ST. PAUL - Two St. Paul schools are grappling with respiratory illness outbreaks among staff and students. As of Thursday, both Glen Avon School and Racette Jr. High School parents and guardians had received letters detailing the outbreak.
Bridget Severin, Counselling and Communications Coordinator with St. Paul Education, confirmed on Thursday that Glen Avon School, which is a K-9 school, and Racette Jr. High School, which is a Grade 6 to 9 school, both had confirmed outbreaks.
A letter was sent out to parents regarding the Glen Avon outbreak earlier in the week, while parents and guardians of students at Racette Jr. High School received a letter on Thursday morning from Alberta Health Services' Public Health, Communicable Disease Control Outbreak Team.
When asked if staffing is being affected, Severin said, "Staff are also being impacted by illness. For the most part, schools have been managing to find substitutes, however some days this can be a challenge."
Two Hills School, which also falls within St. Paul Education's boundaries, is also on outbreak status for respiratory illness.
According to the letter sent out to Racette Jr. High School parents from AHS, the outbreak status was declared due to "a large number of students sick with respiratory symptoms." Those symptoms include cough, shortness of breath, sore throat, loss of altered sense of taste and smell, runny nose and nasal congestion, and fever. Symptoms may also include fatigue, muscle aches and joint pain, headaches, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea.
"The germs that cause respiratory illness can be easily spread from one student to another though coughing and secretions from the nose and mouth," states the letter. Students who are ill are recommended to stay home, wash their hands frequently, and practice good respiratory hygiene, such as coughing and sneezing into their sleeves, and throwing away used tissues immediately after using them.
"Students who are ill with respiratory symptoms should remain away from school until their symptoms have improved and they have been free of fever for 24 hours without the use of fever reducing medication, and they feel well enough to resume normal activities," reads the letter from AHS.
