Health dept.: STC East absenteeism caused
by a variety of factors
By THE CHRONICLE
A Kane County Health Department investigation into the large rate of absenteeism at St. Charles East School last week showed that the absences were not attributable to any one cause, according to a release from the health department. Less than 10 percent of those students reporting illness on Oct. 19 and 20 complained of influenza-like symptoms.
“The reason for the high number of student absences was not an H1N1 flu virus outbreak, but instead we can point to a variety of causes that contributed to it,” said Health Department Executive Director Paul Kuehnert in the release.
The Kane County Health Department and District 303 staff collaborated to conduct student interviews and analyze reports from the school health office, while area health care providers were asked to report cases of H1N1 or influenza A in students or staff to the health department.
According to the health department’s report, “it would have been expected that if H1N1 illness was circulating at increased levels in the student population, increased illness reports would have been sustained for a longer period of time based on the incubation period of 1 to 7 days and with illness duration lasting on average 3 to 5 days. High school staff illness did not increase during the entire time period.”
The school district, in consultation with the health department, closed St. Charles East High School Oct. 23, 24 and 25 because of the large number of student absences.
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