Spring Allergies vs. Covid-19!

 With the Spring season upon us, check of this information about the similarities and differences in symptoms of Covid-19 and seasonal allergies! 

Thanks to Central Middle School nurse Loren Catrambone MEd, BSN, RN for creating this! 

 COVID-19 FATIGUE

As we land back into March, many of us are feeling some form of COVID-19 fatigue. It’s been nearly one year of following rules, worrying about getting sick, feeling stressed when others get sick, reducing sociability, and having our routines completely disrupted.  However, here we are one year later with some good news that should give us all a lift!

• Students have surpassed our expectations with wearing masks regularly and properly!
• Nation-wide cases and COVID-19 related hospitalizations are down.
• Over 1 million Massachusetts resident have been vaccinated with at least one dose.
• Quincy’s positivity rate is down to 3%.
• Manet Community Health Center will continue FREE testing on Tuesdays through March (180 Old Colony Ave from noon – 4PM). You do not need to pre-register. 
• A third COVID-19 vaccine has been approved and is being delivered to communities (Johnson & Johnson).
• Due to social distancing, masks, and improved hand-washing—flu and other respiratory illnesses have been dramatically low this year!
• Spring is around the corner and more activities can take place outside, which is safer!

COVID-19 fatigue can make us want to disregard the rules, but it is important we continue to wear masks, wash our hands, and social distance from those who do not live in our home. Pandemics never last forever. We WILL get through this!

https://www.wbur.org/commonhealth/2020/03/09/coronavirus-cases-massachusetts-map

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-data/covidview/index.html

https://www.wbur.org/commonhealth/2021/02/10/record-low-flu-rates-massachusetts

 Reminders:

• Please continue reviewing any sick symptoms with your child daily prior to sending him/her to school. THANK YOU!
• If your child has traveled out of the state, he/she can return to school as long as you provide documentation of a negative test that was done within the 72-hour window of returning to MA.
• If your child will be out of school for any reason, please call the school. If it is related to an illness, you will receive a follow-up call from the nurse unless it is clearly not related to COVID-19 (for instance, an eye injury or diagnosed ear infection). 

Grades 1 - 3 

Welcome Back to In-Person Learning

We are excited to welcome back our in-person students in grades 1-3, 5 days/week when we return from the February vacation! A few things you should consider in getting ready for school:

1.     Masks - your student will need more masks.  Please obtain a few more masks as we expect children to be wearing a clean mask to school each day.

2.     Water bottle - please make sure your student has a water bottle, labelled with their name, in order to stay hydrated while at school.

3.     Symptom List - please continue to check your child for symptoms daily. COVID-19 symptoms present like a cold in children. If your child displays any symptoms and you think its “just a cold” you should keep your child home, call your PCP and notify your school.

4.     Physical Exam Reports Grade K and 4 - physical exam reports are due. We are required by Massachusetts to have a recent (within the last year) physical exam report from your PCP/ doctor on file for all students in grade K and 4. If you were notified earlier this month that we are missing this report please submit it, or a confirmation of a scheduled appointment date with your doctor when we return.

5.     Thank you to everyone who is part of our school community- administration, staff, students, and parents. Working together, masking, distancing, frequent handwashing and following travel guidelines while enjoying time away will allow us to return to 5 days, in person learning as safely as possible.

 HONORING PIONEERS AND LEADERS IN NURSING DURING BLACK HISTORY MONTH

It is well understood that children seeing role models who look like them gives them confidence to follow in their footsteps. This was made very clear after the inauguration of Vice President Kamala Harris and the poetry reading by youth poet laureate Amanda Gorman when girls all over the country shared their feelings about feeling inspired, included, and more visible. As we celebrate Black History Month in our schools, the nurses welcome the opportunity to honor the diverse women who have contributed to the nursing profession in America. Our hope is that every child we interact with will follow their dream and be inspired by amazing nurses such as Sojourner Truth, Susie King Taylor, Betty Smith Williams, Mary Eliza Mahoney and Harriet Tubman.  

These amazing women’s stories can be found at the following link if families want to share them at home:  https://nurse.org/articles/black-history-month-nursing-leaders/

MASSACHUSETTS DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH

The Massachusetts Department of Public Health is removing the requirement for flu vaccination for attendance in childcare/preschool, primary, secondary and postsecondary education.  Preliminary data show that this has been a mild flu season to date, presumably as people have received their seasonal flu vaccine and have been adhering to mask-wearing and social distancing due to COVID-19.   Given the intensive Commonwealth-wide efforts regarding COVID-19 vaccination, DPH wants to alleviate the burden to obtain flu vaccination and focus on continuing our COVID -19 vaccination efforts.  

DPH continues to strongly recommend that everyone age six months and older receive their seasonal flu vaccine each year.  01/15/2021

 

Massachusetts Department of Public Health Guidelines

The Massachusetts Department of Public Health has adopted the latest CDC quarantine guidelines for close contacts (not positive cases) that include: 

Click here for MDPH Information and Guidance for Persons in Quarantine 

due to COVID-19.

Wellness Wednesday!

 COVID-19: Close Contacts

As numbers of COVID-19 cases increase across the state, the chances of knowing someone with the virus has gone up. If your child had close contact with someone diagnosed with COVID-19, please let your school nurse know as soon as possible.

What does it mean to be a close contact?

The CDC defines a close contact as someone who spent a total of 15 minutes (over the course of 24 hours) within 6 feet of each other during the contagious period.

Contagious period: Two days before the person started to feel sick or two days before a person without symptoms was tested.

What is required of a close contact?

Close contacts need to quarantine, stay home without visitors, for 14 days after last contact with the infected person. If you live with someone, you continue to have close contact with the infected person. Therefore, household contacts stay home/quarantine during the illness period (usually 10 days) and THEN another 14 days.

A close contact should get tested (PCR or NAAT) as soon as possible. This is done to determine if other people/close contacts in our community need to quarantine as your close contacts—which slows the spread of this disease. 

https://www.mass.gov/guidance/information-and-guidance-for-persons-in-quarantine-due-to-covid-19#how-long-must-you-quarantine-

Please continue reviewing any sick symptoms with your child daily prior to sending him/her to school. THANK YOU!

Written by: Christine Flynn RN