SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Springfield-Greene County Health said nearly 800 cases of the flu were reported from Nov. 27 to Dec. 3.
Local school districts said they are currently dealing with students catching the flu, along with a variety of other illnesses.
“Things being reported are some cases of strep, gastrointestinal illness, cold symptoms, flu-like symptoms,” said Tammy Holley, who is the coordinator of health services at Springfield Public Schools. In Springfield, school health leaders said they are seeing slightly higher absences than normal.
“If your children are not feeling well, please keep them at home if they have any kind of symptoms, and most definitely if they have a fever,” said Holley. “They need to be fever-free for 24 hours without medication to bring the temperature down.”
At Nixa Public Schools, multiple students are being sent home daily for being sick.
“In the previous years, we’ve been focused on COVID, but right now, I think countywide and statewide, we’re seeing an increase in a variety of illnesses,” said Lead School Nurse Lindsay Ball. “The biggest thing we’re seeing right now would be the flu.”
Just like during the COVID-19 pandemic, Ball said certain preventative measures are in place.
“As we’re seeing hotspots or areas of increased illness, we can then request our cleaning services to come in and do that specialized cleaning,” said Ball.
With the overall hope that parents and staff report illness.
“So we can watch the data and make appropriate decisions on how to best prevent that spread from getting worse generally,” said Ball.
Springfield-Greene County Health said it’s not too late for people to get their flu and COVID-19 shots.