November 5, 2007

Dear Parents, Students and Families of Oakland Technical High School,

I am writing to you to clarify a situation that arose at Tech on Friday.  It came to the attention of administrators that two students and a coach had acquired a staph infection.  The school took an extra cautious approach and closed the gym and locker rooms and arranged with the OUSD Facilities Department to completely sanitize those facilities on Saturday morning.   These facilities were disinfected on Saturday and Sunday with the appropriate cleaning solution.

Please note, however, that while the case of staph infection at Oakland Tech was treated with due seriousness, it was NOT MRSA (Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus), the strain of staph which has been the source of much alarm recently and was the cause of great concern in the news.  Before we knew what kind of infection this was:

• OUSD Administration and Health Services were immediately informed

• Both gyms and locker rooms were closed on Friday

• The gyms, locker rooms, restrooms and all other areas of concern were cleaned and disinfected according to established standards.

• Dr. Ryals, the Alameda County Public Heath Department Director of Communicable Diseases has assured us that we have taken the appropriate measures and no further action is necessary.

• Dr. Ryals reminded us that the key to preventing any infection is through thorough hand washing.

OUSD takes constant precautions to provide a clean and safe environment for students, staff and the community not just at times of high alert.

These measures reflected accepted protocol for dealing with staph infections in a school environment.

Please note also that each individual can take important steps to protect themselves from unwanted germs and infection.  The following are measures which go a long way in minimizing risk.

                 These measures include:

• thorough handwashing, using soap or an alcohol based hand rub
• practicing good personal hygiene
• covering infections on the skin
• washing immediately after exercise
• minimizing or avoiding entirely the sharing of personal items (e.g, towels, razors) that come into contact with your bare skin

We ask that the OUSD community implement these practices to reduce the risk of  ANY infection.

The Tech staff will work with the OUSD Health Services Department and the TechniClinic staff to provide training and in-service to school staff and students on good hand washing techniques.

 If you are concerned that your child might have a skin infection, contact your doctor or have your child seen at the School TechniClinic.

If you would like further information, you may contact

Joan Edelstein, Dr PH, RN, Health Services Coordinator
Oakland Unified School District/ACPHD
2850 West Street ; Oakland , CA 94608
(510) 879-8816 (Health Services Office) 

For our part, we will continue to be vigilant in observing all recognized infection prevention standards for a school environment to help ensure the safety of Tech students.

Please know that the safety of the students at Oakland Technical High School is our highest priority.

Sincerely,

Sheilagh Andujar
Principal

Here are some additional resources about staph infection:

From the Mayo Clinic web site

From the Center for Disease Control (CDC) web site