My daughter came home from school today and told me that there has been one confirmed case of MRSA in her school and four other possible cases. The confirmed case was reported to the school a week ago, and the school never notified any parents or students. They didn't close down the school, which I thought was standard procedure - or at least that is how they portray it on the news. The boy already had to have surgery on his infection, but that is all we know at this point. The only reason we know this much is because her step-brother is a good friend of the boy.
The school hasn't even taken any measures yet to avoid an outbreak. They are planning a thorough cleaning of the school this weekend, which I am glad to hear. However, I'm really angry not only that parents weren't notified immediately but also that they didn't clean the school as soon as they found out about the incident. In addition, they have announced that there will be an assembly regarding MRSA next Tuesday. That seems quite a bit "after the fact" to me.
If you have school-aged children, do you know the procedure that is supposed to be followed if there is a confirmed case of MRSA in your school?
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Comments: 47
Guess we need to bring it up!
I do not know what the procedure is at my child's school. I informed them of her mrsa case last school year and nothing was done. She had it on her hip, and since I was well informed about MRSA I kept the spot covered and had her in the doctor's office before it was a problem. The doctor of course, sent a note excusing her from school until the culture results were in and the infection cleared.
I personally informed as many parents as I could get to listen, and still to this day, some are unaware of what it is and don't care.
Also, from what I have been reading, it seems like we are going to have to get used to having Super type Bugs giving use real problems. If we run scared and close up everything each time, we could have everything closed, and no where to go. When I was little most infections, etc. had no cure. My parents used things that you wouldn't believe on me when I was sick. Many people died and others lived, so often that it was just the way of life. Polio and others were always just waiting to get one of use.
How inportant is a life to each of us?
I believe that many of these things can be cured or controlled by other ways then now used, but there is no profit in this for the manufacturers and medical systems.
Lee S
Gabby - I'm sorry, because I should have explained it better. This has been affecting people all across the United States, but not everybody is from the U.S. In addition, not everyone watches the news. I should know, because I didn't watch it for a long time myself.
B.F. - Thank you for explaining it better than I did. At least you took steps to make others aware, since your school did not. With all the media attention lately, I thought schools would be more concerned and take prompt action to reduce the risk to other students.
Day Dreamer - Yeah, I would think they would HAVE to notify parents. Remember, this is the school that gave my daughter a hard time for taking Asthma meds, but then they don't notify about a confirmed MRSA case. Doesn't make sense, does it??
Kathy - Don't worry, it's not only first-time moms that get scared about everything when it comes to their kids. You do learn things with experience, so you might not be as scared about the same things with every child. However, each child gives you their own unique set of worries that are no less scary than the first time around. They are worth every second sleepless night, wrinkle, gray hair, etc., that they give you, though!!
Very soon now, I believe that we all have to learn to live with more dangerous things in our lives. We need to believe in God, and hold our fears in check. Did you read my article on FEAR?
Lee - Thank you for your comments and insight. I haven't read your article yet, but I'm on my way to check it out.
and a doctor wrote this rather article and contacted me, hope it gives some reassurance: http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.jsp?articleId=281474977152633
THe country doctor's article (link above) lends some perspective because he notes that he see cases and has never brought it home to his family because he washes his hands so often. So..wash your hands frequently, make sure your kids have common sense about that too.
The other step. DO NOT take penicillin or "cillin" type drugs unless you are sick enough to warrant it. Overuse of those antibiotics is actually a contributing factor here. Some parents put their kids on antibiotics for even very minor colds. OUr doctor recommends NOT pushing the antibiotics at the first sniffle or sneeze.
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