Protecting Your Faculty and Staff From Illness This School Year

Cold and flu season is around the corner for everyone, but the school systems are especially hit hard. Students are not the only ones who suffer from illness during the school year; teachers are just as affected. Even though colds and flu have their own seasons, they are not the only illnesses that teachers encounter. Students have vaccination requirements, which help keep things like measles, mumps, rubella, chickenpox, meningitis, and tetanus at bay, but what about other infections? Employers can help minimize the spread of illnesses if they know how to prepare properly.

Types of Illnesses Common in Schools

Schools are a breeding ground for germs. From close contact in classrooms, sports practices, and sleepovers between friends, kids are always picking up different bugs to spread around to all their friends. But what about the teachers who are instructing classes? They are exposed just as much as the children they are teaching. Every day, teachers encounter so much more than the common cold and flu symptoms.

Most Common School Illnesses¹:

• Colds
• Influenza
• COVID-19 and Long COVID
• Upper Respiratory Infections (URIs)
• Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV)
• Stomach Flu (Gastroenteritis)
• Bacterial infections like Strep Throat, Meningitis, Pneumonia, and Pertussis or Whooping Cough
• Mononucleosis
• Chickenpox
• Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease (HFMD)
• Measles

How Does This Affect the School Year

Teachers are especially affected by the illnesses that plague our school systems. They are frontline workers who deal with a higher level of stress than others. According to the National Educators Association (NEA), educator burnout has become a more serious problem in the last few years². Burnout comes with mental, physical, and emotional stress. When the body is stressed, the immune system feels it. This affects one’s vulnerability to illness and overall health³. Beyond just feeling ill, teachers may suffer from difficulty concentrating, resulting in failure to hold the attention of the students. This can impact students and their level of academic performance. There may also be the added stress from the worry of getting others sick, especially if they are undiagnosed and contagious.

School nurses will feel the impact of sick students and staff as well. Taking care of both these populations makes them more susceptible to these illnesses. Concentra® can help with both treating and preventing these illnesses. Encouraging your faculty and staff to seek urgent care at a Concentra medical center when they are feeling sick can help prevent the spread of illness in your schools.

How to Help Curb Outbreaks

Respiratory etiquette, such as sanitizing and washing your hands, sneezing or coughing into a tissue or the elbow instead of hands is essential to keeping the chance of illness down every day. But there are more ways to achieve this goal that you may not think of. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the lack of cleaning and disinfecting routines in high-traffic areas and improper ventilation are two other main issues in K-12 schools⁴. When the ventilation is not up to date, the air becomes stagnant, allowing the germs in the air to stay in one place, e.g., a full classroom with students and a teacher who are all susceptible to illness. See the CDC’s Ventilation in Buildings guide for more information⁵.

The CDC recommends developing guidelines specifically for your school that define when students or teachers should stay home due to illness. If an individual has the following symptoms, the recommendations are that they should stay home to prevent the spread of infection to staff and students⁶:

• Fever (100°F), including a fever with a new rash.
• Vomiting more than twice in the preceding 24 hours.
• Diarrhea that causes ‘accidents’, is bloody, or results in greater than two bowel movements above what the person normally experiences in a 24-hour period.
• Skin sores that are draining fluid on an uncovered part of the body and are unable to be covered with a bandage.
• Respiratory virus symptoms that are worsening or not improving and not better explained by another cause, such as seasonal allergies.

They Can Return to School If⁶:

• No fever (without fever-reducing medicine) for at least 24 hours.
• A health care provider evaluated a fever with a new rash, and the fever has resolved.
• Uncovered skin sores are crusting, and the person is under treatment from a provider.
• Vomiting has resolved overnight, and the person can hold down food/liquids in the morning.
• Diarrhea has improved, the person is no longer having ‘accidents’ or is having bowel movements no more than 2 above the normal per 24-hour period for the person.
• Respiratory virus symptoms are getting better overall for at least 24 hours.

According to a 2023 study in the National Library of Medicine, teachers more frequently attend work when sick than nurses or private-sector office workers⁷. Encouraging faculty to utilize their sick days may help curb the spread of illnesses. Offering virtual classes for teachers who may feel okay teaching despite being sick or contagious is a great compromise. It is vital for them to know that staying home when they are sick can lower the risk of spreading infection to others.

Implementing extra cleaning protocols for high-touch surfaces between classes can help mitigate the spread of germs. It is crucial to reinforce protocols for handwashing, mask wearing, and sanitizing workspaces⁸. These were heavily encouraged during the COVID-19 pandemic but may have been forgotten or overshadowed in the last couple of years. Teachers must be well-equipped with cleaning and sanitizing supplies in the classrooms. Adding disinfectant wipes, tissues, and other cleaning materials to school supply lists for students can ensure there are enough for the school year. Measures like these can benefit the children in your schools and protect your employees.

How Concentra Can Help

Concentra can set up vaccination programs for teachers to get their annual vaccinations, helping to protect them from vaccine-preventable diseases, potential viruses, and illnesses that they may encounter⁹. Our clinicians keep a wide range of vaccines in our clinics and can special order any for your specific needs. Our urgent care services are available for your teachers and staff when they inevitably do get sick. No appointments are necessary because Concentra medical centers accommodate walk-ins¹⁰. We are here to treat unexpected illnesses if your faculty and staff are unable to get an appointment with their usual physician in a timely manner.

Contact a Concentra representative to set up vaccinations for your teachers and staff and learn more about our urgent care services.

 Resources:

1. “Most Common School-Age Illnesses,” Holly Springs Pediatrics, August 20, 2021
2. “What's Causing Teacher Burnout?” National Education Association, April 7, 2025
3. “Immunology of Stress: A Review Article,” National Library of Medicine, October 25, 2024
4. “Everyday Actions for Schools to Prevent and Control the Spread of Infections,” CDC, May 14, 2025
5. “About Ventilation and Respiratory Viruses,” CDC, October 3, 2024
6. “School Preparedness: When Students or Staff are Sick,” CDC, August 19, 2024
7. “Sickness Presence Among Teachers, Nurses and Private Sector Office Workers,” National Library of Medicine, February 9, 2024
8. “Cold and Flu and Walking Pneumonia, Oh My! How Teachers Can Stay Healthy This Winter,” Education Week, Sarah D. Sparks, December 9, 2024
9. “Vaccinations,” Concentra, n.d.
10. “Urgent Care,” Concentra, n.d.