With flu season rapidly approaching, the spread of illness and frequency of absenteeism in schools becomes more common, disrupting productivity and wasting valuable time and resources. Schools have the responsibility of keeping their students and faculty healthy and safe, a task that is not a small one, considering most schools have hundreds of people in close contact for an extended period of time. Having a good hygiene and cleaning program is essential to creating a healthy environment, reducing the spread of illness, and keeping students and teachers in the classroom.

The most important aspect of preventing the spread of the flu and other infections through schools is hand hygiene. Students should be taught the necessity of washing their hands after using the restroom, coughing, or sneezing. Additionally, it’s a good idea to have hand sanitizer available throughout the day. These measures will reduce the risk of infection through direct contact with other students.

However, children’s immune systems are not as resilient as adults’, and they can’t always be counted on to wash their hands. This is why along with promoting good hygiene practices, schools should have an infection control procedure in place. High-touch surfaces, such as lockers, desks, doorknobs, and other surfaces should be cleaned and disinfected daily. Restrooms are another high-traffic area that should be maintained throughout the day, as well as cleaned and disinfected daily, at least. Surfaces should be disinfected with an EPA-registered disinfectant with claims against the influenza virus or seasonal influenza.

Multi-Clean offers several disinfectants that are effective against the flu virus. For more information, visit our Infection Control Webpage. Multi-Clean also offers a variety of mild hand soaps and a foaming, non-alcohol hand sanitizer. For more information on these products, check out our Skin Care Webpage.

For more information on seasonal influenza and the flu virus, as well as resources for healthy schools, visit the CDC Website.