Stop the Spread: Back to School Edition

We want to wish all students, families, faculty and staff a happy and healthy 2022-2023 school year. Between sharing school supplies and seasonal viruses, it’s the perfect storm for your kids to bring home a lot more than homework. Here at ASI, we want to share with you a few simple steps to make sure that back-to-school doesn’t mean back-to-sickness.

1. Wash your hands

Most infectious diseases are spread through touch. Encouraging your children to wash their hands before eating, after using the bathroom, after being in contact with someone who is sick, or after sneezing will significantly reduce the spread of illness throughout the classroom.

2. Know when to keep your child home from school

Staying home while feeling sick will help prevent the spread of illness to other kids in the classroom. If your child is showing signs of an infection such as sneezing, coughing, fever or sore throat, it is best to keep them home from school.

3. Don’t touch!

Bad habits such as nail biting, are super spreaders for germs. It is always good to remind your children to keep their hands way from their face in general. Another way germs can easily spread is by students sharing supplies, so a good rule of thumb is to not share any personal items such as snacks, toys and supplies.

4. Backpacks carry books and bugs

If you think about all the places your child’s backpack has been, that is the last thing you will want on your counters and tables. Backpacks can carry lots of germs home from school, so try and disinfect them as often as possible and keep them on the floor.

5. Make sure your child is getting enough vitamin zzzz’s

Sleep is essential in keeping your child healthy. When we sleep it introduces a protein called cytokines that helps to fights infection, illness, and stress.

It is always a good idea to get a check up before school starts to ensure the safety of your child and the other children in their class. At ASI Waste, we are all about safety and making sure that viruses and diseases are staying at bay. Over the years we have managed waste of all kinds including Ebola and COVID-19 contaminated waste. We provide training and management systems to help reduce the spread of serious diseases so that we can keep the people in our community safe. Feel free to call us about any of your regulated medical waste needs!