Germs are everywhere
On the morning during August, several students from Northern Lehigh High School showed symptoms of staphylococcus infections or possibly respiratory “walking pneumonia.”
Later in the day, Principal Aileen Yadush wrote a letter to parents and had it posted on the school district’s Web site under a bold red link reading, “Alert!: Staphylococcus Infection Letter.”
The letter mentions the source of the infections was unclear but they narrowed it down to the school’s field house weight room.
The field house was closed and a professional cleaning crew was hired to scrub every surface and every piece of equipment.
The letter explained what type of bacteria it is - staphylococcus aureus, how to look for symptoms and what to do in case something unusual is found on students’ bodies.
The letter also assured parents and students “we will take every possible precaution in maintaining their safety and health.” which is a bold statement.
In a recent environmental survey conducted by University of Arizona researchers, surfaces in teachers’ classrooms came in as the Number 1 workplace for germs which is nearly 20 times higher than those found in lawyers’ offices, and seven times higher than doctors’ offices.
With over 2,000 parents questioned in the survey, 14 percent said they send their children to school despite running a fever higher than 100 degrees.
Educating children on proper hand washing and taking basic sanitation measures could hold down the germ level.
Bethlehem Health Bureau Director Judy Maloney says the bureau and local schools work clean-hand in clean-hand using a program called Germ City: Clean Hands, Healthy People.
The bureau also mailed a letter to principals at elementary and middle schools.
That letter urges schools to contact parents and let them know how important it is to keep sick children home.
Dr. Bonnie Coyle, director of St. Luke’s Hospital’s Community Health Department in Fountain Hill, says direct education programs are recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to corral germs.
“If there is a child that has a disease that is a community health threat,” she says, “we get involved.”
In New Jersey, Mary Van Horn, supervisor of the Warren County Board of Health in Washington, says, “My department focuses on flu and pneumonia immunization, but good hand washing is so important.”
Coyle ventures one reason why.
“I think we’re seeing more emerging infectious disease threats,” Coyle says. “As the world becomes smaller through international travel, we’re seeing more drug-resistant tuberculosis. Then there are the things that have always been there (flu, staphylococcus, meningitis and other infectious diseases.)”
Coyle also says that since the 9/11 terrorism attacks, bioterrorism is becoming an issue.
“It’s certainly not a crisis,” she soothes, “but it’s something schools need to keep in mind.”
