Nurse Updates
April 2024
Dear Families,
We have seen an increase in pink eye and rashes this school year. So please keep your child home from school if they look to have an eye infection/pink eye or if they have an unidentified rash.
Please continue to provide us with doctor's notes so their absences can be marked as medically excused and we know the doctor has cleared them to return to school.
All of this helps keep our schools and students healthy!
Below you will find information on the following:
- Health Topics
- Measles
- Stress Management (April is National Stress Awareness month)
- Illness Protocol
- Medications at School
- COVID Guidance
Thank you!
Nicole Wollert
District Nurse
Health Topics
Measles
As you may have heard on the news there have been some measles cases in the U.S. Here is some information on measles.
- Spread/Transmission: Through respiratory droplets (coughs, sneezes, etc). It is highly contagious; the virus can live for up to two hours in an airspace.
- Typical Symptoms: The first symptoms to appear usually include a high fever, cough, runny nose, and watery eyes. A rash appears 3 to 5 days after the first symptoms.
- Treatment: There is no specific antiviral therapy for measles. Treatment usually includes providing comfort measures to relieve symptoms, such as rest, drink plenty of fluids, use fever-reducing medications, and use a humidifier and saline nasal sprays.
- Prevention: Community-wide vaccination is the most effective way to prevent measles (per World Health Organization). So make sure you have received the MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) vaccine. Two doses are recommended: first dose at 12-15 months of age and second dose at 4-6 years of age.
- Return to School Criteria: Students who have been diagnosed with measles would need to be cleared by the health department or their medical provider in order to return to school. Individuals who are not vaccinated against measles or who have compromised immune systems should stay home day 7 through day 21 following their earliest exposure (or based on health department guidance).
For more information on Measles, please visit the WI DHS website https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/immunization/measles.htm or the CDC website https://www.cdc.gov/measles/index.html
April is National Stress Awareness Month
Stressed?! You are not alone. Everyone deals with stress. However, learning how to deal with it in a healthy way is essential to having a healthy lifestyle. Here are some healthy ways to manage stress, according to the American Heart Association:
- Exercise regularly - exercise can relieve stress, tension, anxiety, and depression.
- Spend time with family and friends - maintaining social connections with people you trust is important for your mental health.
- Get plenty of sleep - adults should aim for 7-9 hours per night.
- Maintain a positive attitude - keeping a gratitude journal and writing weekly entries can help with this.
- Practice relaxation - take time to do things that help you relax, such as reading a book, listening to music, etc.
- Find a stimulating hobby - finding a hobby you can enjoy can keep you engaged and help you avoid dwelling on negative thoughts or worries.
Why would the American Heart Association take time to give us tips on how to handle stress? Well, stress can affect our bodies in many negative ways.
- Stress may contribute to poor behaviors (linked to increased risk for heart disease and stroke), such as smoking, overeating, not being physically active, being overweight, eating an unhealthy diet, and not taking medications as prescribed.
- Our bodies' response to stress can include a headache, body pains, stomach pains, and rashes.
- Stress can also reduce our energy, interrupt our sleep, make us moody, and make us forgetful.
Resource: AHA Website
Illness Protocol
If your child has a fever over 100 degrees, is vomiting, or has diarrhea, your child should stay home from school. Your child may return to school when they have been free of fever/vomiting/diarrhea for at least 24 hours.
Your child should also stay home from school if he/she has an unidentified rash or live head lice.
If your child has a rash, your child may return to school when their doctor recommends. Please provide a note to your child's school office from their medical provider indicating when they may return.
If your child has live head lice, he/she may return to school after they are treated as long as there are no longer any live lice.
Your child should stay home if he/she has an eye infection and is unable to avoid touching their eyes.
If your child has a communicable disease, please refer to this chart for guidance on when they may return to school.
Medications at School
If your child needs medication at school, please fill out a medication consent form (see below) and drop off the medication (in its original packaging) at your child's school office.
If it is an over-the-counter medication, such as Tylenol, etc, then only a parent/guardian signature is needed on the medication form.
If it is a prescription medication, then a medical provider's signature is also required.
A medical provider's signature would also be required if the dosage written on the form by the parent/guardian differs from the recommended therapeutic dose on the medication label.
We are not able to administer medications to students without a medication form completed. Students are not allowed to keep their own supply of medication in their lockers.
Exceptions to this are albuterol inhalers for students with asthma, glucagon for students with diabetes, and epinephrine for students with severe allergic reactions; a medication form still needs to be completed for these medications even if the student is carrying the medication themselves.
All other needed medication must be administered through the school office.
COVID Guidance
We are continuing to recommend families follow the CDC's guidance, which can be found here.
We are continuing to follow our illness protocol that we followed prior to COVID - if a student has a fever, vomiting, or diarrhea, then they should stay home until they are free of fever/vomiting/diarrhea for at least 24 hours.
If a student has multiple COVID-like symptoms (cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, fatigue, muscle/body aches, new loss of taste or smell, headache, sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea or vomiting, diarrhea, fever or chills), then they should contact their medical provider's office for guidance.
If a student tests positive for COVID or was in close contact with an individual who tested positive, the student should follow their doctor's guidance. Documentation from their doctor must be provided to the school office stating the student should be excused from school and their return date in order for the student's absence to be excused. Just as prior to COVID, student absences that occur without a doctor's note will be unexcused until proper documentation is provided.