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Dear Parents/Guardians:
Part of our mission in Region 15 is to maintain the
health and welfare of everyone in the Region 15
community. Consequently, I want to provide you with
some proactive information regarding staph
infections. As you may be aware, two confirmed
cases of MRSA (Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus
Aureus infection) were reported in western
Connecticut. We consulted with Dr. Richard Biondi,
the District’s medical advisor, for guidance. The
information provided below will help provide you
with preventative measures you can take at home. I
am also providing you with the proactive steps we
are taking in Region 15.
Please
do the following to the best of your ability at
home:
1.
Emphasize to children of all ages the need to
wash their hands several times during the day, when
they return home, before dinner, before bed time,
and after using the bathroom.
2.
Use a disinfectant daily in bathroom and
kitchen areas.
3.
Keep any cuts and scrapes clean and covered
with a bandage until healed. Be extra vigilant
with athletes (even young children playing in the
yard) who might get a cut or scrape in a game, at
practice, or on a swing set.
4.
Avoid contact with other people's wounds or
bandages.
5.
Avoid sharing personal items such as
towels or razors.
In
the Region 15 Schools:
1.
We will step up our on-going efforts to
ensure that children wash their hands multiple times
throughout the day.
2.
I have instructed our custodial staff members
at each school to use a generous supply of Lysol
disinfectant, a cleaning product to be applied on
all student desk tops and other surfaces with which
students are normally in contact. Additionally, we
will clean all common surface areas, i.e.,
doorknobs, cupboard handles with Clorox disinfectant
germicidal wipes. These precautions should serve us
well and are a part of our normal cleaning routine.
3.
Our school nurses and teachers will be
vigilant for any signs of MRSA. Symptoms include:
skin infections that look like a pimple or a boil
and can be red, swollen, painful, or have pus or
other drainage.
As is our normal routine, if your child is diagnosed
with any contagious illness, please contact your
school nurse. Thank you for your help, and we will
update you should more information become available. |
