Newtown Expecting State Guidance On Flu-Related School Closing

By John Voket

While US health officials are no longer recommending that schools close because of swine flu, the Newtown Health District is expecting some definitive guidance regarding local schools from state education leaders Thursday.

Health Director Donna Culbert said School Superintendent Janet Robinson is participating in a conference call “regarding the new guidelines for schools.”

On May 5, US Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said the swine flu virus, now renamed H1N1, had turned out to be milder than initially feared, and the government is changing its advice on closing schools.

The government last week advised schools to shut down for about two weeks if there were suspected cases of H1N1 flu. And hundreds of schools around the country, including several in Connecticut, followed that guidance and closed schools.

Secretary Sebelius now advises parents should make sure to keep sick children at home. But locally, Ms Culbert said she is hoping that state education officials will issue more specific instructions sooner rather than later.

“We are at the moment, looking for Connecticut’s guidance regarding school closure if we get a probable or confirmed case in a student in one of our schools,” Ms Culbert told The Newtown Bee Wednesday.

According to the local health director, many of the guidelines developed during years of planning have been modified, as can be expected, “because when you actually experience the emergency, you see the details first-hand, up close and personal, and can decide if recommendations made during planning still fit and achieve the desired results.”

Ms Culbert said in situations “where there is a lot of angst, we have to look at the situation — but whatever the situation, I would support the district’s decision” on whether or not to close a school.

“It’s important for people to know that (Dr Robinson) and I are in regular, daily communication regarding this Flu outbreak,” Ms Culbert said. The health director also took the opportunity to clarify information about the “Phases of a Pandemic.”

“It is the World Health Organization’s phases before and during a pandemic, and has to do with the characteristics of the new influenza virus and its spread through the population. It does not relate to the severity of the disease,” Ms Culbert said. “So Phase 5, and possibly going to Phase 6 which is the highest, sounds ominous, but it does not relate to the severity of this H1N1 virus.”

Ms Culbert wants to reinforce to residents that, “Our priority is to keep you alive and healthy and to limit the spread of disease. Stay home if you are sick and keep your kids home if they are sick. Wash your hands. Cover your cough and sneezes.”

On Wednesday, The Associated Press reported that people hospitalized in the United States for H1N1 flu are turning out to be younger than is typical for regular flu, with the median age for confirmed hospital cases being 15.

Dr Richard Besser of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said it is not clear why that group is so young. He said it might just be that younger people have tended to get sick first in the outbreak. Or maybe older people have some greater level of immunity against the virus.

The age range for those in the hospital is 8 months to 53 years. The CDC says there are at least 35 people hospitalized for the new flu.

On Wednesday, the state Department of Public Health (DPH) identified three new probable cases of H1N1 flu in Hartford, Ridgefield, and Pawcatuck, which is on the Rhode Island border near Westerly. And all three new probable Connecticut cases are children.

The specimens received indicate that the people have nonsubtypeable Influenza A, which means that the viruses are not regular seasonal influenza. As a result, the specimens are being forwarded to the CDC to determine if the viruses are H1N1 flu.

To date, the Public Health Laboratory has tested 313 samples from Connecticut residents. Of those, 354 tested negative for Influenza A, 51 tested positive for seasonal flu, and 16 were nonsubtypeables. One of the three new probable cases was identified at a neighboring state’s laboratory. This case brings the total number of probable or confirmed cases of novel H1N1 flu in Connecticut to 17 (four cases confirmed, one inconclusive, and 12 probable). All cases are recovering and did not require hospitalization.

Here in Newtown, Ms Culbert remains cautiously optimistic.

“There is still no news of any probable or confirmed [cases] in our jurisdiction,” she said, but cautioned, “It is more important than ever to keep their children home from school if they are sick. If the child’s health is in question, take their temperature. Do not send a child to school who has a fever or is not well. This recommendation holds true all year long, but is especially important right now.” 

The Newtown Health District serves Newtown, Roxbury and Bridgewater. Ms Culbert has offered the following websites as valid resources for further information: www.pandemicflu.gov/plan/community/commitigation.html www.who.int/csr/disease/avian_influenza/phase/en/index.html