Elmwood Normal School

HEALTH INFORMATION CORNER

H1N1- End of Term 2 Notice - Preparedness Messages for H1N1 - Routines - Healthy Food Ideas - Health Resources

H1N1 flu virus situation (6/8/10)

We’d like to update you on the current situation with Swine Flu, HIN1.

The Ministry of Health (MOH) reports that there is an increase in the numbers of people with H1N1 flu virus. We don’t expect a repeat of last year’s situation, nor do we expect MOH will be recommending that schools and early childhood centres are closed.

A high percentage, nearly 50%, of under 20-year-olds have had the H1N1 flu virus so should now have some natural immunity. There has also been a high rate of vaccination. However, some schools are experiencing very high absences. These tend to be in areas where there weren’t as many cases last year.

MOH and the Ministry of Education would like to thank the100 schools who have been sending the MOH their sickness data. This is been invaluable in tracking the spread of the virus. The graph on our website shows how MOH is using this data to track incidence.

MOH is reminding everyone to repeat last year’s intensive prevention measures. These are:

· practice good hygiene – wash and dry your hands regularly, and cover your mouth when coughing or sneezing

· stay home if you are sick

· phone your doctor or HealthLine for advice

People with pre-existing health conditions and pregnant women need to be particularly careful and seek medical advice early if they have flu symptoms.

For more information, visit the Ministry of Health H1N1 webpages at http://www.moh.govt.nz/influenza-a-h1n1

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Impetigo

Download the Impetigo pamphlet

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Whooping Cough case in the school

We have been advised that there is a case of Whooping Cough in the school. Please read the document from the Public Health Nurse that discusses this notifiable disease, what the symptoms are, how it is caught, how it is treated and how to prevent this spreading. Should you require any further information please contact our Public Health Nurse, Cindy on: 383 6877 (Extension: 99621)

Download the Whooping Cough pamphlet

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28 July 2009

Notice to all Parents/Caregivers (31 July 2009)
From: CANTERBURY DISTRICT HEALTH BOARD

MEASLES OUTBREAK IN CANTERBURY

The Public Health authorities are recommending that your child’s vaccination status be checked with your GP. This is to ensure your child’s protection from the current Measles outbreak.

Signs symptoms of Measles:
In the early stages resemble those of a cold, seasonal influenza or swine flu. The typical measles rash often appears after up to 4 days of flu-like illness and a child is considered infectious from approximately one day prior to symptom onset until 4 days after onset of rash. For this reason the advice to keep children away from school or preschool when unwell until a probable diagnosis is clear, remains pertinent.

Advice:
Should you have any questions regarding this matter, please contact the communicable diseases team at Community and Public Health on 364 1777.

H1N1 – Swine Flu
Status is unchanged. Please, if your child is unwell please keep them at home. Please
adhere to the hygiene message that is constantly being given out by the Public Health
authorities.

Thank you.

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29 June 2009

To parents/caregivers of children at Elmwood Normal School

H1N1- End of Term 2 Notice

With term holidays approaching and a number of families planning to travel, both overseas and around New Zealand, Elmwood Normal School is aware of the threat posed by the swine flu epidemic, particularly the risk posed by travellers returning as potential carriers.

At this stage, the Ministry of Health’s advice is that if staff and students are well and symptom free after returning from an affected area overseas they can return to school and do not need to remain at home for any period after arriving back in the country, or back to the home city. However, this may change in the coming weeks and families need to plan for this possibility.

The risk is that if an infected student returns to school and is in contact with other students and staff for even a day, the whole school could be closed for a week. The school board asks you to carefully monitor your family’s health closely whether you have been at home for the holiday period, or are returning from overseas or returning from your trip within New Zealand. If there are even the slightest flu symptoms, do not send your son or daughter back to school until you have first telephoned to check with your doctor, or alternatively checked through the MOH Healthline 0800 611 116 or the Canterbury Flu Centre 0800 37 30 37.

We will continue to keep you informed through our school website, as information comes to hand.

I wish you good health and happy holidays.

Kevin Gooch
PRINICIPAL

Download End of Term notice

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Preparedness Messages for H1N1

ELMWOOD NORMAL SCHOOL

Latest Advice received from Ministry of Health and Ministry of Education (2 June 2009)

Influenza A (H1N1) (“Swine flu”)

Control of school spread has been demonstrated to be essential in controlling overall community spread of influenza viruses.

The Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Education are now recommending that all students who have been overseas should stay away from school for seven days after they arrive back in New Zealand, irrespective of whether they have symptoms. This is because the incubation period for influenza A (H1N1) in children is up to seven days, during which time they may shed the virus, even if they do not have symptoms.

Should any person who suffers from influenza symptoms within seven days of international travel should telephone their GP for advice before returning to school or work.

Basic but effective initiatives to slow down the spread of viruses like influenza include promoting basic hygiene measures: regular hand washing (before anyone puts anything into their mouths), students and staff covering their coughs and sneezes and any staff or students with symptoms of possible influenza should stay home until they are well.

Thank you,
Kevin Gooch
Principal

Download the latest message from the Canterbury Primary Pandemic Group

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From 4th May 09 Newsletter:

Preparedness for H1N1

As the world is on alert about the H1N1 flu virus we are all showing concern about the possibilities of the virus spreading, and of course reviewing what we need to do at school should the flu virus spreads into our own community.

Our school has a comprehensive policy, plan and procedures in the event of an epidemic or pandemic which is in-line with the Ministry of Health’s guidelines for pandemics.

We strongly recommend to parents that the best possible source of advice regarding pandemic concerns and the preventative measures is either through your family doctor or the Ministry of Health. The Ministry of Health’s website is www.moh.govt.nz. This link provides good information about the H1N1 virus, the symptoms to look out for, prevention steps and what to do if your child is sick. Further I advise parents that the school’s Pandemic Action Plan, that provides the steps the school will take in respect to implementing the phases from preparedness through to implementing a recovery plan, if in fact the school needs to, can be found on the school’s website located in the Community section – health corner.

However, it must be noted that all major decisions relating to a pandemic emergency come from the Ministry of Health and the school will be required to follow the procedures as directed. Decisions such as facility closures will be made in close consultation with district health authorities, the Ministry of Education and the Board of Trustees. The school’s public health nurse [Cindy Eaton 383 6877] provides regular information and professional guidance for staff as requested or as needed. Should a pandemic occur, the school community will be kept informed of the school’s pandemic procedures by way of school website communication and of course the media.

At school we teach the children about how best to prevent sickness. We aim to help your children understand that the frequent washing of hands with soap is an important prevention task. This year we have installed foaming soap dispensers in the children’s toilets throughout the school to aid in hand washing. We also encourage all children to use tissues to cough and sneeze into, as this helps to stop the spread of a virus and we are advising children to stand well back from people who are sick. Parents can help prevent the spread of winter ailments, by keeping your children at home when they are sick and not sending them back to school until they are well again. Sending sick children to school puts everyone at risk of catching the bugs that happen to be going around at the time.

Kevin Gooch
Principal

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ROUTINES

Establishing routines for your children helps them to know what is happening and what is expected of them. Children find comfort and security in having daily routines. Routines and rituals help children to feel more secure, less distracted and ready and enthusiastic about learning.

Mornings:
One way to ease morning madness is to have a “Getting Ready Checklist”.
This list might include
• Get up on time
• Get dressed into my school clothes
• Make my bed
• Eat my breakfast
• Brush my teeth
• Is my bag ready? Lunch box, hat, water bottle, book bags etc. Be reasonable about what you expect children to accomplish depending on their age.

After school
By having the same after-school routine every day children learn what is expected of them. This helps to teach them to take responsibility for themselves and their belongings as well.
• Take lunch box and drink bottle out of school bag as soon as they get in
• Get changed out of school clothes
• After school snack if hungry (once the above two things have happened)
• It’s a good idea to let them have a short wind down/quiet time. There are a lot of exciting, busy things going on at school in a day and they may not want to be hounded with conversation and questions just yet.
• Once they have recovered it’s a good time to hit the homework (It may be that you want to set a time for homework everyday then your child knows what to expect. Leaving it till too late in the day or evening can make it too hard to concentrate or clash with dinnertime). Once all this is done and over with they are then free to play as they wish.

Bedtime
Try to keep bedtime leisurely and stress free.
Rushing your child might make him or her feel you don’t have enough time to spend with them and may make it harder than it needs to be.
Figure out a schedule that best fits your family but try to incorporate the following
• quiet time together one-on-one,
• bath or shower,
• teeth brushing
• story time and a snuggle then lights out.
Story time can be adapted as your child gets older. As they get bigger story time could become their own reading time in bed before lights out.

For more advice or information on establishing routines in your family please contact the Public Health Nurse through your school.
Written by Cindy Eaton – Public Health Nurse
References - www.kiwifamilies.co.nz, www.teamup.co.nz, www.familyworks..org.nz

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Take the stress out of school lunches. Follow these ideas for lunch box fillers. They are quick, full of nutrients and your children will love them.

Sandwiches are a lunch box favourite, the possibilities are endless
Use a variety of breads; wholegrain rolls or loafs, wraps, pita pockets, french sticks, english muffins, fruit bread and wholegrain bagels.
Fill with a selection of ingredients including lettuce, lean ham, grated carrot, edam cheese, sprouts, the list goes on.
Be innovative with presentation try pinwheels, club sandwiches, pizzas or sandwiches cut with cookie cutters as these are more appealing and interesting for children

Four sandwich combinations you may not have tried:
Banana and peanut butter sandwiches, toasted or untoasted
Pineapple and low-fat cheese sandwiches
Mouse traps- grated low-fat cheese and marmite on bread, grill in oven until cheese has melted
Club sandwich-three layers of wholegrain bread, lite cream cheese and jam

Something for the non- sandwich eater
Corn thins or cruskets; topped with tomato and lite cream cheese
Leftovers from dinner
Rice salad
Pasta salad; cooked pasta, corn kernels, diced tomato, grated carrot sliced lean ham

Nutritious lunch box snacks
A piece of fruit, you can make fruit such as oranges more appealing and easier to eat by cutting into wedges
An assortment of nuts and dried fruit, low fat cheese chunks, vegetable sticks e.g. carrot, celery and cucumber
Popcorn (butter and salt free) makes a great substitute for a bag of chips.
Avoid those high fat and sugar muesli bars instead try fruit scones, mini savoury muffins, bran & banana muffins or fruity bran loafs
Sweet snack fix; fruit kebabs, jelly with fruit, custard, stewed fruit, dried fruit

Remember: always include fruit or vegetables to ensure your child achieves the recommended ‘5 + a day’.

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Our public health nurse, Cindy Eaton has provided the resources below:


Pandemic Plan	Cold or Flu What's the difference?	General Advice for Bed Wetting	Headlice Facts	Preparing for winter colds and flus	Sleep Management


Skills for handling teasing	Wetcombing (updated May 2010)

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