Sick days

School buses were back on their morning pickup routes this week, as students and teachers prepare for another school year that's not quite like any other in recent years.

The H1N1 influenza virus - also known as swine flu - has been getting lots of promotion from the Department of Education.

As we told readers in last week's edition of The Beacon, the department, along with the Nova Central School District (NCSD), is putting in place measures it hopes will prevent or limit the affect of the virus on schools.

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared a H1N1 pandemic in June of this year, and infectious disease experts expect the disease will pick up steam this fall. WHO expects 30 per cent of the world's population will be affected by the virus by the time H1N1 runs its course.

In last week's article, we discussed how NCSD will try to pass along information to students, parents, and staff, and look to keep schools running in the event of low turnouts.

NCSD director Cindy Fleet said she expects absenteeism to be significant, and that they will encourage anybody with H1N1 symptoms to stay home.

This is certainly a fair thing to do. It is unclear whether the virus will fizzle out or mutate into a more serious form of H1N1.

One thing missed though in last week's article was the potential for students to take advantage of the H1N1 craze.

There is little doubt some students will be inclined to play up symptoms in order to get a few days away from school. Catching them might be difficult, and second-guessing a child in the current climate may seem questionable.

However, there will be students who force parents to believe they have H1N1, and it will up to the parents to decide what course of action to take.

A child claiming to be sick should never be taken lightly. If they claim to be so, simply take them to a doctor and have them checked out. Missing valuable school time should not be allowed unless the symptoms are legitimate.

Obviously, all parents should put the health of a child first before anything else. Likewise, learning needn't suffer.