FACT SHEET -- GROUP A STREPTOCOCCUS

What is group A Streptococcus?

Group A Streptococcus (GAS) or “strep” is a bacteria often found in the throat and on the skin Strep can be in your body and not cause any illness. It may also cause illnesses that range from mild to severe and even life threatening.

Most strep infections are mild illnesses, such as "strep throat" or impetigo. Sometimes strep can reach parts of the body where bacteria are not usually found, such as the blood, deep muscle and fat tissue, or the lungs, and can cause serious infections.

How is strep spread?

Strep bacteria are spread by direct contact with drainage from the nose or throat of infected persons or by contact with infected wounds or sores on the skin.

Why do serious strep infections occur?

Serious strep infections happen when the bacteria get past the bodies defenses. This may occur when a person has sores or other breaks in the skin that let the bacteria to get into the tissue.

Who is most at risk of getting serious strep infections?

Few people who come in contact with strep will get serious illness. Some will have a throat or skin infection. Most will have no symptoms at all. Although healthy people can get serious strep illness, those with cancer, diabetes, and kidney disease needing dialysis, and those who take certain medicine are at higher risk. Breaks in the skin, like cuts, wounds, or chickenpox lesions may provide a way for the bacteria to get into the body.

How are strep infections treated?

Strep infections can be treated with many different antibiotics. It is always important to complete the full course of antibiotics as ordered by your healthcare provider.

What can be done to help stop serious strep infections?

The spread of strep is less likely when you wash hands, after coughing and sneezing, before fixing foods and before eating. Persons with a sore throat should be seen by a healthcare provider. A lab test can say if it is strep throat. If it is, the person should stay home from work, school, or child care until 24 hours after starting antibiotics. All sores should be kept clean. If a sore gets red or puffy, drains pus or hurts, see a healthcare provider.

In the next few paragraphs, TalkingPoints is outlined. I want to give a short update on what families can expect when engaging in communication with the app.

1. Families can download the app or not - either is fine. TalkingPoints will come through as a text message if the app is not downloaded. If you would like to respond, you are welcome to do so and it will show up on the teacher's side as a TalkingPoints message.
2. To be reached through TalkingPoints, correct cell phone numbers must be logged within Infinite Campus.

TalkingPoints is a two-way multilingual engagement platform that allows you to easily communicate with your families in over 100 languages via text messages. A collaborative team of District staff spent the last year researching multiple staff-to-family communication tools and TalkingPoints is the platform found to best fit the needs of our District. This tool will not replace the use of Blackboard at the school and District level as a mass communication tool.

All staff can use the TalkingPoints website or mobile application to send messages to families who will receive them in their preferred language as text messages. Families can also reply in their preferred language and TalkingPoints will translate the messages for staff. Since TalkingPoints works via text messages, it is accessible to all families who own a mobile phone.

We anticipate this platform will replace the use of other similar staff-to-family communication tools such as WhatsApp, Remind, GroupMe, etc., as well as the use of your personal cell phone number in communication with families and students.

• Healthy Kids School-Based Health Clinics (HKSBHC) is an extension of health services offered in the Iowa City Community School District. The clinic serves Johnson County residents ages 0-21 (birth through high school graduation), who are without access to affordable healthcare such as no insurance, ineligible for insurance, or underinsured.

• Our mission is to work collaboratively with local medical partners to provide primary care, mental health care, and access to specialty care for underserved/uninsured children. We also help connect families who are eligible for healthcare assistance or newly insured to resources in the area (ex. finding a local care provider or applying for Hawk-i or Medicaid).

FY22-23 School Year Schedule
3rd Monday of the month: 9:00-12:30 at West High School
Tuesdays: 9:00 am - 1:30 pm at Southeast Junior High
Wednesdays: 9:30 am - 1:30 pm at City High School
Thursdays: 1:00 pm - 5:00 pm at Northwest Junior High

Call Us: (319) 631-3204 or Email Us: healthykidsclinic@iowacityschools.org

NO walk-in appointments. Please call to schedule an appointment or for information about our services. If we do not answer, please leave a voicemail and we will get back to you ASAP.

More information can be found here.

The Horace Mann Elementary School Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) would like to welcome you to the 2022-23 school year! PTO is a volunteer organization made up of parents and caregivers, teachers, administrators, and support staff who are all dedicated to creating an inclusive environment.

The goals of the Mann PTO are:

• To create meaningful community and network of families, and staff to more fully foster a positive educational experience for our students.
• To raise funds to meet the administrative and resource needs of staff not covered by ICCSD
• To raise funds to meet the needs of Mann families so that every student can engage fully and feel included (year books, Mann apparel, etc)
• To coordinate parent support for programs and events and encourage school spirit

We are looking forward to meeting Mann families and hope many of you get involved with our

PTO this school year. There are no membership dues to join PTO – we encourage you to join our organization AND participate in our many events! Our events and activities are run by volunteers and we are always looking for additional helpers to organize and help run these events! Look for more information and volunteer opportunities throughout the year in the Mann Memo! You can sign up to volunteer here: https://volunteer4mann.wixsite.com/mann.

A sneak peek into some of the upcoming activities include: Ice Cream Social on August 18,

First Day of School Kinder/New Family Coffee/Breakfast, Mann Apparel Orders, Back to

School Night, Pancake Supper, Annual Yearbook, Staff Appreciation, End of the Year

Carnival/Silent Auction and more! PTO meets monthly, on Tuesday evenings at 7pm. During this time, we work together to plan events, fundraise, organize community building and share ideas.

2022-23 PTO MEETING DATES (ALL ARE WELCOME!):

2/7/23 – Zoom meeting

3/7/23- Zoom meeting

4/4/23- Zoom meeting

5/2/23- Zoom meeting

We look forward to a fantastic year with our Mann community!

Please email: mannpto2020@gmail.com if you have questions.

Follow us on Facebook for updates and info:

https://www.facebook.com/HoraceMannElementaryPTO

Mann Volunteer Sign Up: https://volunteer4mann.wixsite.com/mann

Sincerely,

Mann PTO Board Members

President: Bri Swope

Vice President: Sara Hektoen

Treasurer: Mark Archibald

Secretary: Carrie Hough

Past President: Amber Capps