Dear Chartiers Valley Families,
While spring is just around the corner, flu season runs through March, and sometimes as late as May. However, there are preventative measures you can take to defend against illness.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends the following actions to help people stay healthy this year:
- Wash your hands with soap and warm water for at least 20 seconds.
- Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue or your elbow when sneezing or coughing.
- Get plenty of rest.
- Eat healthy foods and drink a lot of healthy liquids (avoid sodas).
- Clean and disinfect surfaces that could be contaminated.
- Get your flu shot.
Both the common cold and the flu are respiratory illnesses that are caused by different viruses. You can learn more about both from the CDC’s website.
There has also been a lot of talk about the Coronavirus as of late. According to the CDC’s website: “The 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19) is a new virus that causes respiratory illness in people and can spread from person-to-person. This virus was first identified during an investigation into an outbreak in Wuhan, China.” For more information about coronavirus, visit the sites listed below.
The District will be working closely with the PA Department of Health along with CDC to monitor the potential impact of the virus. We also ask that our families do their part to help maintain a healthy environment in our schools. Please do not send your child to school if he or she has experienced:
- A fever of more than 100 degrees within the last 24 hours. Students must be fever free without medication for 24 hours before returning to school.
- Vomiting or diarrhea within the last 24 hours.
- Continuous coughing that is not relieved with cough medicine.
In addition, please do not send your child to school if he or she has been advised by a doctor to refrain from attending school for any medical reason.
Thank you for your cooperation and support in keeping our schools healthy!
Sincerely,
Johannah M. Vanatta, Ed.D.
Superintendent of Schools
