Parents: Keep your emergency contact information up to date!
Has your phone number or other contact information changed? If your child is ill, we'll try to reach you at whatever phone number your school has on file. Contact your school to update your contact information!
We know that you have questions, and we want you to know what we're doing to fight the flu in our schools.
Yes. Some APS students and staff will soon be able to get vaccinated at their schools. School-based shot clinics are now being scheduled for late January through February. Schools will notify staff and families when shot clinics are scheduled at their site. Notifications will be provided through ParentLink phone calls and e-mails, school websites and letters sent home.
The shots are free. The only requirement is that parents and staff fill out a consent form, available in both English and Spanish. Consent forms also will be available at schools. Information about the H1N1 vaccine also is available on the Web site.
The forms need to be filled out, signed and returned to the school as soon as possible. Information provided will help determine which dose of the H1N1 vaccine is appropriate. H1N1 influenza vaccine comes in two forms: a nose spray and the shot. Both forms protect children well against the flu. If the nose spray form is available, children will be offered that vaccine, but a nurse will check to make sure a child can get the spray based on the health questions answered on the permission form.
Children younger than 10 years old will need a second dose of H1N1 vaccine. A second clinic may be held later in the season for children who need a second dose of flu vaccine.
The consent forms will ask for insurance information so that administrative costs may be recovered. The vaccine will be administered at no cost to students and staff, regardless of insurance status.
NEW: What's the difference between the H1N1 flu mist and the shot?
The CDC and flu.gov provide information about the difference between the H1N1 Mist (also known as LAIV for "live attenuated influenza vaccine"), and the H1N1 shot:
First and foremost, we are encouraging prevention. We are also asking that students and staff stay home if they're sick.
Here's what we're doing across the district:
We're encouraging hand washing in classrooms
We're teaching students how to wash their hands properly, and how to sneeze and cough into a tissue or their elbows
We've hung posters in school restrooms to remind students and staff about how to properly wash their hands
We're stocking restrooms with soap and towels for hand washing
We're routinely cleaning areas that students and staff touch often
We're teaching school staff, including bus drivers and school crossing guards, to identify students with flu-like symptoms and encouraging them to bring these students to the school nurse for evaluation
We're distributing face masks to children who display flu-like symptoms, and we're calling their parents to pick these children up so that they can be cared for at home
Some APS schools are part of a pilot project to provide free seasonal flu shots for all students and staff.
All APS employees are being offered free seasonal flu shots.
Additionally, pharmacies are expected to provide seasonal flu immunizations at school sites for employees.
As the H1N1 immunization becomes available, we will provide it to all APS health care providers, students and staff at New Futures, and all APS preschoolers and caregivers.
When will APS close schools?
Along with the NMDOH and the State Public Education Department, APS could decide to close schools only if attendance reaches a level which makes operations of a school impractical.
Why isn't APS reporting the number of children who are sick with H1N1?
Because the New Mexico Department of Health only tests and tracks severe cases of H1N1, we cannot confirm a number of H1N1 cases in our schools. However, we believe many of our students and staff with flu-like symptoms have mild cases of H1N1. We also anticipate that the number of cases will continue to increase over the next few weeks until people have a chance to be immunized against the virus.
How do I protect my family from getting sick?
New Mexico Department of Health and the CDC recommend these flu-fighting tips:
Wash your hands frequently with soap and water
Cover your cough and sneeze by sneezing into a tissue or your elbow
Stay home if you're sick with coughing, sore throat AND fever of 100 degrees or more
Avoid contact with people who display flu symptoms
Try to avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth
What are the symptoms of the flu?
Seasonal flu and H1N1 have the same symptoms, including:
Fever of 100 degrees or more
Cough
Sore throat
Chills
Fatigue
Body aches
Vomiting
Diarrhea
What should I do if my child is sick?
Use the guidelines in this PDF from NM Department of Health to help make the best decision for you and your loved ones. It is not important to know if you have seasonal flu or H1N1, the recommendations are the same.
If your child exhibits flu-like symptoms, please don't send him or her to school. Don't let your child return to school until 24 hours after he or she is fever-free without medicine. Remember that your child doesn't need a doctor's note to return to school.Read more…
If your child misses more than one day of school, call the school for makeup work.
What are my responsibilities as a parent?
Make sure your contact information (e.g. phone numbers) at school is up-to-date and correct. Information that is not correct causes delays in getting your student care. Give the school nurse other emergency numbers to call if you cannot be reached immediately.
Have a family plan about who is going to be able to pick up your student if he or she becomes ill during the school day or the school is closed. It is important that your student be picked up quickly and that you telephone your provider about how to care for your child.
Practice good hand hygiene by washing your hands often with soap and water, especially after coughing or sneezing. Alcohol-based hand sanitizers are also effective. Please supervise children while they are using hand sanitizers.
Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. If you don't have a tissue, cough or sneeze into your elbow or shoulder; not into your hands.
Stay home (no school or school activities) if you or your child is sick for at least 24 hours after there is no longer a fever or signs of a fever (without the use of fever-reducing medicine such as ibuprofen, acetaminophen). Keeping sick students at home means that they keep their viruses to themselves rather than spreading them with others.
If your child was sent home from school one day, your child may not return to school or participate in school activities the next day (students must be without a fever 24 hours or more without the use of fever reducing medication, such as acetaminophen or ibuprofen. Never give aspirin).
Get your family vaccinated for seasonal flu and 2009 H1N1 flu when vaccines are available.
Call your healthcare provider for instructions regarding making arrangements for your child to be seen. Do not go to the provider's office without calling first.
If your child or children are at high risk for flu complications from getting sick with the flu:
Make sure your child's hands are washed for 20 seconds with soap and water or an alcohol-based hand rub often and especially after coughing or sneezing.
Have your child cough and sneeze into a tissue or into his or her elbow or shoulder if a tissue is not available.
Keep your child away from people who are sick.
Clean surfaces and objects that your child frequently touches with cleaning agents that are usually used.
When there is flu in your community, consider your child's risk of exposure if they attend public gatherings. In communities with a lot of flu, people who are at risk of complications from flu should consider staying away from public gatherings.
If flu is severe in your community, talk to your doctor and child's school to develop a plan on how to handle your child's special needs.
Get your child vaccinated for seasonal flu and 2009 H1N1 flu when vaccines are available.
High risk students such as preschool, medically fragile, or pregnant students should be held out of school for a minimum of 7 days and until they are without symptoms and without a fever or signs of fever without fever-reducing medication for over 24 hours, whichever is longer, if there is a case reported in their class or site.
How do I know if my child is at high risk for complications from the flu?
According to the CDC, children are considered to be high-risk if they have the following conditions:
Asthma
Neurological and neurodevelopmental conditions including disorders of the brain, spinal cord, peripheral nerve, and muscle such as cerebral palsy, epilepsy (seizure disorders), stroke, intellectual disability (mental retardation), moderate to severe developmental delay, muscular dystrophy, or spinal cord injury
Chronic lung disease (such as cystic fibrosis)
Heart disease (such as congenital heart disease and congestive heart failure)
Blood disorders (such as sickle cell disease)
Endocrine disorders (such as diabetes mellitus)
Kidney disorders
Liver disorders
Metabolic disorders (such as inherited metabolic disorders and mitochondrial disorders)
Weakened immune system due to disease or medication (such as people with HIV or AIDS, cancer, or those on chronic steroids)
Those receiving long-term aspirin therapy for chronic disorders
Pregnancy
Use these guidelines from the CDC to help you determine if your child is at high risk, how to care for your high-risk child, and which H1N1 vaccine to give to your high-risk child.
Parents: