Evidence-based Tool for Triggering School Closures during Influenza Outbreaks, Japan

Abstract

Guidelines available to school administrators to support school closure decisions during influenza outbreaks are usually not evidence-based. Using empirical data on absentee rates of elementary school students in Japan, we developed a simple and practical algorithm for determining the optimal timing of school closures for control of influenza outbreaks.

Keywords

• Outbreaks
• influenza
• population surveillance
• software design
• public health
• prevention and control