Dear students, faculty, staff and parents,

As you may know, flu can be spread easily from person to person. Therefore, we are taking steps to prevent the spread of flu at York Technical College for as long as possible, but we need your help to accomplish this.

We are working closely with the York County Health Department to monitor flu conditions and make decisions about the best steps to take concerning our institution. We will keep you updated with new information as it becomes available to us.

For now, we are doing everything we can to keep our institution operating as usual. Here are a few things you can do to help:

• Practice good hand hygiene by washing your hands with soap and water, especially after coughing or sneezing. Alcohol-based hand cleaners are also effective.

• Practice respiratory etiquette by covering your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. If you don’t have a tissue, cough or sneeze into your elbow or shoulder, not into your hands.  Avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth; germs are spread this way. Tissues are available upon request in the following locations.

• Know the signs and symptoms of the flu. A fever is a temperature taken with a thermometer that is equal to or greater than 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Look for possible signs of fever: if the person feels very warm, has a flushed appearance, or is sweating or shivering.

• Stay home if you have flu or flu-like illness for at least 24 hours after you no longer have a fever (100 degrees Fahrenheit) or signs of a fever (have chills, feel very warm, have a flushed appearance, or are sweating). This should be determined without the use of fever-reducing medications (any medicine that contains ibuprofen or acetaminophen).  Don’t go to class or work. 

• Talk with your health care providers about whether you should be vaccinated for seasonal flu. Also if you are at higher risk for flu complications from 2009 H1N1 flu, you should consider getting the H1N1 vaccine when it becomes available. People at higher risk for 2009 H1N1 flu complications include pregnant women and people with chronic medical conditions (such as asthma, heart disease, or diabetes). For more information about priority groups for vaccination, visit www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/vaccination/acip.htm.

If this year’s flu season becomes more severe, we may take the following additional steps to prevent the spread of the virus:

• Allow students, faculty, and staff at higher risk for complications to stay home.  These students, faculty, and staff should make this decision in consultation with their health care provider.

• Find ways to increase social distances (the space between people) in classrooms such as moving desks farther apart, leaving empty seats between students, and using distance learning methods.

• Extend the time sick students, faculty, or staff stay home. During severe flu conditions, sick people should stay home for at least 7 days, even if they feel better sooner. Those who are still sick after 7 days should continue to stay home until at least 24 hours after symptoms have gone away. Symptoms of flu include fever or chills and cough or sore throat. In addition, symptoms of flu can include runny nose, body aches, headache, tiredness, diarrhea, or vomiting.

• Suspend classes.  This decision will be made together with local and state public health officials. The length of time classes should be suspended will depend on the goal of suspending classes as well as the severity and extent of illness.

For more information about flu in our community and what our institution is doing, visit www.yorktech.com/flu or call (803) 327-8000.

For the most up-to-date information on flu, visit www.flu.gov, or call 1-800-CDC-INFO (232-4636).

We will notify you by e-mail of any additional changes to our institution’s strategy to prevent the spread of flu on our campus.

Sincerely,