RHHS
Health Room Newsletter
The following guidelines should be followed when determining if a student should stay at home from school due to illness.
- Following a nighttime bout of nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or fever; student should stay at home and be watched for further symptoms. Fever is defined as a temperature 100.4 or above without the use of fever-reducing medication. The student’s temperature should remain normal without the use of fever-reducing medication for 24 hours prior to returning to school.
- It is also advisable for the student to stay home from school if any of the following symptoms are exhibited: unusual skin eruptions, chills, sore throat, congestion, runny nose, persistent cough, body and muscle aches, loss of taste or smell.
Each student should have a Student Health Form on file in the health room. Please complete the attached form or obtain one from the health room. Completed forms should be returned to the school nurse. I have attached additional history forms for student's that have allergies, asthma, or seizures to assist with their care and treatment.
Medication
Students who need to take prescription medicine during school hours must store it in the health room and follow the medication policy https://boardpolicyonline.com/?b=york3_rock_hill&s=275773.
Students who need prescription medicine during school hours must have a signed RHSD III medication form from their physician. One signed form per medicine is required for each school year. This form can be found on the Rock Hill School District III website at https://www.rock-hill.k12.sc.us/Page/1825 , attached below, or is available in the health room.
Students may be authorized to carry, monitor and self administer inhalers, insulin pumps, glucometers or epi-pens with written permission from the student’s health care provider and parent/legal guardian. Receipt of permission forms will authorize a student to possess and administer medication while in the classroom or on school grounds, at a school sponsored activity, in transit to and from school or school sponsored activities, or during before or after school activities on school operated property. One signed form per medicine is required for each school year. These forms can be found on the Rock Hill School District III website at https://www.rock-hill.k12.sc.us/Page/1825, attached below, or is available in the health room.
A physician signed "Permission to Administer Medication" form will be required for all prescription, herbal, and homeopathic medication.
Over the Counter Medication
Students are allowed to carry over the counter medications in their backpacks and take as needed. This includes, but is not limited to, NSAIDS, acetaminophen, cough drops, cold/sinus medication, eye drops, etc. while at school. The health room will not supply over the counter medication to students.
Exclusion to over the counter medications are any herbal, homeopathic medication and liquid medications. Herbal and homeopathic are considered prescription medication and require a physician signed form in order to be administered by the school nurse.
Over the counter medication must be stored in the appropriately identified package or bottle it came in. Medication should not be shared with other students. Penalty for distributing medication to other students is suspension or expulsion from school and possibly police charges.
Any over the counter medication you would like stored in the health room and administered by the nurse requires a signed RHSD III non-prescription medication form from the parent/guardian. One signed form per medicine is required for each school year. This form can be found on the Rock Hill School District III website a thttps://www.rock-hill.k12.sc.us/Page/1825 , attached below, or in the health room.
Students that become ill at school
Early Dismissal
COVID
Update: August 11, 2022
SCDHEC has provided updated guidelines to exclusion criteria for individuals who are positive or experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 as well as guidance for schools during an outbreak of COVID-19. We have made changes to our district processes based on this new guidance and our goal is to keep healthy students in school.
COVID Call Center
All Covid-19 questions and reporting must be directed to the call center. Staff at the call center will be available Monday–Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. to answer questions, provide return to school dates, correctly code attendance related to COVID-19, and assist with arranging COVID testing when needed. You must contact the COVID Call Center to ensure absences related to COVID are coded correctly for your student. You may reach the call center at 803-980-2016 or covid@rhmail.org. If contacting us via email, please allow up to 24 hours for a response.
Positive or Symptomatic Student
Any student who has symptoms of COVID-19 or tests positive is still required to isolate at home and report test results and symptoms to the COVID Call Center.
The recommended isolation period continues to be 10 days from onset of symptoms or date of positive test.
We continue to provide free testing at each school for students and staff who have symptoms. Please reach out to your school nurse to schedule a test.
COVID-19 home test results will not be accepted.
As outlined in the DHEC School Exclusion List, students who test positive for or display symptoms of COVID-19 must stay home from school until all criteria for return are met.
Criteria for return to school/work if POSITIVE for COVID-19:
- Isolate at least 5 days since symptoms started or from date of positive test if no symptoms
- 24 hours since the last fever without using fever-reducing medication
- Symptoms are significantly improving
- Parent must complete the Symptomatic/Positive Early Return Request Form on the district website
- A mask MUST be worn days 6-10. If a mask is not worn, a 10-day isolation must be completed at home.
Criteria for return to school/work if experiencing symptoms of COVID-19:
- Test negative for COVID-19 and symptoms are improving or provide a physician note stating student/staff is cleared to return to school. Negative COVID test results or physician notes must be sent to the COVID Call Center email covid@rhmail.org
OR
- Meets ALL of the following criteria (if not tested for COVID-19):
- Isolate at least 5 days since symptoms started
- 24 hours since the last fever without using fever-reducing medication
- Symptoms are significantly improving
- Parent must complete the Symptomatic/Positive Early Return Request Form on the district website
- A mask MUST be worn days 6-10. If a mask is not worn, a 10-day isolation must be completed at home.
The district will send notifications to families when there is a positive case in their child’s classroom.
Quarantine and Contact Tracing
DHEC guidance no longer requires schools to contact trace and quarantine students for close/household contact to a positive COVID-19 individual unless the school has identified an outbreak of cases in a cohort/classroom.
DHEC Guidance related to positive or symptomatic cases in a cohort/classroom has not changed. DHEC still recommends excluding close contacts to positive students within a classroom, athletic team, or other cohort if 20 percent of that group is absent, or sent home for experiencing symptoms or testing positive for COVID-19, within a 72 hour period.
There are three exceptions to quarantine for close contacts during an outbreak:
- Individual is up-to-date on recommended vaccine
- Individual has tested positive for COVID within the last 90 days and is able to provide test results
- Individual is enrolled in the Test-To-Stay program.
Additional information and resources about COVID-19 can be found on the district website.
COVID-19 Test Sites:
Rapid COVID testing is available at Rock Hill High school for symptomatic students that meet the DHEC criteria for testing. If your child is sick and you would like to have them tested, then please call the school nurse at (803) 980-2139 to schedule a time to bring them to the school to be tested. Please do no send sick students to school just to be tested.
Additional COVID test sites can be found at https://scdhec.gov/covid19/covid-19-testinglocations
COVID-19 Vaccination Locations:
https://vaxlocator.dhec.sc.gov/
Thank you for your patience during this time, it is greatly appreciated.