houseofmulhern.com

Dear Parents,

We were informed this morning that a child at Early Days Preschool & Childcare has been confirmed as having the H1N1 flu virus ("swine flu"). This child has not been at Early Days Preschool & Childcare since the diagnosis was made. Per the Cook County Health Department, any child who displays symptoms (cough, runny nose, fever, etc.), must remain at home until all symptoms subside.

Now that more is known about this illness, the recommendation of the Cook County Department of Public Health and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has changed, and it is now recommended that schools remain open unless there is significant increase in child absences due to illness. Daily attendance at Early Days Preschool & Childcare is being closely monitored.

Early Days Preschool & Childcare is continuing to follow all prescribed cleaning procedures. In addition, we remain vigilant in reminding children of the absolute necessity of hand washing and other precautions to prevent the spread of germs. We ask all parents to keep their children home from school when the children feel ill, and consider taking your child to see a pediatrician.

We ask for your cooperation in following these sound, reasonable, and practical preventative measures:

• Stay home from school when ill
• Cough or sneeze into elbows or into tissues; dispose of tissues properly; and wash hands after use
• Wash hands frequently and thoroughly with soap and water when possible. Wash hands for 15-20 seconds. use an alcohol-based sanitizer when soap is not readily available.
• Avoid touching eyes, nose, and mouth.

For additional information, the following web sites are excellent resources:

http://www.cdc.gov
http://www.idph.state.il.us
http://www.cookcountypublichealth.org

We are confident that Early Days Preschool & Childcare is a safe and clean environment for learning. Please continue to send your child to school if they are not ill. Early Days Preschool & Childcare remains in contact with local health agencies and is continuing to follow their recommendations. We remain committed to maintaining communication with our parents and staff. Please feel free to stop by the office if you have any questions. Thank you very much.

Sincerely,

Sheilah Rhyne
Director

Meghan stopped by and talked to the director on the way out today. Here's what we know/don't know.

* We do not know what classroom the infected child was in because Early Days can't reveal who got sick. Regardless, some of Sydney's classmates have older siblings so exposure is technically possible whether the child was in Sydney's class or not.

* The infected child was running a high fever and is being treated with Tamiflu. Apparently the child is responding well.

* The infected child has not been at school since Friday.


In pseudo-related news, it's possible that Sydney (and I) have already had this. Sydney had flu-like symptoms the week before last and was sent home from school that Wednesday. It began with a fever of around 101, diarrhea, and throwing up. After that she was just very whiny, generally exhausted, and didn't eat much at a time for a few days. After about a week she was back to normal. While she was getting better, I got it and suffered the same symptoms plus body ache and extreme fatigue. ...and it took about a week to start eating again.


This is pretty much all we know. Sydney is going back to school tomorrow and will keep attending unless more cases appear.

Yikes! That is scary. It does make me wonder if Sydney was exposed and if that is what she and Michael had. Guess we won't know, but I'm very glad everyone is better.
Love,
Mom

Just as a follow-up on this story, the infected kid is now back at school and doing fine. No other cases broke out.