CDC’S RECENT GUIDANCE--PREVENTING THE SPREAD OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES IN K-12 SCHOOLS

Schools provide safe, supportive environments, routines, and important services that support student health and well-being. Schools should have plans in place that can help reduce illness and illness-related absenteeism by preventing the spread of common infections. On May 17, 2024, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued updated guidance for the prevention of infectious diseases in K-12 schools.

This guidance is designed to maximize school attendance and its benefits for all students, while also preventing the spread of infectious diseases. This new guidance consolidates and simplifies previous recommendations intended specifically for K-12 school settings.

It replaces previous guidance that was for COVID-19 and influenza in schools, is aligned with CDC’s respiratory virus guidance, and is based on scientific studies that showed what works best to prevent the spread of many common respiratory and stomach infections. These strategies can also reduce the spread of many other infectious diseases in schools.

Germs are a part of everyday life and are found in our air, soil, water, and in and on our bodies. Some germs are helpful, while others are harmful. Many germs live in and on our bodies without causing harm, and some even help us to stay healthy. Only a small portion of germs are known to cause infection.

An infection occurs when germs enter the body, increase in number, and cause a reaction of the body. Three things are necessary for an infection to occur:

• Source: Places where infectious agents (germs) live (e.g., sinks, surfaces, human skin). Germs are found in many places. People are one source of germs. People can pass germs to others, even if they do not have symptoms of an infection. Germs are also found in the school environment. Examples of environmental sources of germs include desks, lunch tables, faucets and sinks, and play items or shared instructional materials.
• Susceptible Person: A susceptible person is not immune or who has a weakened immune system. For an infection to occur, germs must enter a susceptible person’s body, invade tissues, and multiply.
• Transmission refers to the way germs infect a susceptible person. Germs depend on people, animals (e.g., mosquitoes), the environment, and/or shared objects to move. Some examples of ways that germs travel in school settings include contact (e.g., touching), sprays and splashes from coughs or sneezes, inhalation, insects, and through food or liquids (e.g., sharing with a sick person).

Changes in school operational status (i.e., virtual, hybrid, closure) are not recommended as a routine infection prevention and control strategy. Changes to short-term virtual or closure status are not generally needed and decisions to make these changes should consider the potential for educational, social, and economic impacts on children and families.

Schools should work with local health authorities to stay open and provide safe, continuous, in-person learning to the greatest extent feasible for all students. 

THE ROLE OF ELECTROSTATIC SPRAYERS IN KEEPING STUDENTS SAFE AND SCHOOLS OPEN

Novel application methods such as Electrostatic Sprayers warrant further evaluation in the school setting as the devices produce positively charged disinfectant particles of equal size, which distribute uniformly over surfaces.

The ESS equipment allows for touchless disinfection and could be more effective at targeting sites that:

·       might have been missed by the cleaning professional,

·       are more difficult to reach or,

·       to disinfect with a traditional microfiber wipe or flat mop.

Electrostatic spraying is still the fastest, most effective, and economical way to keep infectious diseases at bay but it’s not intended to replace daily cleaning, hand hygiene and touch-point targeted disinfection.

The staff should be trained in proper cleaning methods and disinfection by hand. Once that is achieved, ESS equipment can be used as a secondary disinfecting technique.

CALL TO ACTION

At a minimum, cleaning must always achieve a state of “sanitation.” An unsanitary condition poses a likely health risk. The purpose of cleaning is to correct the risky condition. Therefore, if a risk has not been improved to a level we call sanitary, cleaning has not been accomplished.

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