Rhiza Labs FluTracker Forum

Every time I hear an official state this I want to retort: Regular flu does not kill 50,000 (annually) under 65 years of age!

For the record, I don't think that will happen with novel H1N1 either - but I hate for them to even use that stat as a comparison - because if people stopped and thought about what they were actually implying, it would scare the heck of them!

The number of reported pediatric flu deaths (reporting has been mandatory since 2003) have been LESS THAN 100 for each year for the ENTIRE COUNTRY (US).

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www.twitter.com/hniman

Parents, who are notified of H1N1 cases in their child's school, are facing a difficult decision. The can either send the student to school and possibly expose them to the virus or keep them home and put them behind in their school work.

Arab City Schools Superintendent John Mullins said he has 17 students in the Arab school system who have the H1N1 virus.

With that number on the rise, Mullins said school absences are also growing.

"We normally average 98 percent attendance, and we are right about 90 percent," he said.

Mullins said the Arab city school system policy allows each student ten absences, but under these circumstances, he said they're being flexible.

"That's board policy we cannot change that, but I want the public to know, and the parents in Arab, that we will use common sense and leniency. We don't want sick children at school," said Mullins.

He said there are four types of student absences. The first type is those that are sick with swine flu; The second is those with a cold; The third type is children whose parents fear they will get sick; and the fourth is students taking advantage of the situation.

Regardless of the stats, Mullins wants parents to know the school system will work with them during this difficult time.

He said, "We don't want children, who are ill, to be at school . That is one of our best mechanisms to prevent the spread of any virus."

http://www.waff.com/Global/story.asp?s= ... =printable

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Thursday at Abbeville High School the absentee rate was near 11 percent. On an average day that rate is about three percent.

The school nurse says many students are coming in complaining about cough, body aches and fever.

Abbeville School Registered Nurse Jan Peterson said, "I had a parent call me this morning who took her kid to the doctor. She said I'm worried about attendance and I said we'd take care of it. We do not want them in school with fever."

Students returning to the classroom will not have to have a doctor's excuse, only a not from their parent explaining they were suffering with flu-like symptoms.

http://www.wtvynews4.com/news/headlines/57038202.html

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Stillman College cancels football home/season opener due to flu virus

Tuscaloosa, AL

“A college environment is an ideal place for the virus to spread,” said Dr. Sharon Whittaker, Vice President for Student Affairs at Stillman. “You have hundreds of students from across the state and country living communally, so we have been vigilant in our efforts to protect not only our students, but the entire campus community.”

A few of the College’s football players are suffering flu-like symptoms. In an effort to protect its student body, faculty and staff, officials have decided to cancel the College’s first home game against Clark Atlanta University on Saturday, September 5.

http://www.examiner.com/x-6543-Alabama- ... -flu-virus

A Troy University nursing student with ties to Ashford died after what could have been complications associated with swine flu, according to his family.

Andrew Salter, an 18-year-old freshman at the Troy campus who had attended Ashford High School, died Friday at Southeast Alabama Medical Center. While health officials from the medical center and the Houston County Health Department would not confirm who died, a fax to the Dothan Eagle from the state Department of Public Health reported that a Houston County man in his late teens had died from swine flu on Friday.

Andrew’s father, Ronnie Salter, said Andrew tested positive for regular flu on Sept. 3 and was treated with Tamiflu. Salter said Andrew had gotten better but was admitted to the medical center on Monday with pneumonia.

Andrew had never been admitted to a hospital before the sickness, Salter said.

“As someone in the medical field myself I don’t believe he died by H1N1, but I do think it made him so weak that it reduced the capability to fight off infection. A normal white blood cell count is between 4,000 and 11,000 and his had dropped to 2,300,” Salter said.

“But I don’t want the cause to overshadow all the good about him. He was very smart and had a very bright future, had lots of friends, had graduated with honors and will become an honorary member of his fraternity (Pi Kappa Phi).”

Troy University spokesman Andy Ellis said the campus was seeing cases of flu-like symptoms and continuing to take precautions, but that there were no records Salter was ever treated by university medical personnel.

“There are no records of ever seeing him for anything, but a university official had been informed by his father that he was treated for symptoms somewhere else,” Ellis said. “We at the university are saddened by the death of one of our own, and our thoughts and prayers go out to his friends and family.”

The fax from the state health department said Friday’s death marked the fourth in the state from swine flu.

http://www2.dothaneagle.com/dea/news/lo ... day/90609/

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http://www.tuscaloosanews.com/article/20090908/NEWS/909079911/1007?Title=Students-take-extra-precautions-against-flu

Taylorville Primary School Tuscaloosa, AL

As of last week, there were no confirmed cases of the swine flu in either the Tuscaloosa county [school system] or [Tuscaloosa] city school systems.

But there have been students in both systems who have been sent home because they had flu-like symptoms.

http://www2.dothaneagle.com/dea/news/lo ... ase/90844/

Always comes down to money.....sad. One would think the schools would care more about the children....