Families Fighting Flu Joins the Keep Flu Out of School Partnership

Families Fighting Flu (FFF), a national non-profit organization dedicated to raising awareness about the flu, participated in Year 3 of the Keep Flu Out of School program with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID), and the National Association of School Nurses (NASN). This initiative is a school-based program that focuses on the prevention of influenza among elementary school students in kindergarten through fifth grade. Close to 5,000 students in Chicago, IL; Springfield, MO; and Santa Rosa County, FL participated in Year 3 of the program. The goals of the program are to raise influenza awareness amongst students, parents, teachers, and school nurses; to reduce childhood immunization barriers; and, ultimately to increase influenza vaccination coverage rates among children in elementary school.

FFF’s participation in Year 3 of the Keep Flu Out of School program included the development of educational materials for students, teachers, and parents. Materials included a parent educational flyer that featured personal family stories, flu facts, and tips for preventing the flu, and student worksheets and user’s guides for grades K – 2 and 3 – 5. Both English and Spanish versions of these educational materials were developed and distributed within the three school districts. Social media was also an important component of the program, and FFF used this platform to reach an audience of over 25,000 people. For more information on FFF and how you can get involved, please contact Serese Marotta, Chief Operating Officer, at smarotta@familiesfightingflu.org or visit https://www.familiesfightingflu.org.