Let’s continue to work together to get back to Bellefontaine!

There is good news from the Health Department: the numbers of new COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are trending downward. This is due to wearing face coverings, following physical distancing guidelines, washing your hands frequently and not mixing with people outside your household. Keep up the good work! 

As you most likely already know, Governor Newsom introduced a four-tiered “Blueprint for a Safer Economy.” Right now, Los Angeles County is in the Purple Tier 1, “Widespread.” The county needs to be in Red Tier 2, “Substantial,” before schools can start to reopen. But when we’ve hit the required thresholds, we want to be prepared. Our Mayfield COVID-19 Compliance Task Force is working hard to stay up to date with changing guidelines and readying our campus. The best way you as parents can help is to make sure your daughter’s health forms are completed. This year it’s vital that we have current health information on everyone. Please make this a priority now if your daughter’s health forms are not complete yet.

This year, it is also essential to get a flu shot. Influenza and COVID-19 have similar symptoms; it is important to remove influenza as a complicating factor while the COVID-19 pandemic continues to flare. It's also important to keep influenza patients from mixing with COVID-19 patients in ERs and spare our health care system. Flu shots are already available; ask your primary care provider for one. The Pasadena Health Department is asking schools to develop and implement a flu vaccination program that includes education, promotion, and documentation of completed, current vaccinations with the goal of influenza immunization for all students and staff prior to (or at the beginning) of the flu season, unless contraindicated by documented medical exemption for flu vaccine. I strongly encourage you to immunize your daughter and your entire household against the flu to help keep our community healthy. 

Public Health officials are concerned about the upcoming Labor Day weekend and are cautioning everyone to resist the temptation to mingle with others outside their household. Something as simple as a backyard BBQ can spread the virus and increase transmission. Let’s keep our transmission rate and case numbers down by avoiding the 3 Cs: crowds, confined areas and close contact. Working together, we can continue to decrease transmission and lower the county’s case numbers so we all can head back to 500 Bellefontaine.