The Kent School District has confirmed that the district has confirmed cases of the virus formally known as swine flu (H1N1), though they are not releasing specifics about numbers or locations.
The King County Health Department, responding to a request from the Kent Reporter, has acknowledged the first diagnosed case of H1N1 in Kent was a student at Kent-Meridian High School, age 15. The student did not require hospitalization.
Given the relatively mild nature of the ailment and the fact it is now widespread, the Health Department and the school district are asking parents to keep their ill children home. The first cases in King County had resulted in several school closures.
“It’s no more severe than a typical flu season,” said James Apa, public information officer for Seattle-King County Public Health, last week. “With so many cases and it’s so widespread, our focus is less on individual cases. And the reported cases are underreported of the true activity.
“It’s very likely there are more cases,” Apa added. “But if it’s relatively mild, people may not seek medical care and they are not getting tested. We are moving away from reporting individual numbers.”
As part of its preventative measures, the Kent School District has updated the swine flu link on its Web site and is encouraging all residents of the district to take precautions such as frequent hand-washing, covering your mouth when you cough and staying home when sick.
“This is not about a school,” KSD spokesperson Becky Hanks said Friday. “This is about the community.”
Hanks also said the school district has more people out with regular flu bugs and sicknesses than with the H1N1 virus.
According to a May 21 press release from Seattle – King County Public Health, they are seeing an increase of the disease among school-aged children.
According to the release, nearly 70 percent of confirmed cases are among children ages 5-18. There are confirmed cases in 75 public school across 12 districts, including Kent.
Visit the district’s Web site at http://www.kent.k12.wa.us/ksd/cr/04_09_h1n1.html for more information.
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