Students Sent Home With Swine Flu Info

Sept. 9, 2009 -- Students returning to school Wednesday will bring with them fresh notebooks and pens, but they'll come home carrying something else: a letter from city officials educating parents about how they can protect their kids from swine flu.

As New York City's public school students return from summer break, officials are hoping to put to rest any concerns about an anticipated surge in the virus.

The letter, from city Schools Chancellor Joel Klein and Health Commissioner Thomas Farley, urges parents to teach their children healthy habits, including coughing into tissues and frequently washing their hands. It also advises parents to keep their children home if they get sick.

"The really big thing is if their child is sick, please keep them home. That will help out a lot," Dr. Isaac Weisfuse, the city's flu coordinator, said Tuesday. "We want to make sure that every parent gets that message clearly."

Weisfuse headed a panel of city officials who met over the summer to determine the finer points of the city's flu policy. The city Health Department estimates that as many as 1 million New Yorkers were sickened by the illness last spring, and St. Francis Preparatory School in Queens was among the first U.S. epicenters of the virus.

Wednesday's letter, which is available in ten different languages, also tells parents they can get their children vaccinated when the swine flu vaccine becomes available.

The Health Department expects to receive enough vaccine to immunize 600,000 people in mid-October, followed by enough vaccine for 250,000 each week following.

Children are expected to be among the first to receive the vaccinations. Swine flu has affected a disproportionate number of young people, and the city is planning to offer in-school vaccinations to students at the city's public and private elementary schools. Under the plan, older students could get vaccinated at centers around the city.

Before the first week of school is over, parents are due to receive a second take-home printout — this one a list of frequently asked questions about the flu, said Marge Feinberg, spokeswoman for the Department of Education.

Posters encouraging healthy habits are already at the printers, and will be posted on school walls in the coming weeks. Bathrooms have been checked to ensure they are fully stocked with soap and paper towels.

Education officials also have suggested that school principals encourage staff to have informal conversations with students about healthy habits to prevent the flu, Feinberg said. And principals have been urged to create a response team to help organize students if there's a large influx of sick kids.