Orange County NC Website
Chapel Hill elementary school back to normal following whooping cough cases <br />https://www.cbs17.com/...range-county-news/chapel-hill-elementary-school-back-to-normal-following-whooping-cough-cases/1974027311[5/13/2019 10:05:36 AM] <br />Orange County News <br />Chapel Hill elementary school back to normal following <br />whooping cough cases <br />By: Robert Richardson  <br />Updated: May 03, 2019 03:48 PM EDT <br />CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (WNCN) - An outbreak of <br />whooping cough at an elementary school led Chapel <br />Hill-Carrboro City Schools administrators to send <br />seven people home. <br />The Orange County Health Department confrmed <br />cases of pertussis, commonly referred to as <br />whooping cough, in six students and one teacher at <br />Glenwood Elementary School. Tracy Sanders, the <br />CHCCS nurse coordinator, said Health Department staff notifed the school system that a student had a <br />confrmed case. <br />"The nurse at Glenwood was aware of that frst thing one morning, and she was sending kids home that very <br />same day that had any type of cough, especially if it was severe or had any kind of fever," Sanders said. <br />"The school nurse is working really closely with the health department and she's monitoring kids for coughs, <br />particularly if they are a severe cough, and in close contact with that frst child who's been diagnosed, and <br />calling those parents and suggesting they follow up with their primary care physician." <br />Sanders said a second grader was the frst to get sick and spread their cough to classmates, a teacher, and at <br />least one other student on a school bus, and a teacher. Some of the sick children received treatment and have <br />already returned to school with doctor's approval. <br />"We'd like parents to be more cautious about sending their children to school if they're having cold-like <br />symptoms, running any type of fever or any type of cough," she said. <br />Most children are vaccinated against whooping cough before they start school and receive a vaccination <br />booster when they are in middle school. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports pertussis <br />Related Coverage <br />•Whooping cough sends 6 students, 1 <br />faculty member home from Orange <br />County elementary school <br />67°