Swine flu alert at schools (From Bridport and Lyme Regis News)

Swine flu alert at schools

11:45am Thursday 9th July 2009

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PARENTS have been put on alert after a spate of swine flu scares at school across the area.

A pupil at Beaminster Technology College has been offered anti viral medication after showing symptoms of swine flu.

The school says the student has not had a positive test for the bug but they are issuing advice to all parents as a precautionary measure.

They stress it is an “isolated case” and that the youngster is being kept at home while the college remains open.

The move follows positive confirmation of two cases of the virus in another school attended by students from the Bridport area.

The girl pupils in years 12 and 13 at Colyton Grammar have been recovering at home after contracting the bug. They are said to have suffered only mild symptoms and one is already back in class.

A pupil at Axe Valley Community College in Axminster is also thought to have caught the virus.

Now, with cases of swine flu predicted to increase dramatically in the coming weeks, a Bridport medic has called for urgent action to clean up the town’s “filthy streets” to limit the spread of the bug.

Town, district and county councillor Karl Wallace, a nurse, believes the town’s unwashed pavements, “dirty” public toilets and overflowing litter bins could make Bridport a swine flu hotspot.

He says scavenging seagulls who regularly attack rubbish sacks in the town could spread tissues used by flu victims and increase transmission of the disease.

In the meantime parents at Beaminster School – where there are 740 pupils - have all received a letter from Head Teacher Mike Best advising them about what to do if their child show signs of the illness.

He said: “Now that there is widespread community transmission in many parts of the country, the UK has switched from a containment to a treatment response. As a result, GPs diagnose cases on the basis of clinical observation rather than laboratory testing. Everyone who has ‘flu like symptoms and is diagnosed by their doctor as having swine ‘flu will be offered a course of antiviral medication. However the preventive use of antiviral drugs is now being restricted to close household contacts who fall into one of the risk groups for developing serious complications of flu.

“The vast majority of swine flu cases in the UK have been mild and self-limiting and the infection is now widespread in many parts of the UK.

“The school has taken advice from the Dorset and Somerset Health Protection Unit and NHS Dorset. As swine flu is now circulating in the community, closing a school down would not necessarily prevent infection as people could still be exposed to the virus outside of the school setting. The school will therefore stay open as usual.”

Mr Best says parents should keep their child at home if he or she shows any signs of flu like symptoms with a high fever, aches and pains and a cough, cold or runny nose. They should contact NHS Direct on 0845 4647 or the Swine Flu information line on 0800 1 513 513. If they are still concerned, they should phone their GP surgery for advice, pointing out any long term medical condition such as asthma or diabetes which can make a child more vulnerable to the effects of flu.

This week Coun Wallace called for more frequent litter bin emptying and better street cleaning to limit the spread of swine flu in Bridport.

He said : “The Public Protection Agency is asking for suggestions to reduce the public vulnerability to the virus.

“I am suggesting washing the streets with detergent every day and more importantly getting the public bins emptied more frequently. They contain tissues full of germs which the seagulls can pull out and send rolling down the roads.

“Also the public buildings should be cleaned more regularly. Officials claim the town hall toilets are cleaned three times a day but I find that hard to believe – have you seen the state of them. They are disgusting.”

West Dorset MP Oliver Letwin said he would be looking into the best options for combating the spread of the disease.

He said: “ I shall be contacting the Health Protection Agency, to ask whether the measures proposed (by Coun Wallace) would make a significant difference to the risks.”

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