To ask you how literally you take the 48 hr rule?

[lougle]

So if your child is sick, how literally do you apply the 48hr rule?

If they were sick in the afternoon of Saturday, would you say 'no school on Sunday, back on Monday' or '48 hours after sickness is Monday afternoon, so back on Tuesday'?

If they are sick at 3am do you count that as 'Tuesday night' or 'Wednesday morning'?

etc.

Coughs etc are contagious but don't necessarily lead to chest infections. An outbreak of chest infections is likely to be down to a bug going round which developed into a chest infection in several cases.

48hrs from the very last bout of vomiting etc. Why is that so difficult for parents to understand? It is no wonder the bug is rampaging around hospitals, schools, care homes, etc.

As someone said bugs affect people differently, therefore it is possible to have a tummy bug and not be sick at all. What then?

I think if schools were properly cleaned and more emphasis put on handwashing it would also help greatly.

There's meant to be a noro vaccine in the pipeline isn't there? I can't wait!

From the NHS site

Good hygiene
Although chest infections aren't as contagious as other common infections such as flu, you can pass them on to others through coughing and sneezing. So if you have a chest infection, it's important to cover your mouth when you cough or sneeze, and to wash your hands regularly. Throw away used tissues immediately.

Good hygiene is generally the best policy.

Still can't help wondering whether we are too clean though.

Some people are obsessively clean without a doubt!

Oh and get into the habit of always putting loo lid down when flushing and train DCs to do same. I saw a demonstration of how airborne poo droplets can be spread.

There is evidence regarding transmission of pathogens by infected food handlers - in a study transmission was proven in 71% of outbreaks Large document evidence from page 30

And for food handlers the FSA suggests that if there is only one incidence of vomiting for example, without a temperature or indicators of infection, that a person could return to work after 24 hours and observe good hygiene. section 9 here

Proud AS - we've never ever put the loo seat down and I'd say we get fewer bugs than most people - less that one a year, so I don't think those poo droplets going everywhere (other than psychologically gross) are doing us any harm!

If my kids go done with a bug I have no desire to take down 4 schools with them so I'm a rigid stickler

And yet the rota virus can be passed on up until 14 days after illness.....

DS vomits fairly regularly as he is Peg fed and whenever he has a chest infection (every couple of months) he will vomit up the feed. This tends to mess with his meds and gives him unstable bowels too! Luckily the school have been fully trained and allow us to bypass the 48hr rule so long as DS only vomits once, doesn't have a temp and is generally well otherwise (well aside from his chest).

However we once caught rota virus from the hospital - we were sent home for 48 hrs and it really wiped us all out. It is easy to know the difference if you deal with it regularly.

I am very strict on the 48hr rule, although if it was just 1/2 hour early, I would probably send them in. That said, ds2 was sick one night, he had been swimming and drunk copious amounts of pool water (as he often does) then had some chocolate when he got out of the pool. We then leg him have a go on a couple of rides at the near by amusements, then at home he had some chocolate milk. After he was sick I realised the milkshake had been open in the fridge for 5 days, so put together with the other things it was probably on the turn and had mixed with everything else and made him sick. I kept him off the next day, he didn't stop eating and had no other signs, so I did send him back safe in the knowledge I gad poisoned him

Good point mrscog - maybe its good for the immune system. DH wouldn't stand for it though.

48+ hours here for a vomiting bug - for my DC's sake as well as everyone else's. I'd probably stretch it to 72...

However, DD still has occasional reflux at 4yo, so if it's just reflux vomiting I ignore it (and the school is happy with that, as was nursery). I can definitely tell the difference! Also if she's had egg and is sick, I ignore, but again it's fairly obvious if that's the case - it'll be within 20 minutes of eating.

Interesting PseudoBadger - there must be a difference between an adult who has got to grips with hygiene, has to wear gloves etc anyway and a small child who isn't.

I've never used a 48 hour rule. Usually if they've been ill then I like to see them eating normally and not sleepy with OK energy levels but if they've had a day of being fine they're back to school just like I'm back to work.
I'd give a small child with diarrhoea longer as their hand hygeine can be dodgy and diarrhoea unpredictable.

I stick to the 48 hour rule ridgedly when Im sure its a bug if some sort that can be passed on to others,

thiugh i was surprised recently to find out that a lot, me included didnt actually know the rule for vomiting - maybe diarreaoh too

I was well aware it's 48 hours for diarreaoh as its something DD suffers with frequently & due to her problems being chronic & not catching, she encouraged to be in school even when she does have diarreaoh - UNLESS of course it's different to her normal diarreaoh & she's ill in other ways too, then we stick to the rule rigidly.

DD rarely vomits, so when she like the rest if us was very sick recently though in her ase thankfully only for a short while - I knew it was a virus & to keep her home, but I wasn't sure if it was the same 48 hours it is for diarreaoh, so I asked around & got several different replies everything form 12 hours, 24 hours & 48 - even staff members didn't know its 48 hrs for both - I kept her home anyway until I knew for sure.

no real surprise then that my DD also had 2 nasty vomiting/diarreaoh bugs within a couple of weeks, followed by a nasty cold virus that has become a very nasty chest infection :(

I tend to apply it fairly rigidly, but I hate the school run - we walk, and I suffer for it (long story, I am feeble and old and decrepit) and I basically LOVE a genuine reason not to have to do it.
It's only my youngest now, who needs actually taking and collecting, but if he was sick on Saturday he would so have Monday off. It's the school policy to have 48 hrs for D+V and I so forbear to argue with them

2rebecca:
You'll be part of the reason why norovirus is so prevalent in schools then.

The 48 hour rule is there for a reason: People with norovirus will continue to shed the virus for up to (and sometimes more than) 48 hours after symptoms finish.

Norovirus is incredibly infectious, and hand hygiene isn't sufficient to stop its spread.

The people who don't keep their kids off for the 48 hrs make me so mad. It's totally selfish behaviour. Our family all came down with norovirus and it was hell. Last year my ds missed a week due to a tummy bug, recovered, went in for a week, then had to stay off for a whole other week because other parents were sending their kids back too soon. I hate this time of year :(

So yes - the 48 hr rule here, definitely.

We stick to the full 48 hours here even though 3 of dd's classmates have been sent on after vomiting a few hours previously. There were only 8 out of 29 kids in the class afterwards and the teacher was off for a few days thus disrupting their education.

That said dd has an excessive gag reflex so I'd send her so long as I was absolutely and utterly positive it was due to her long standing condition (eg choking on something, hurting herself, having a cough.

48 hours. Like others have said it can infect other family members too. It is only two days.

To those of you who keep your kids off - thanks.

We've got an immunosuppressed kid - families like mine are the reason these rules are there.

Really, thanks.