Hundreds of kids call in sick in Vernal

On Tuesday, 144 kids called in sick to Uintah High School in Vernal. By Thursday, that number had risen to 245, or 20 percent of the school's student body.

Alarmed about a possible swine-flu epidemic, the school scratched its Thursday night football game. On Friday, the school canceled all extra-curricular activities throughout the weekend.

Does Vernal have a swine-flu outbreak on its hands?

Or could it be something else?

There's no way to be sure, but Uintah Principal Julie Wilde said faculty members are identifying some kids who are acting sick at school and sending them home.

"Believe it or not, most kids really like school, and they are coming even when they are not on the top of their game," she said. "The students that would take advantage would find a reason to be absent even if the flu wasn't a viable excuse."

On Friday, an epidemiology nurse at the TriCounty Health Department in Vernal said there have been no confirmed cases of swine flu in the area, but a diagnosis typically requires a hospitalization.

Students are being asked to stay home if they are experiencing a sustained fever or even a cough, but schools are staying open – even without a fifth of the student body.

"For years, we've been telling these kids to get up and go to school, even if they have a runny nose, but now it's the opposite," Uintah principal Julie Wilde said. "But we've got a bunch of sick kids out there and it's really hard for our conscientious students who want to be here."

Teachers at Uintah are being encouraged to be flexible with their absent students, allowing them to make up work they happen to miss while sick. The school also has a policy that each class provides a 20-minute period once each week for students to catch up on whatever they're behind in.

In the past week, only one teacher has called in, but 225 students called in sick and at least 97 of them provided doctor's notes to miss two or more of five classes on Friday.

"This in an improvement from yesterday (Thursday)," Wilde said. "That is very good news."

Wilde said having 20 percent of the student body calling in sick is enough to take action and prevent the spreading of whatever illness the students might have. She said health officials in the area are uncertain of what might be floating around because the typical flu season hasn't started yet and the H1N1 virus isn't expected to go full-bore until the winter months.