Attendance in the Lee County School District dropped to 81% just nine days after the first day of school.

Less than two weeks into the school year, a Kentucky school district has canceled in-person classes for the rest of the week after nearly a fifth of its students came down with Covid, strep throat, the flu and other illnesses.

The Lee County School District, which has just under 900 students, began classes Aug. 9 but noticed attendance drop to about 82% on Friday, Superintendent Earl Ray Schuler said.

By Monday, the rate dipped to 81%, and 14 staff members called in sick, Schuler said.

  • mo_ztt ✅@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    Covid, strep throat, the flu, and other illnesses, i.e. covid covid covid and covid, but a lot of our parents have a very particular way of approaching what they’re willing to accept about why their child is sick.

    • SneakyWeasel@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      Probably missing the point, but RN I’m stuck with a horrid ass flu that makes my entire muscles sore, couldn’t sleep yesterday because of cold sweats, and just all in all feel like garbage, and you could not imagine the relief I felt when tested it turned out to not be COVID (And yes, I am up to date with the COVID vaccines).

      • harmonea@kbin.social
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        1 year ago

        (And yes, I am up to date with the COVID vaccines)

        This doesn’t really seem to matter with all the new mutations that are loose right now. The spouse and I are up to date as well, but we still caught it ~3 weeks ago after avoiding it for 3.5 years. We healed up fine, but it sure did suck. Looking forward to updated boosters.

        Seems like everyone I know around the world (thanks, internet) is getting it right now, even if they’ve been taking things seriously.

        • Foggyfroggy@lemmy.world
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          1 year ago

          If you’re alive the vaccine helped. It wasn’t meant to be a never-get-it vaccine. Just that if you did catch it your chances of dying were lower.

          • harmonea@kbin.social
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            1 year ago

            I tried to be as clear as possible that I appreciated the vaccine, still plan to keep it up to date, and don’t blame its inability to catch every mutation, and someone still needs to get lecturey about it…

            • Foggyfroggy@lemmy.world
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              1 year ago

              My bad, the way your sentence was worded it seems like you expected the vaccine to prevent infections not just severity. It’s an important point that is subtle.

      • Tolstoshev@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        Did you test for flu and get positive? I’ve been hearing a lot about false negatives with the newer strains. They’ve mutated enough that they don’t trigger the antibodies in the test, is the theory.

        • Melkath@kbin.social
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          1 year ago

          So far as I have heard, yes, mutations are emerging because people keep getting reinfected and reinfecting others, but the anosmia symptom is still pretty consistent.

          Might not trigger a test, but if you suddenly cant taste your dinner, you have covid.

            • BadIdeaKitten@lemmy.world
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              1 year ago

              If we’re throwing around anecdata, I was a first responder during COVID and several people I worked with lost their sense of taste and/or smell. I would guess at least 25 percent temporarily and I knew a couple who still had altered senses many months later, including one who could only taste sweet properly and everything else tasting like sulfur. The first few times we worked together I thought she was trying to give herself diabetes. Protein shakes didn’t taste good either.

              My daughter had COVID in January and lost her sense of taste and smell - it was the only symptom she had. It took about three months to regain her senses, and she still has one food ingredient (we think it’s a red dye) that tastes like she imagines licking a dirty bathroom floor would taste. Whatever it is, it’s in some nacho cheese flavorings and red Sour Patch Kids. It’s an improvement from everything tasting like bathroom floor, though.

            • Melkath@kbin.social
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              1 year ago

              Oh shit.

              24 people and 22 didnt have anosmia.

              Anecdotal, but news to me.

              Thanks for sharing.

      • Silverseren@kbin.social
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        1 year ago

        The Covid test kits are largely useless with Eris, doctors have been finding. It’s mutation that lets it escape immune detection also seems to let it escape the test kits primary measurement methods.

        So you absolutely could still have Covid.

    • Tikiporch@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      No parents wanted to do covid tests, so a good trick is to stop carrying covid only tests and only provide covid/flu combo tests.

      • time_lord@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        Our local hospital just switched from covid/flu/strep tests to individual ones, because they can bill more for 3 tests than one.