It's All in Your Head and other Good Stories

[Guest guest]

from the Nova Scotia Magazine for Teachers " Aviso " - a very honest look at

school IAQ:

http://www.nstu.ns.ca/aviso/Fall98/index.html

It looks like we have a long way to go to catch up with our neighbors to the

north.

http://www.nstu.ns.ca/aviso/Fall98/head.html

It's all in your head, isn't it?

by Van Zoost

http://www.nstu.ns.ca/aviso/Fall98/syndrome.html

The Realities of Sick School Syndrome

by B. Ralston

Regardless of controversy concerning environmental illness, the ranges of

individual hypersensitivities, and the part sick schools may play in

acerbating symptoms, there is growing evidence and research that a healthy

workplace is identifiable, maintainable, and necessary in assuring a

productive and comfortable environment for students and teachers.

The warning signs of a sick school syndrome may be found in the physical

nature of the building or in the humans who work and learn in it.

A number of physical factors may hint at a school's predisposition for

problems in air quality. These include the building's age, the type of

heating, the status of ventilation and air conditioning systems, and areas

of high humidity, dampness or leaking.

Symptoms among students and staff may also lead to suspicions of

building-induced health issues. Among the individual learning and behavioral

signs often associated with sick school syndrome are: hyperactivity,

aggression, mood and personality changes, memory loss, exhaustion and

drowsiness, and central nervous system disorders. In addition, physical

signs may be seen, including irritated eyes, migraines, a stuffy or runny

nose, coughing, wheezing and asthma, diarrhea, skin rashes, seizures,

dizziness, light sensitivity, backache, sore throat, and sensory changes

involving odors or tastes.

The symptoms are varied and have a wide range of severity, from mild to

severe to life threatening. Most of these symptoms may be traced to either

abiotic factors, those related to non-living causes, or biotic ones, those

related to organisms or their activities, producing various toxins in the

school.

<snip>

http://www.nstu.ns.ca/aviso/Fall98/air.html

Air Quality Problems: The Management of Fear

by A. Gunn

Fear compounds the normal worries of teachers and throws up a barrier to

learning in the minds of students. A mistrust of the air quality in

classrooms creates fear for teachers and students. The management of air

quality problems is, in many respects, the management of fear. How do we

manage fear of air quality effectively?

Years into the twenty-first century, the history of public education in Nova

Scotia and Canada will report that the 1990s were the years of air quality

problems and a consequent preoccupation, even obsession, with occupational

health and safety. A historical analysis of meeting minutes, media records,

annual reports, legal expenses and financial audits will show that air

quality problems harmed staff and student health, wasted the energy and time

of staffs in schools and school system offices, and devastated annual

budgets.

In hindsight, the air quality problems in schools will be seen as a harmful

situation which kept schools in a state of anxiety and disruption, but also

they will be seen as having a positive outcome. It will be observed that

much was learned about air quality, its effects and its management. The

evidence of this will be a solid knowledge base, constructed from the

experience and formal study of solving the air quality problems. More

importantly and hopefully, the evidence will be that air quality problems

became infrequent and of minimal effect because they were prevented or

solved quickly, once expertise was gained from experience.

In the initial stages of solving air quality problems, in the early `90s,

mold was the major culprit. High spore loads from unacceptable mold sources

inside schools caused health problems and high levels of stress, often a

crisis situation, in too many schools. The immediate tasks were the

identification of the mold species, measurement of spore loads, removal of

the source, and proof with testing that all was well.

<snip>

http://www.nstu.ns.ca/aviso/Fall98/enviro.html

Environmental Illness:

A Reality in Today's Schools

by Sandy Chisholm

At the beginning of the 1996-1997 school year, I relocated to another

classroom from the one where I had spent the previous five years.

In early September, I began to experience some flu-like symptoms—sinusitis,

headaches, and general fatigue. I thought this strange, as I had been

receiving flu shots for the past 10 years.

My family physician prescribed some medication, but the symptoms persisted

for nearly four months. They eased when I left the school environment for a

few days, such as over the long weekends in October and November, and during

Christmas break.

<snip>

http://www.nstu.ns.ca/aviso/Fall98/enviro.html

Environmental Illness:

A Reality in Today's Schools

by Sandy Chisholm

At the beginning of the 1996-1997 school year, I relocated to another

classroom from the one where I had spent the previous five years.

In early September, I began to experience some flu-like symptoms—sinusitis,

headaches, and general fatigue. I thought this strange, as I had been

receiving flu shots for the past 10 years.

My family physician prescribed some medication, but the symptoms persisted

for nearly four months. They eased when I left the school environment for a

few days, such as over the long weekends in October and November, and during

Christmas break.

<snip>

http://www.nstu.ns.ca/aviso/Fall98/ohs.html

Occupational Health and Safety: Rights, Roles and Responsibilities

by Bill Berryman

In the early morning hours of May 9, 1992 employees at the Westray mine in

Stellarton reported for the morning shift, unaware that the mine's levels of

methane gas were well above the acceptable limit. A short time later, a

spark ignited the gas, causing an explosion that claimed the lives of all 26

men underground.

The Westray disaster, as it came to be called, was a tragedy of immense

proportions for the miners' families and friends--and an event that made the

issue of workplace safety a highly personal one for virtually every Nova

Scotian.

In the aftermath of the explosion, the Government of Nova Scotia set in

motion a process designed to improve the statutory regime governing health

and safety in the province's workplaces. An advisory council, comprised of

representatives from both labour and management, was assigned the task of

reviewing applicable laws. The council was also asked to propose changes

aimed at reducing the cost of unsafe workplaces, both in financial terms and

in terms of worker and community health.

Following three years of extensive consultation with all affected parties,

the advisory council made its recommendations to government. The Liberal

government, under Premier Savage, introduced the new Occupational

Health and Safety Act in the House of Assembly during the 1995 fall session.

The Act received royal proclamation on May 17, 1996. On January 1, 1997, the

province of Nova Scotia declared in force the new Act and the expectation

that it be followed by all employers and employees.

<snip>

http://www.nstu.ns.ca/aviso/Fall98/parent.html

A Parent's Perspective on Sick Schools

by Larry Horton

Anyone who has followed the news in the last year may remember that Duncan

MacMillan High School in Sheet Harbour was closed in late October, 1997, due

to air quality problems. The students, my daughter among them, were

transported to Moser River, a 25-minute bus ride.

This caused a lot of hardship for the students. Because of the increased

numbers at the junior high and senior high levels, students were forced to

attend classes on a split shift. The Moser River school had limited space,

resulting in overcrowding. It also lacked the resources, like labs and a

gym, to run the type of programs that the DMHS students were used to. Still,

even though the conditions were difficult, most of the Sheet Harbour

students and teachers felt better once the move to Moser River took place.

The only complaint, really, was the lack of space.

In the previous year, staff and students at Duncan MacMillan High School had

been through a lot. Many people had become very sick from being in the

building. The major concerns included headaches, sore throats, breathing

problems, asthma-like symptoms and constant fatigue. In preliminary testing,

we discovered that the humidity in the classrooms was far too low, and the

heat was far too high.

In addition, there were higher than normal levels of carbon dioxide in the

classrooms. Parents met with school board officials, lobbying them to

install a ventilation system in the school that would address the carbon

dioxide levels, temperature and humidity.

Yet every time we turned around, we met obstacles. We involved local

politicians, council members and even our federal Member of Parliament. On

two occasions, we were promised by the chief executive officer of the school

board that we would have a ventilation system of some sort installed in the

school. This never came to pass.

As students and staff got sicker and sicker, we had no choice but to push to

have the school closed until the problems could be resolved.

That was no easy task. The field of testing for sick building syndrome, we

learned, is not an exact science. The school was visited by numerous

“experts.” Each one claimed to have identified the source of the problem and

gave the parents and faculty assurances that the school was safe. And yet

each time it seemed safe to go back into the school, another area of the

building would suddenly develop problems with molds.

Finally, our staff and students were given the green light to return to the

Sheet Harbour school in March. From a parent's perspective, we were rather

skeptical that the school was safe. However, the school board had completed

a major overhaul of the heating system, which helped to reduce the heat in a

lot of the classrooms. There were several areas where mold had been located

and removed, and the walls, windows and ceiling tiles were replaced.

There is no question that the school board did spend money to correct

contributing factors; however, it did not completely solve the problem. We

still had teachers who had to be transferred out of the school, and we still

have students who are ill. We also have teachers and students who may never

be able to return to DMHS to teach or learn. And after everything that has

been said and done, we still have mold showing up in testing.

In the interim, we have learned a number of lessons. When it comes to sick

schools, there is no easy fix. No one has all the answers, and it is an

uphill battle to try and get your school fixed.

Having been through this difficult process, however, I can offer one

important suggestion to those who find themselves in similar circumstances.

Ensure that you document everything, including all details of complaints:

the identity of the complainant, symptoms, time of day, what the weather was

like, trips to the doctor, and letters from doctors explaining the symptoms

being treated. In addition, have everyone with a complaint keep a diary of

how he or she feels each day. Although this may seem like a lot of work, it

is extremely important; many “sick school” experts demand documentation.

One expert who was brought into our school asked for this kind of

documentation; despite the very real difficulties we had experienced, none

of the details had been put in writing. The expert's reply to this was:

“Then I have no reason to believe there is anything wrong with this

building.” The lesson learned? Document anything which will show you are

having problems.

Our experience also taught us that the involvement of parents is vital in

safeguarding children's health and safety in school. As parents, it is our

job to ensure that our children have a healthy school, and to insist that

the school board staff and politicians are vigilant in their efforts to

provide them with a basic right: the right to a healthy education.

Larry Horton is a parent representative on the School Advisory Council of

Duncan MacMillan High School, Halifax Regional School Board.