Fort Bend, TX has 68,000 families in their school system.
When this school district in Texas cancelled school, at 6:00am, due to the Swine Flu Emergency, parents did not get the call. Instead, because their district had purchased a parent notification call-out system from one of the firms that sell a hardware phone dialer in the school plus limited access to a separate rapid-calling system – that charges the district a per-call fee for mass call-outs; a district staffer decided that a few calls to the media instead would save money.
Parents dropped off their kids in front of locked buildings, blissfully unaware that school had been closed. Maybe the parents need to be forced to listen to select media outlets; or maybe, just maybe, schools like Fort Bend should select Parent Broadcast Systems like One Call Now that allows unlimited anytime telephone, text and email notifications directly to the devices, homes and phones of each parent – in minutes.
Unlimited Calling to reach anyone, anytime- every-time is what we offer to schools. Because When Messages Matter- we deliver.
That’s why we are also offering a completely free, NO-charge emergency alert system for any school system, public safety agency, business or community/religious organization to enable their administrators and managers to reach everyone immediately. Learn more here
Learn more about How NOT to do it by reading on…
Stumbles In Fort Bend ISD’s Notification System
How did some Fort Bend ISD students learn this morning that school had been canceled?
Some guy drove up to their bus stop and told them. They trudged home from there.
These days, you’d think any school district too big for the old phone-tree would have a computer system that would make automatic calls to parents in emergency situations.
Fort Bend does indeed have one, but the district didn’t use it this morning.
Essentially, spokesperson Mary Ann Simpson said, the district decided not to bother.
“We have a service we can use that can call all households — but the media began announcing it immediately, so it was decided we did not need to do the call out to 68,000 homes — that word was getting out quickly,” she says.
But it might’ve helped, she admits.
The decision to cancel classes was made at 6 am, she says. “The weather, and the rapid rate at which it unfolded this morning, was remarkable. By 6:00 am, some of our high school students are already on their way to the bus stop for school. So I know some were caught off guard,” she says.
But the district did everything it could short of using the automated message, she says: “I called all the TV stations by 6:05 and had something on the website by 6:10 am. Also, the phone message on the main district line was changed quickly to say we were closed.”
Which didn’t help at least one parent, who called her kid’s school only to get a terse confirmation from a harried teacher who said she couldn’t talk longer because she had another 100 or so calls waiting for her to answer.
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I have nothing to add.
One Call Now Offers Notification Service at NO CHARGE for Governments, Schools, Businesses, Religious Organizations and Others in Response to Swine Flu Outbreak.
In response to outbreaks of swine flu across North America, One Call Now, America’s leading emergency notification service, has issued professionally-written influenza notification scripts for use by its 35,000 clients to inform and protect the millions of families currently receiving One Call Now Notification Messages.
The company has also announced a NO-Charge, proactive emergency calling plan for any government emergency management agency, school district, business, religious or community organization that lacks an emergency communication system but will find it essential to inform their citizens, families, staff and congregations should the situation change.
One Call Now’s various comprehensive service plans include clear voice, SMS text and email messages, enabling you to reach tens of thousands of recipients a minute to protect lives and keep people informed.
For Government Agencies, the NO-charge service will provide a database of all published and unpublished numbers for every household to be used by government emergency agencies to immediately send a clear, digitally recorded voice message to an entire town, city or county.
For Schools, the NO-Charge service will dial every family in the school’s student database in moments with updates, instructions and details to keep children safe and parents informed.
For Businesses, the NO-charge business continuity plan will allow company management to reach every employee, stakeholder and customer with emergency communications and plans for staff and clients alike.
For Churches, Youth Sports Leagues and Community Organizations, instant communications to keep families safe and informed is vital; and now easy, and at NO charge.
“We have been providing emergency services to tens of thousands of organizations nationwide for eight years, and reach millions of people every day with voice or text messages that inform and protect. In this uncertain time, with the World Health Organization issuing an unprecedented Phase IV pandemic alert, it is incumbent upon every organization to have the ability to contact their people immediately; even if there is no budget or funds available. That’s why we are offering a no-strings, no-charge emergency communications plan for any organization. Our company mission statement, ‘When messages matter, we deliver’ is not just a phrase, it is part of our DNA, and why this no-charge service is so vital for any organization to have in place if the worst should happen. ” said Leib Lurie, CEO of One Call Now.
“The company can have most new clients ready to send their first test message in a matter of hours, and our 24/7 support team is always ready to train and assist with fast, professional implementation. This includes scripts issued to all clients to be used to inform and help keep every family safer from this lethal form of Influenza. ” said company President Angela Kirchner.
For details and immediate implementation for your emergency communications plan, organization administrators are urged to call 877-698-3262.
Swine Flu Health Emergency
In response to outbreaks of swine flu across North America and countries around the world, the U.S. has declared a public health emergency. While most school communities are not affected at this time, educators, the NSPRA and One Call Now recommends the following proactive communication about your district’s emergency preparedness plan.
Use One Call Now Parent Broadcast to:
• Remind staff to stay home if they are ill.
• Remind parents to keep children home if they are ill.
• Remind parents, students and staff about preventive protocols (i.e., cover your cough, sneeze etiquette, regular hand washing) with teachers and students.
SAMPLE One Call Now Parent Broadcast SCRIPT:
Good Evening,
As you may already know, an outbreak of swine flu has caused the U.S. to issue a public health emergency. Although we do not have any known cases in our area, we are doing everything possible to protect the health of our students and limit the spread of swine flu.
(IF appropriate, Explain the local situation and the steps that are being taken.)
Our school (and district) nurses are staying informed and monitoring the situation every day.
If your child exhibits any flu-like symptoms such as cough, fever and upset stomach; contact the school nurse immediately and keep your child home.
Please reinforce with your child these important flu prevention rules. Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze and wash hands with soap and water and clean with alcohol based disinfectant often during the day.
Let me assure you that the health and well-being of our students is our top priority and we are doing everything possible to address the situation. Please feel free to contact my office if you have any questions or concerns.
Sincerely,
Principal
Tell the media what you are doing:
Prepare for media calls by developing key talking points in advance.
Share those talking points with other staff to ensure that your district speaks with one clear voice about swine flu precautions and response protocols.
So far our School District has taken a number of precautionary measures:
• We have sent One Call Now Parent Broadcast messages informing parents about the emergency, instructions on who to contact, and issued guidelines to help prevent the spread of flu.
• We posted links to information about swine flu on our web site.
• We posted helpful tips about swine flu on Cable Channel XX, with an emphasis on good hygiene to prevent infection.
• We provided principals with facts and steps to prevent outbreaks.
• Our School District routinely works with the County Health Department to monitor illnesses to look for trends and determine when specific local responses to significant increases in illness are required.
More Talking Points-
Here are sample talking points about the swine flu emergency from Rick Kaufman, APR, executive director of community relations for the Bloomington (Minn.) Public Schools. These could be tailored to your area and used as part of a letter home or One Call Now Parent Broadcast notification message. They could also be used with area media.
April 27, 2009
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has reported 40 cases of swine influenza A (H1N1) virus infection in five U.S. states. So far, no confirmed or suspected cases have been detected in Minnesota.
Minnesota Department of Health officials are reminding people to observe routine public health recommendations for preventing the spread of the flu:
Keep your child home from school if they are sick, and contact a health physician if the child exhibits flu-like symptoms.
Instruct children to cover their mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing or sneezing. It may prevent those around your child from getting sick.
Avoid close contact with people who are sick. When you are sick, keep your distance from others to protect them from getting sick too.
Wash hands frequently to protect against germs. Wash with soap and water, or clean with alcohol-based hand cleaner.
Avoid touching eyes, nose or mouth. Germs are often spread when a person touches something that is contaminated with germs and then touches his or her eyes, nose or mouth.
Practice other good health habits. Keep yourself strong – and more resistant to disease – by getting plenty of sleep, staying physically active, managing stress, drinking plenty of fluids and eating nutritious food.
While this current outbreak of swine flu has not reached the level of a “pandemic flu” outbreak, the new virus is causing concern because of the potential it represents. Plan for potential pandemic flu and/or update your current pandemic plan based on emerging information.
In recent years, the World Health Organization (WHO) warned that a substantial risk of an influenza pandemic exists. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimate that in the U.S. alone, an influenza pandemic could infect up to 200 million people and cause between 100,000 and 200,000 deaths. A pandemic outbreak could jeopardize essential community services by causing high levels of absenteeism (up to 35%) in critical positions in every workforce. The best protection against pandemic influenza — a vaccine that is well matched to the virus-causing illness — is not likely to be available at the outset of a pandemic.
During an influenza pandemic, your school district must work with local, state, and federal agencies to:
• Limit the number of illnesses and deaths
• Preserve continuity of essential school functions
• Minimize educational and social disruption
• Minimize academic and economic losses
• Schools will be disrupted during a pandemic. Mitigation guidelines issued by the CDC include closing schools to reduce contact between people. It is prudent to plan for school closures that may last from several weeks to up to 3 months.
