A number of schools in the Sudbury area have large numbers of students off sick due to flu-like illnesses, according to Dr. Penny Sutcliffe, the Sudbury and District medical officer of health.
“In general, we are seeing more influenza-like illness in our schools throughout the province, and certainly in Sudbury and district. That's what we expected this year in terms of people's susceptibility to this virus (H1N1) without having had the benefit of the vaccine yet,” she said.
Schools are required to report the number of absent students to the health unit if more than 10 per cent of the school's population is off sick, she said.
“Our staff will give the school a call, and the school often has a sense of what's going on from phone calls from parents. This could alert us to the fact that there's a gastrointestinal or food-borne illness,” she said.
“This year, of course, our concern is around the H1N1 pandemic virus. Our interest is around influenza-like illness.”
Sutcliffe said she could not identify any of the schools where more than 10 per cent of the students are currently off sick, but it has been reported in the media recently that École séparée Notre-Dame-de-la-Merci in Coniston had large numbers of absences due to flu-like symptoms.
Marc Lauzon, spokesperson for Le Conseil scolaire catholique du Nouvel-Ontario, the school board which runs the Coniston school, said that of the 170 students at the school, 51 are currently off sick.
A few days ago, that number stood at 66 students.
Lauzon said he thinks some of the students who are off school are being kept home by parents to prevent them from contracting the flu.
“Parents are hearing all kinds of different things, and they're reacting to that. It is flu season, so not all absences are H1N1 related. But a lot of people have that conception or fear, so it's kind of a knee-jerk reaction, if you like.”
Sutcliffe said when a school reports that it has large amounts of students with the flu, public health nurses make sure that the school has the proper information to prevent the spread of the illness.
“I'm pleased to know that parents are keeping their children home if they're ill. That helps to decrease the spread of the virus and the impact it's going to have on our community.”