H1N1 cases make way through Dickinson County schools

Despite the onset of H1N1 in area schools, superintendents throughout Dickinson County are heeding the Iowa Department of Health's advice to keep their doors open.

The DPH also recommends that any student, volunteer or employee who develops H1N1 (or novel influenza) symptoms be sent home immediately and not return to school until symptoms subside.

After a week of steady absence rates, attendance is improving at the Graettinger-Terril School District, where no confirmed H1N1 cases have been reported. Graettinger Principal Chris Richards notes that the quarantine obligations of H1N1 seem to have contributed to the district's heightened absence rates.

"Of course, with the government promoting everybody to stay home if they're sick, a lot of people are keeping their students home, which is different from years past where they would send them anyway (even) if they were sick," Richards said.

The isolation of those suspected to have H1N1 may be keeping the illness from touching down at Iowa Lakes Community College's Spirit Lake Campus. Delaine Hiney, executive director of facilities management at ILCC, notes that the college had its first confirmed case on Oct. 16 in Emmetsburg, but that the Spirit Lake campus has not yet had any reported instances among its college students.

Hiney and her colleagues have taken a proactive stance to keeping H1N1 germs at bay.

"We are doing everything we can to keep our facilities clean," Hiney said. "We have Purell dispensers in our hallways, we have cleaner in our rooms, so if teachers see students coughing or being sick, they can go in with a disinfectant and clean."

While no cases of H1N1 have been reported among college students at the ILCC Spirit Lake site, at the Blue Water Alternative High School, located on the campus, absence rates surged between Oct. 15-20, according to Bonnie Ewoldt, lead instructor at Blue Water.

"For the past couple weeks, it was pretty high, probably 60 percent for probably two or three days," Ewoldt said. "But that's over, the kids are back and its pretty much been through here now."

Okoboji Superintendent Bob Miller, whose school district saw its first H1N1 case two weekends ago, is emphasizing proper flu season hygiene as part of the preventative stance in his district.

"We're really trying to push the hand washing, sneezing into your sleeve kind of stuff, just good general health-related things," Miller said. "The state also recommends that, no matter how bad it gets, don't close school. So we're not looking to close school at all based on absentee rates."

Harris-Lake Park Superintendent Dennis Peters reports that the first confirmed case of H1N1 was reported in his district last week, but suspects the first likely case occurred on Oct. 15.

Peters remains committed to keeping the school running, but is willing to re-examine his stance depending on the severity of the illness in his district.

"I know that the Department of Health has come out and is urging schools to stay open and that would be our goal, to stay open," Peters said. "That doesn't mean we wouldn't close, especially if we have huge numbers of staff out and the student numbers got higher, then we would consider it."

While the Spirit Lake school district saw its first case of H1N1 last week, Superintendent David Smith sees absence totals about even with previous years.

"There's no reason to panic right now," said Smith. "We just have to control what we can control, be proactive and have plans in place to act accordingly."