Recently the United States government unveiled their guidelines aimed at stopping the spread of “2009 H1N1 influenza”  in schools. Now that school is starting again in most countries in the Northern Hemisphere, there is a growing concern about what’s going to happen.

What does all this mean for people working in schools?

Basically, it’s a guideline for good hygiene, like hand washing. In addition to this, both students and staff members with flu-like illness (showing symptoms of flu) are requested to stay home at least 24 hours after fever symptoms have ended.

The government also urges schools to have plans ready for continuing the education of students who are at home, through phone calls, homework packets, Internet lessons and other approaches. They also suggest seting aside a room in school for people developing flu-like symptoms while they wait to go home,  and the usage of surgical masks for ill students or staff and those caring for them.

This all sounds reasonably simple, but takes a lot of coordination and resources from schools. It would require an “influenza action team” on all schools.

How is your school handling this? Are you doing anything special or is your school just waiting to see what happens? I’d love to hear from you, so please post your comments …