Staph infection worries close 21 Virginia schools

[Flabbergasted]

Source: Reuters

Staph infection worries close 21 Virginia schools
Wed Oct 17, 2007 3:05pm EDT

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A county in southern Virginia closed its 21 schools on Wednesday to clean them to prevent the spread of a dangerous bacterial infection that killed a 17-year-old high school student, officials said.

The student died this week from a drug-resistant staph infection known as Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, which has become a worrisome public health issue nationwide.

Schools in Bedford County were closed to allow officials to carry out a thorough cleaning in an effort to get rid of the bacteria responsible for these infections, according to Charles Pyle, spokesman for the Virginia Department of Education.

The two schools of a small rural district in Rappahannock County in the northern part of the state closed for a day last week for a similar cleaning due to MRSA concerns, Pyle added.



Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idUSN1729913920071017

[barb162]

1. I know two people with this infection, both work in the local school,

one as a high school teacher.

ANd I just found out today. Lots of crap going around.

[Flabbergasted]

2. What is their condition?

[barb162]

6. They're both fine. One was in the hospital four days last week.

He was doing lawn work this afternoon. (he's a human dynamo I think.) I saw him and started talking to him and he started telling me the story.

[underpants]

3. I drove by that high school on Saturday

Going to a picnic at Smith Mountain Lake.

Weird.

[Slyder]

4. Pity.....

we have allowed local public health departments to go to rack and ruin. We lack the public health infrastructure to deal with infectious diseases any more. And no one party or group is responsible. I remember in college Biology 101 in 1967 the instructor telling us that if any of us were pre-med we shouldn't go into infectious diseases because we were about to wipe them out completely! Now we've spent all our money on big houses, SUVs, un-necessary wars, tax cuts for the rich, and large screen TVs, and can't afford public health departments any more. I guess, like with mental illness and addiction these days, we will have to let the police and criminal justice system deal with it.

I'm afraid I am right, but, damn, what I just wrote is really cynical!

[djp2]

5. My principal has it

My principal has not been able to start school this year due to an MRSA infection which has attacked her SPINE (it took ages to figure that one out). Hope she can make it back soon.

BTW, how can Pelosi support NCLB???

[Flabbergasted]

7. NCLB IMO is based on several false premises and should be scrapped entirely

Testing is not going to improve schools. Most teachers are well qualified for their jobs.

Even if the program has some merit ultimately it was mishandled. States and Counties are much better qualified to handle individual needs.

If George wants to help he can raise funding. But that wouldn't be fiscally conservative.