News

October 8, 2009

Swine flu fears hit Pittston schools

Absenteeism high as flu-like symptoms or concerns about illness keep students home.

By Andrew M. Seder aseder@timesleader.com
Times Leader Staff Writer
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YATESVILLE – More than one out of every four Pittston Area High School students stayed home Wednesday, some with flu-like illnesses and others over health concerns that the swine flu has found its way into their schools.

But that school wasn’t the only one in the district impacted by the abnormally high rate of absenteeism.

Nearly 20 percent of all Pittston Area students were absent Wednesday, the third day in a row with at least 10 percent of students absent.

The district has 3,373 students in its five schools and 663 were absent Wednesday. On Monday and Tuesday those totals were closer to 400.

The escalation could be from increased cases or just from parents erring on the side of caution, said district Superintendent George Cosgrove.

He said eight parents have called this week reporting their son or daughter had seen a doctor and they were told they had the swine flu.

He said the state Department of Health had been informed Monday when the first calls were received. He said school has remained in session, though parents have been informed of the situation and urged to remind their children to use proper hygiene and to stay home if they do have flu-like symptoms.

Stacy Kriedeman, press secretary for the state Department of Health, confirmed that the department is working with the school district by offering guidelines and recommendations. She said that because of privacy and health laws, she could not discuss individual cases.

Cosgrove said the state has not confirmed any swine flu cases in the district and he can only go by what’s been reported to him by parents. He said a recorded phone message was sent out Tuesday informing parents of the high rate of absenteeism and the potential for the presence of the swine flu, also known as the H1N1 virus.

He said he can’t say for sure how many students called off because of actual illness and how many were kept home as a precautionary measure, but either way the absentee rate on Wednesday was about four times higher than the typical rate for early October, which is about 6 percent.

Health officials have been warning of the pending swine flu and potential outbreaks, saying schools and other places where large numbers of people interact are potential hotspots. To date, only one student in Luzerne County has been confirmed to have contracted the swine flu.

Back in May, a Holy Redeemer High School student was tested and confirmed to have the strain. That school experienced a slight spike in absenteeism once word got out that a student had a confirmed case, but not nearly the rate Pittston Area saw Wednesday.

Twelve percent of Holy Redeemer students called off on Monday, May 4.

As of 3 p.m. Wednesday, there were 14 deaths reported in Pennsylvania as a result of the swine flu, one in Northeastern Pennsylvania that occurred in Pike County.

Kriedeman could not provide data for how many students in the state have been confirmed to have swine flu. She said more than 70 percent of cases reported in the state are from patients ages 5 to 24.

Swine flu statewide and regionwide

Pennsylvania: 2,862 confirmed cases, 59 probable cases, 14 deaths.

Monroe County: 125 confirmed cases, 1 probable case, 0 deaths.

Luzerne County: 50 confirmed cases, 0 probable cases, 0 deaths.

Lackawanna County: 27 confirmed cases, 0 probable cases, 0 deaths.

Carbon County: 15 confirmed cases, 1 probable case, 0 deaths.

Wyoming County: 2 confirmed cases, 0 probable cases, 0 deaths.

Andrew M. Seder, a Times Leader staff writer, may be reached at 570-829-7269.

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