A Message from The Health Centre – Please be Vigilant
This week we have notified the MLC School community regarding cases of:
- Chickenpox
- Whooping Cough
Chickenpox is a viral illness caused by the herpes voster virus (also known as Varicella-Zoster virus). In children it usually causes a relatively mild illness. Symptoms to watch out for include a sudden onset of a slight fever, runny nose, feeling generally unwell and a skin rash.
If your daughter exhibits any of these symptoms, no matter how mild, we ask that you keep her home and take advice from your doctor for her return to School.
In the early stages, the virus is spread by coughing, and later in the illness the virus is spread by direct contact with the fluid in the blisters. People are infectious from one or two days before the rash appears and up to five days after.
For more information about Chickenpox, the symptoms and how it’s prevented please click on the link here
Pertussis (Whooping cough) is a serious respiratory infection caused by the bacteria Bordetella pertussis. For more information please click the link here.
Whooping cough is an illness that usually starts like a cold. It spreads very easily between people. It can cause a bad cough which gets worse and may last for many weeks. The disease spreads easily from person to person through droplets made when coughing, sneezing or talking.
People with whooping cough can infect others for up to three weeks.
Premature infants and babies less than six months old are at the highest risk of getting very ill and it can be life-threatening.
Please monitor your daughters for any symptoms, no matter how mild. If anyone becomes symptomatic, they should see a doctor and be tested. (Please take the letter that is attached here with you to the doctor).
If a doctor diagnoses Pertussis (Whooping Cough), your daughter should be kept home until they have taken five days of antibiotics.
Please feel free to contact me by email here if you have any concerns or questions.
– Katelyn Morris
MLC School Nurse