By TARA HETTINGER
One confirmed case of H1N1, or swine flu, has been found at Slate Run Elementary, in New Albany.
That’s according to Dave Rarick, director of safety and public information officer for New Albany-Floyd County Consolidated School Corp.
On Thursday night, a call went out to all parents in the district that played a recorded message urging prevention, according to Bill Briscoe, assistant to the superintendent for administration and operations. He said the message told people to use good hygiene practices, such as thorough hand washing, and to stay home if they are sick and get medical treatment. Briscoe said he couldn’t release information about the child at Slate Run, such as the child’s age or grade in school. He said attendance is still pretty good at the school, adding that he thinks a few healthy children stayed home out of fear of getting sick.
He said there may also be more cases of H1N1 in other schools that he doesn’t know about.
“We don’t believe we’re going to be informed every time,” he said.
Briscoe said nothing is being done differently at Slate Run after the confirmed case was found.
“At all our schools we’re doing the same thing. We’re encouraging kids to wash their hands. We’re cleaning high volume traffic areas, like door knobs and that type of thing,” Briscoe said. “We’re doing the same type of precautions everywhere.”
He said the district is encouraging parents to sign their children up for the free H1N1 vaccine that will likely be administered in school in late October.
Read tomorrow’s edition of The Tribune for more information on the vaccine and Floyd County’s efforts to prevent the spread of the H1N1.
