BPSD works diligently to ensure good health for all

(Published Sunday, September 6, 2009 in Examiner-Enterprise)

Things don’t always unfold as you expect them to.
This year in Oklahoma, July was particularly hot, searing citizens with triple-digit temperatures. Thus, it was easy to assume that the August which followed would be unrelenting as well. But as it turned out, August was unseasonably mild. Late in the month, there were some mornings where it felt like fall had already arrived in Green Country. There was a chill in the air.
As the weather begins to cool, we typically begin to see more outbreaks of illness within the Bartlesville Public School District, such as colds and – of a more serious nature – the flu. But those illnesses usually don’t begin to pop up until we’re a month or two into a given academic year.

We learned about our initial case of Type-A influenza within the district on Aug. 27. One particular strain of Type-A influenza – the H1N1 virus – has received extensive coverage in the media on state, national and worldwide levels. Once the case of Type-A influenza had been confirmed, we gathered a team to review the district’s plan of action in such situations. We stressed the best ways to keep our schools clean and sanitized, the importance of educating our students as to the best ways to avoiding spreading and contracting germs, as well as the best ways to communicate exactly what was going on within the district to our parents, patrons and citizens at large. We vowed to be proactive in our approach to keeping our students and staff members as healthy and safe as possible.
 Within the BPSD, we are blessed to have a fine nursing staff led by Julie Jackson, a registered nurse (RN) who serves as our lead district nurse. Thus, when we have illness issues with our students, we feel quite confident in the care they are given. Our nursing staff is well-trained and maintains a great working relationship with our area physicians as well as the Jane Phillips Medical Center. They stay in close contact with the Washington County Health Department as well as the Oklahoma State Department of Health.
When a student is ill, we try to get them immediate attention by one of our nurses and parents and/or guardians are contacted. Sometimes, the child can be treated and released back into the classroom environment while other times, they might have to visit a doctor. Though we have general guidelines which we follow, each situation is unique.
But while we always want to do what is best for the individual student who may be ailing, we don’t want to neglect the students who are healthy and attending class at one of our 12 schools. We don’t take the good health of our students for granted. Instead, we work diligently to maintain and protect it. There are a few ways in which we can do this.
The custodial staffs at each of our sites work tirelessly to ensure we have very clean and sanitary schools. The buildings are cleaned and scrubbed on a daily basis, including numerous times in a given 24-hour period in high traffic areas such as cafeterias. One of the cleaning agents which we commonly use is a germicidal detergent which cleans, disinfects and deodorizes.
In addition, our teachers and administrators regularly stress the importance of healthy diets and exercise to our students. They talk about how important it is not to spread germs as well. Oftentimes, if a foundation for good health is put in place among our youngsters at an early age, they can build good practices upon it throughout the course of their lifetimes. Thus, at the Will Rogers Early Childhood Center, which is home to pre-kindergarten and kindergarten students, the children learn proper hand-washing techniques. It’s not uncommon to hear one of them singing their “ABC’s” as they scrub up. They start singing the alphabet when they begin washing their hands and don’t finish until they’ve concluded the song, thus ensuring they have spent the proper amount of time with the soap and water. Coughing is done in the crook of one’s elbow to help prevent the spread of germs.
Parents with students who are sick can help us maintain healthy school environments by keeping those children at home until they are completely recovered. Those youngsters who have flu-like symptoms and a fever equal to or greater than 100 degrees should stay home at least 24 hours after they no longer have a fever.
At the district level, we try to raise awareness about the importance of good health practices while educating people about particular illnesses as well. So, last spring when the flu was taking its toll, we sent out a mass email to parents which included information about how to prevent the spread of germs and how to tell the difference between a cold and the flu. It included links to the websites of the Tulsa Health Department and the American Red Cross as well. A similar email package was sent out late last month as we began receiving some news of cases of the flu cropping up among a small number of students within the district. As much as we possibly can, we want to make sure that number stays small.
One of the main goals for those of us within the Bartlesville Public School District is to make sure we maintain a safe and healthy environment for our students and staff members. We will continue to work diligently in that area. Those who have questions or are seeking additional information can contact Jackson via email at JacksonJA@bps-ok.org.