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Community Corner

Keeping Germs at Bay

What to Do When Your Child Comes Home Sick.

Yesterday, I got the call that no parent wants to get. The school nurse called from my daughter’s elementary school to tell me my daughter was ill and had to be picked up immediately. My daughter had a fever, a stomach bug, and had some stomach upset, she told me.

I am hoping that my daughter will be well in time for Friday’s school play and that my other daughter (who’s also in the school play) won’t get the stomach bug as well.

These are steps I plan to take to limit the contagion. If the virus hits your house (I hear a stomach bug has been going around), you may want to take these precautions, as well.

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Reduce contact: This one is hard for my kids, who love to play together. But if siblings can be separated when a virus has taken hold in a home, it’s best to keep them apart if possible. You don’t want to quarantine a child to his or her room, but if you can have your children play separately at least for a while, you might avoid getting the whole family sick.

Scrub: I’ll be cleaning my bathrooms in the next few hours, and if the virus visits your home, you’ll want to follow suit. Bathrooms are germ central, so it’s a wise idea to disinfect the place when a family is sick. It’s also a good idea to switch out towels (where germs can live) for disposable paper towels at the sink. If you have an extra bathroom, consider having your child use just that one bathroom, and not the one(s) being used by the rest of your family.

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Wash hands – a lot: Encourage family members to wash their hands frequently with plenty of soap and water to prevent the bug from making the rounds.

Get lots of sleep: Help build your family’s defenses by getting everyone to bed just a little earlier than usual. It might be just what your family needs to be healthy again.

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