FIGHTING THE FLU
Schools, parents take action to stop spread of illness
Doorknobs, handrails, lockers — any potential germ-harboring surface — were fair game as parents descended upon the halls of the Chattanooga School for the Arts and Sciences. They were waging a battle against contagions, hoping to curb the spread in what has become a wicked, and deadly, influenza season across the country.
Between Nov. 1 and Jan. 29, the Hamilton County Department of Education received 890 reported cases of the virus, an increase of more than 650 compared to the same time period last year. The absentee rate has been so bad that school districts in at least five neighboring counties were forced to close last week, with at least one planning to close Monday.
But the numbers represent only a handful of the total flu, strep and other illness-related absences among students and staff. On Thursday, 176 teachers called out sick in Hamilton County and 78 others were homebound caring for infected family members.
“We’re dropping like flies,” said Julia Gaines, assistant principal at CSAS. “And it’s not only upper school, it’s the lower level, too. Everybody’s just falling apart.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report released Friday showed the flu season continued to intensify last week, with one of every 14 visits to doctors and clinics for fever, cough and other flu symptoms. That’s the highest level since the swine flu pandemic in 2009. Hospital stays because of the flu also increased.
“It’s been the busiest I can remember for a long time,” said Dr. Doug Olson, an emergency room doctor at Northside Hospital Forsyth, in Cumming, Ga.
The Tennessee Department of Health reported Thursday there have been six pediatric deaths and one death of a pregnant woman associated with the flu in Tennessee this season, while a coroner in Georgia said a 15-year-old girl was the state’s first flu-related child death. Nationwide, there have been more than 50 child deaths, according to the CDC.
And there are signs the flu season may continue for weeks or worsen, according to CDC officials.
Across the country, illness and high absentee rates have forced school districts in at least 12 states to temporarily cancel classes. Here in the Chattanooga region, five districts have been impacted by closings so far.
Milburn Harmon, assistant director of Meigs County Schools, said the district was closed Thursday and Friday after 30 percent of the student body was absent and 35 staff members, including teachers, cafeteria workers and bus drivers, were out Wednesday.
“It was just a matter of being able to staff buildings, transportation, etcetera. That, along with the absentee rate, was the reason why we decided to shut down,” he said. “The totals were getting larger each day of the week.”
Also caught in the wave of illness was Cleveland City Schools, where at one point during the week, 1,626 students were out, said Director of Schools Russell Dyer in an email.
“That is far above the norm,” he said. “A final decision to close was made [Thursday] after seeing a spike in both groups dealing with attendance. We were also struggling to fill classes with substitute teachers.”
Other school closures included Bradley County Schools, which closed Friday and suspended elementary activities until Monday; McMinn County Schools, which closed Friday and Monday; and Van Buren County Schools and Westwood Baptist Day School, which closed Friday.
Sheryl Fletcher, school health program manager
for Hamilton County, said many schools in the district, and across the nation, have called upon cleaning services and volunteers to help control the spread of the virus.
At CSAS, volunteer coordinator Jennifer White organized a cleanup day last week and said they will repeat each week until flu season subsides.
“As I was walking down the hallway, I saw a lot of kids blowing their noses, coughing, and I thought, ‘Maybe we need to disinfect this whole building,’” White said, adding that parents were eager to help and most brought their own cleaning supplies
Among them was Celena Guo, whose own children recently fell ill — her first-grade daughter with a fever and her thirdgrade son with a nagging cough. On Tuesday, she volunteered several hours to scrub the school.
“I’m just worried about the kids,” she said. “I know the flu season has been getting worse, and I wanted to help out.”
Fletcher said one challenge for the schools during a rough season is fewer people tend to opt for the flu shot.
“We really want to still encourage people, regardless of what happens, please continue to get your preventative vaccines,” she said.
And while the outbreak’s severity varies between school districts at the moment, officials were unified in their message: stay home if you’re sick.
Contact staff writer Elizabeth Fite at efite@ timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6673.