H1N1 (swine) Flu

H1N1 (swine) Flu Links and Info
	Stay Up to Date on the Swine Flu: http://www.cdc.gov/swineflu/ Advice to schools: http://www.cdc.gov/swineflu/mitigation.htm Report school closures to: osdfs.safeschl@ed.gov NASN's Don’t Get Sidelined by the Flu - Influenza Prevention and Treatment Education Program: Click here

 

Wednesday UPDATE:

• Marie Pappas, the St. Francis Preparatory Academy  school nurse who identified the first cases in the current swine flu outbreak in Queens, NY, and Amy Garcia, the Executive Director of NASN  were interviewed on NPR on Tuesday April 28th. Both did school nursing proud and emphasized that surveillance for infectious diseases is something all school nurses do.   Today, April 29th, NPR interviewed Martha Bergren, NASN Director of Research about privacy and the ability to share student information with public health officials during this public health event.  The audio link of the interviews are on the Here and Now NPR link:  http://www.hereandnow.org/
 

• NASN contacted the Department of Education Office of Family Compliance regarding the ability of school nurses to communicate personally identifiable information about students with symptoms with public health officials.  The Office of Family Compliance advised that the Department of Education guidance published after the  Virginia Tech tragedy gives schools the ability to notify public health officials regarding identifiable students and their contact information in emergencies.  Several follow-up questions were asked , and it was confirmed that if a school nurse suspected flu in one (1) child, with no other cases in the community, that sufficed as an “emergency” during the swine flu public health alert.  
 

• The following is the published guidance:  The Department of Education Office of Family Compliance today has advised schools to use the technical guidance given out following the Virginia Tech tragedy to release the names of students to public health officials during this public health alert.  http://www.ed.gov/policy/gen/guid/fpco/brochures/elsec.pdf  “In an emergency, FERPA permits school officials to disclose without consent education records, including personally identifiable information from those records, to protect the health or safety of students or other individuals. At such times, records and information may be released to appropriate parties such as law enforcement officials, public health officials, and trained medical personnel. See 34 CFR § 99.31(a)(10) and § 99.36. This exception is limited to the period of the emergency and generally does not allow for a blanket release of personally identifiable information from a student’s education records.”
 

• Anne Sheetz, RN, MPH Director of School Health Services, Massachusetts Department of Public Health, has encouraged nurses to coordinate conference calls between their health departments and several school districts to maintain communication.  School nurses were encouraged to include their superintendents to listen in on the calls to emphasize the preparedness and the role of the school and the school nurse as the outbreaks unfold.  
 

• NASN will be partnering with the PTA to produce guidance for parents in communicating with their children about the media coverage, school actions and conversations they overhear that may alarm them.  Anyone who has developed any materials that can be shared, please contact Janine Canlas at NASN ASAP mailto:jcanlas@nasn.org
 

• Do not forget you NASN Disaster Planning book has a checklist for Pandemic Preparedness:
 
Doyle, J. & Loyacono, T. R. (2007). Disaster planning guidelines for school nurses.  Silver Spring:  NASN. www.nasn.org/bookstore