Medomak Valley High School · taken once daily for seven days DON’T TAKE THE FLU LYING DOWN •...
Transcript of Medomak Valley High School · taken once daily for seven days DON’T TAKE THE FLU LYING DOWN •...
Medomak Valley High School Panther Pride Newsletter December 21,2012
Harold E. Wilson, Principal Tamra S. Philbrook, Asst. Principal Andrew J. Cavanaugh, Asst. Principal Matthew J. Lash, Athletic Director
Visit the Medomak Valley High School website at http://www.msad40.org/schools/mvhs Please submit news items to be published in the MVHS newsletter via e-mail to [email protected] by Wednesday morning for Thursday publication.
Coming Events Friday, December 21: Varsity Basketball Home Game Girls: 5:45 Boys: 7:15 Saturday, December 22: Wrestling Atlantic Invitational 9:00 Thursday, December 27: Boys Basketball Home Game w/Waterville Fresh: 3:00 JV: 4:30 Var: 6:00 Varsity Girls Basketball Game at Waterville: 1:00 Friday, December 28: Wrestling Mid-State Tourney at MCI Saturday, December 29: Varsity Basketball Home Game w/Nokomis Girls: 4:30 Boys: 6:00 Thursday, January 3: Varsity Basketball Game at MCI Boys: 4:30 Girls: 6:00 Saturday, January 5: Boys Basketball Game at LA Fresh: 11:30 JV: 1:00 Girls JV Basketball Game at LA: 10:00 Wrestling Meet at Erskine Academy: 9:00
News from Food Service Parents who wish to monitor their children’s meal balances or make online payments can now check out their child’s account on https://www.myschoolbucks.com/. This system replaces MyNutrikids.com. Use the same login information. If you are having technical issues please contact the customer support department at myschoolbucks.com by using their support request form or call 1-855-832-5226. Myschoobucks.com is presently only used to monitor lunch accounts or to make online payments. There is a fee for making online payments. Here is a note from Myschoolbucks: Logging into mySchoolBucks could not be easier! Usernames and passwords for parents are the same ones from MyNutrikids.com. Parents that did not previously have an account with MyNutrikids.com will need to register for a new account on mySchoolBucks.com. Things to know about mySchoolBucks: The convenience fee per transaction will change to $1.95. mySchoolBucks has the following payment methods available for use: Visa® Mastercard® Discover® Electronic Check Parents may fund up to $120 per student, but a family may pay for all of their students on a single transaction.
Due to legal requirements, we are unable to transfer automatic e-mail notifications. If parents previously setup low balance email alerts in MyNutrikids.com, they will need to
set those up on mySchoolBucks.
Holiday Break—Dec. 22-Jan. 1. First day back to school, Wed., Jan. 2, 2013.
FROM THE HEALTH OFFICE.............
Each year the Health Office receives many calls with questions about the flu. To help “pre-answer” some of the questions, we’d like to pass along some information that we think will help families in making decisions about their health and the flu. This information comes to “us” from the National School Nurse Association. In addition, the Center For Disease Control has recently released their State of Maine Health Alert, reporting a steady increase in cases of both Type A and Type B influenza. Several individuals have been hospitalized. The CDC strongly recommends following the steps to prevent the Flu, which include getting a Flu shot if you’ve not already done so. We hope this will help you have a happy, healthy winter. Please see the end of the newsletter.
Happy Holidays!!!!!
RSU 40/MSAD 40 Adult Education will begin a new semester in February – the new winter/spring adult education brochure will be in the mail 1/11/13. You can also view the new winter/spring classes at www.msad40.maineadulted.org
In early January or call 832-5205 for more information.
GED Preparation Classes will continue on Wednesdays through the month of January! GED classes offer intake, assessment and practice testing for the GED (General Educational Development) tests. The GED tests measure skills and competencies in five subject areas: Language Arts Reading, Language Arts Writing, Math, Science and Social Studies. Join us any Wednesday from 6-‐8 p.m. and start the process of earning your high school equivalency diploma. Fee: FREE. MVHS Room 29. NOTE: Beginning in January 2014 the GED test battery will change, and all testing done prior to that date that did not result in earning a GED diploma will become void. If you have successfully taken and passed one or more of the Official GED tests, come in today and finish what you started while there is still time! Spread the word!
FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON THE INFLUENZA VIRUS, VISIT WWW.CDC.GOV/FLU
This program is sponsored by the National Association of School Nurses (NASN) and funded by a contribution from Roche
THE FLU: WHAT PARENTS NEED TO KNOW TO KEEP KIDS HEALTHY
WHAT IS THE FLU?
• The flu is caused by the influenza virus, which infects the lungs, nose and throat
• Flu can cause mild to severe illness, and sometimes, can lead to death
• Each year in the United States: o 5-20 percent of Americans fall ill to the flu o Children are two to three times more likely than
adults to get sick with the flu, and they frequently spread the virus to others
• Young children are at the greatest risk for developing serious flu complications, as well as the elderly and those with certain health conditions
HOW DOES FLU SPREAD?
• There are two ways to get the flu. Usually flu is spread from person to person through coughing and sneezing. Occasionally, people can get the flu from touching a germ-infested surface
WHAT ARE THE COMMON SYMPTOMS OF FLU?
Often we get confused about the symptoms of the flu and how they are different from a common cold. Knowing the symptoms of the flu is important and will help you act quickly to get your child feeling better faster • Common symptoms of flu include: high fever, severe
headache, muscle and body aches, exhaustion and dry cough o Children often have additional flu symptoms that
are rare in adults, such as nausea, vomiting and diarrhea
• Symptoms of a common cold include: stuffy nose, sneezing, sore throat and hacking cough
SIMPLE STEPS FOR KEEPING YOUR CHILD HEALTHY
• According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the best way to prevent your child from getting the flu is to take him/her to get a flu vaccine
• You should talk to your child about practicing good health habits, such as: o Washing hands frequently with soap and warm
water for at least 20 seconds o Covering mouth and nose with a tissue when
sneezing or coughing, and disposing of the tissue in a proper trash receptacle
o Avoiding sharing drinks, water bottles or silverware with others
• You can help prevent the flu from spreading at home by disinfecting frequently touched surfaces, toys and other commonly shared items
• Also, if someone in your household gets the flu, a doctor can prescribe a medication – called an antiviral – that can actually prevent other members of the household from catching the flu o Studies show that some antiviral medications are up
to 89 percent effective in preventing the flu when taken once daily for seven days
DON’T TAKE THE FLU LYING DOWN
• If you are concerned about your child’s flu symptoms, call your doctor early. Call your doctor immediately if your child has a chronic disease. Some children may benefit from an antiviral medication, which can be prescribed by a physician and can help lessen the duration of the virus and reduce the risk of complications, such as pneumonia o To be effective, antiviral medication should be taken
within 12-48 hours after flu symptoms begin • If your child has the flu, it is important for them to stay
home from school, rest, and drink plenty of fluids • Additionally, notify your school nurse if your child has the
flu. Monitoring flu incidence within MSAD #40 will help keep students, faculty and our community healthy.
With flu season upon us, it is important that we work together to keep our children and school healthy. By keeping our children flu-free, we benefit the community as a whole. Additionally, healthy students miss fewer days of school, which results in less stress on the family. Following are answers to frequently asked questions about the flu and how to help protect your child.