Posts Tagged “disinfect”

Armed with hand-sanitizer………

I made it through the week. The flu outbreak, whether it’s H1N1 or just the normal seasonal flu, has begun to hit our district in a big way. Over 20% of the students in our building were absent for 2 days last week. Teachers have also been ill; so many that they are unable to find substitute teachers for them all. Reading teachers get the call in this case, and I enjoyed a day in a fifth grade classroom.

The major weapon in our fight against the germs, is hand sanitizer. As students come into the room – “Please sanitize your hands.” As students enter the computer lab – “Please sanitize your hands”. As students leave the computer lab – “Please sanitize your hands”. As students leave for art…..well….you get the picture. Hand sanitizer is everywhere! As I spent the day with the fifth graders, it occurred to me, perhaps we need a better weapon – these kids are sanitizing every time they turn around and they are still dropping like flies.

Wednesday morning I was headed to the office to get some supplies. I passed one of my few well colleagues on my way. “Don’t go in the office”, she said in a low growl. HHHHmmmmmm. I had to go into the office, I needed these supplies. As I rounded the little hallway from the teacher work room to the office area I almost stepped on a student! Upon further observation, the principal’s office is full of students, the little hall is full of students, the guidance counselors office more students. The nurses’ office, FULL of students with pans and the office, well, it looked like a triage scene from MASH. As I gathered my supplies, I held my breath, then got out of there as quickly as I could. On my way out I passed another colleague…..yup, I too growled, “DON’T go in there.”

There is hope on the horizon however. Friday they held a flu shot clinic for students and about half of the parents sent permission for their children to get shots. Although the shots were given quickly and few students actually cried, the effects of the trauma were seen throughout the day. One teacher asked a student to hold the door for the rest of the class to go by and got an overly dramatic, “But……I got the flu shot…..I can’t do it”. I overheard two 4th grade girls talking on their way out the door at the end of the day. One must have gotten the shot and the other not. The one who received the shot was reliving the trauma. “First they poke in this long needle, and you don’t feel it right away but then…….this whole thing of PAIN shoots all over your whole body…..and you think you might DIE!” It just makes me wonder how many kids who got the shots will use that as an excuse to get out of their weekend chores.

Excuse me, I need to go disinfect my table, pencils, chairs……..well……my world.