(McClatchy-Tribune Information Services) -- Hoping to prevent the spread of the swine flu virus, state Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell appeared at the Marin County Office of Education Wednesday to detail state plans for distribution of $2.5 million in masks and gloves in California schools.

"We are taking all necessary precautions to keep our students and teachers safe," said O'Connell, who demonstrated the protective equipment at the county's San Rafael office. "Today we are adding equipment to minimize exposure to H1N1."

While county health officials have noted a decline in hospitalizations related to swine flu in the past two weeks, Deputy Public Health Officer Anju Goel said the danger is far from over.

"This is a disease that can lead to serious illness and even death," said Goel, who noted that Marin County has recorded 61 swine-flu-related hospitalizations and four deaths since the outbreak began. "We're not out of the woods yet."

O'Connell, who made a similar announcement Friday in Santa Fe Springs, emphasized that the best protection from the swine flu virus is frequent hand washing, covering coughs and sneezes and keeping students at home if they are sick.

"We want kids to continue to wash their hands with plenty of soap for at least 20 seconds. And we want kids to cough into their arms -- what they call the 'Dracula cough,'" O'Connell said, holding his arm in front of him like a cape.

Based on guidelines provided by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and the U.S.

Department of Education, however, O'Connell also recommended the use of masks and gloves for both students believed to have contracted the virus and the teachers, nurses and aides who work with them. Those guidelines recommend that students who appear to have influenza should be separated from other students in a supervised "sick room" until their parents can take them home.

The state Emergency Management Agency received $2.5 million in federal grant money to purchase the masks and gloves. Because the funds did not cover the cost of distributing masks to the state's 58 county offices of education, however, the state Department of General Services asked four private shipping companies -- FedEx, Golden State Overnight, Mountain Valley Express and OnTrac -- to provide that service free of charge.

"We are happy to have the leadership from the state and the collaboration between agencies to provide this equipment that will help keep our kids and teachers safe," said Marin Superintendent of Schools Mary Jane Burke.

State officials say masks for students are already available at all county offices of education, while gloves and masks for adults should arrive by the end of the month.

Goel said that another shipment of swine flu vaccine would reach the county "at some point in the next few weeks," but that the Marin County Department of Health and Human Services would continue to restrict distribution of that vaccine to those in high-risk categories, such as the elderly and pregnant women.

The swine flu outbreak has put a strain on Marin County's school nurses. Only 18 nurses serve all of Marin's 18 school districts and numerous private schools, with one nurse covering all of the public schools between Sausalito and San Rafael.

"We've been training administrative assistants to be our eyes and ears, and to report any cases (of flu-like symptoms) they see on site," said nurse Lenora Kwok. "But that's not the same as being there first-hand. We have some parents who, if their children aren't feeling well, tell them, 'just go into school and see the nurse.' But most campuses don't have a nurse on site."

Copyright (C) 2009, The Marin Independent Journal, Novato, Calif.