H1N1 Influenza School Plan

What are Ottawa-Glandorf Schools doing to help reduce the spread of influenza?

• Ottawa-Glandorf Schools are working closely with the Putnam County Health Department and the Ohio Department of Health to monitor flu conditions and make decisions about the best steps to take to reduce the spread of influenza.
• Ottawa-Glandorf maintenance staff are taking a proactive approach in making sure that the school buildings are kept thorougly cleaned. (drinking fountains, desks, door knobs)
• Ottawa-Glandorf Schools are identifying the symptoms of student absences and reporting this data to the Health Department on a weekly basis.
• Ottawa-Glandorf Schools will keep parents and students updated on new information as it becomes available.

What parents can do to help?

• Teach your children to wash their hands often with soap and water or an alcohol based rub.
• Teach your children not to share personal items like drinks, food or unwashed utensils, and to cover their coughs or sneezes with tissues, and follow with handwashing. Your children will view a video of coughing in their sleeves in the classroom.
• Know the signs and symptoms of the flu - fever (over 100), cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, body aches, headache and feeling very tired. Some may also vomit or have diarrhea.
• Keep sick children at home for at least 24 hours after they no longer have fever or do not have signs of fever, without using fever-reducing drugs. Keeping children at home will reduce the number of people who may get infected.
• Do not send children to school if they are sick. Any children who are determined to be sick while at school will be sent home.