoms, she added.

While she and school nurses at Kalispell Middle School and the district's elementary schools have seen other illnesses this fall, including head colds, strep throat and gastrointestinal problems unrelated to swine flu, there have been more students complaining of flu-like symptoms this fall, Baumgardner said.

"We have seen an increase in flu-like symptoms across the board," she said. "School is kind of a melting pot for a variety of illnesses. [Students] don't necessarily get sick here, but they come ill. It's a great place to have illnesses spread."

The district is doing everything it can to keep that spread minimal, she added. Schools have stepped up their efforts to educate students and staff about what they can do to limit the spread of communicable diseases.

"We've been very good about getting hand sanitizers out and posters [that say to] wash, wash, wash your hands," she said. "Most illnesses are spread through our hands."

Teachers have been vigilant in wiping down shared equipment such as computer stations, Baumgardner said. Schottle said the district's custodial staff is working harder to keep shared surfaces clean.

But the most important thing people can do to prevent illness' spread is to stay home when they're sick, Baumgardner said.

"We want people to know if your children are ill, keep them home," she said. "Particularly if you have a fever, we would like you to be out of school until you're fever-free [without fever-reducing drugs] for 24 hours."

That means if a student gets a fever Wednesday afternoon, he or she should stay home all day Thursday. If the student doesn't have a fever all day Thursday, he or she may return to school on Friday.

Students with fevers don't necessarily have influenza or the H1N1 virus, Baumgardner said, but fever can be a flu symptom. Other symptoms include cough, headache, sore throat, chills, aches and fatigue.

H1N1 differs from typical flu in that it also may include diarrhea and vomiting. If symptoms are severe, people should call their health-care providers - and plan on staying home.

Staying home is important for more reasons than just preventing the virus' spread, Baumgardner said. Sick students "could potentially become sicker" if they insist on staying in school.

"There are appropriate reasons to miss school or work or an activity that we know they were looking forward to," she said.

School nurses have sent students home with flu-like symptoms, although Baumgardner, citing privacy reasons, would not say whether those students were suspected of having H1N1.

"Parents have been very understanding," she said. "They have been great about picking kids up."

Of course, children aren't the only ones at risk of infection. Staff members are encouraged to stay home when they're sick, and the district encouraged its employees to get a seasonal flu vaccine. Kalispell Public Schools also will encourage its staff to get vaccinated against H1N1, Baumgardner said, although the district will not provide swine flu shots for employees.

She said she didn't know how many staff members took advantage of the flu shots offered in the district this fall. She suspects the number is up from last year.

The district always provides flu shots for employees. Medical insurance covers the cost for those on the district's health insurance plan, district clerk Todd Watkins said. The district picks up the cost for those not on the plan, he added, but does not provide flu shots for temporary employees or substitutes.

The annual cost is about $1,500, Watkins said, a cost that is offset by what the district would pay substitutes to fill in for sick staff members.

So far, staff absences have been minimal, Schottle said.

For more information about Kalispell Public Schools and flu, visit www.sd5.k12.mt.us.

Reporter Kristi Albertson may be reached at 758-4438 or by e-mail at kalbertson@dailyinterlake.com