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Advice for parents if school is closed or children are
sick and must stay at home because of
Pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (Swine Flu)
Version 1.0 27th Aug 2009 (adapted from material produced by CDC US)
General
• Make arrangements to care for your children at home.
• Have activities for your children to do while at home, e.g. games, books, DVDs.

Prevent the transmission of flu by doing the following at all times
• Make sure your child’s hands are washed regularly with soap and water especially after coughing or
sneezing. Hand drying facilities at school must not be shared between people with the exception of electric hand dryers and roller towels. Students may be asked to bring in and use their own individual towels. • Have your child cough and sneeze into a tissue or into his or her elbow or shoulder if a tissue is not available. Dispose of tissues immediately as household rubbish. • Wash hard surfaces such as kitchen worktops, door handles, etc. with a normal household cleaner as the • The HSE recommends that you get your child the Pandemic (H1N1) 2009 flu vaccine when offered.

Recognize if your child is sick
It is important to watch carefully for the signs and symptoms of flu. Flu usually presents with sudden onset of fever
(temperature over 38º C) and cough or sore throat. Other symptoms can include runny or stuffy nose, limb or joint
pain, headache, vomiting or diarrhoea.

Your child might have a fever if he or she feels warm, has a flushed appearance, or is sweating or shivering.
Most children can be cared for without the need for medical attention. Watch for emergency warning signs that
need urgent medical attention including:
• Not urinating or no tears when crying • Being so irritable that the child does not want to be held • Pain or pressure in the chest or abdomen • Flu-like symptoms improve but then return with fever and worse cough.
Caring for persons with the flu
• Persons with suspected flu should remain at home for 7 days from when symptoms began.
• If your child has a fever, use fever-reducing medicines such as paracetamol or ibuprofen. Aspirin should not • Persons who may be at higher risk for complications of flu include persons with chronic respiratory, heart, kidney, liver or neurological disease, immunosuppression (whether caused by disease or treatment), diabetes, haemoglobinopathies, people aged 65 years and older, children under the age of 5 years (especially those less than 2 years), people on medication for asthma, those who are severely obese and pregnant women. If the person with flu is in one of these risk groups you should speak with your doctor as people at high risk of complications can benefit from early treatment with antiviral medicines. • Make sure sick people get plenty of rest and drink clear fluids (such as water, broth, sports drinks, electrolyte beverages for infants) to keep from being dehydrated. • Keep sick household members in a separate room in the house as much as possible to limit contact with household members who are not sick. If available and tolerated, the sick person should wear a facemask when sharing common spaces with other household members to help prevent spreading the virus to others. HSE 24 hour Flu Information Line Freephone 1800 94 11 00

Source: http://www.rathnurens.ie/files/if_your_child_is_sick.pdf