SCHOOL NURSE NEWS…
P-H-M IN PARTNERSHIP WITH SAINT JOSEPH HEALTH SYSTEM
This is the season where illnesses can be easily spread from person to person. We’ve been working with our students teaching and reminding them to practice safe health hygiene. We appreciate the help of our families as you continue to work with them at home on these health practices. Please remind your children of the following ...
WASH YOUR HANDS often with soap and water. If soap and water are not available, alcohol-based hand sanitizers are also effective.
COVER YOUR MOUTH AND NOSE when you sneeze and/or cough making sure to sneeze/cough into your elbow NOT your hands.
AVOID TOUCHING your eyes, nose, and or mouth as germs can be easily spread.
DO NOT SHARE personal items like drinks, food or eating utensils.
As parents, we know that it is always difficult to decide when a child should stay home from school. Here are a few helpful guidelines to help you make that decision:
Children should be kept home until they are symptom free for 24 hours. This includes fever, vomiting, diarrhea, etc.
Do not send your child to school with a fever of 100 degrees or higher before school in the morning.
A “heavy cold or hacking cough” even without a fever disturbs a student’s normal activity.
Many illnesses are most communicable at the beginning. If your child is kept home, fewer children will be exposed to the illness. Allowing your child to stay home and get well at the beginning of an illness will actually help him/her to be more successful in school and lose less school time in the long run.
As a Penn-Harris-Madison school, we are very fortunate to be staffed with an on-site health aide and access to a nurse, both provided by St. Joseph Health System. Our healthcare services staff assist with your child’s healthcare needs during the school day notifying parents when necessary if a child becomes ill while at school.
Prairie Vista custodial staff thoroughly clean our classrooms and building each night as part of their nightly routine, disinfecting all vertical and horizontal surfaces, such as walls, desks, light switches, door handles, etc. Vertical and horizontal surfaces are also described as areas that students and staff touch. The disinfectant our custodial staff uses is peroxide based and is 99.9% effective. It is environmentally appropriate for schools because it does not leave a film on surfaces. When necessary, extra disinfectant measures are used. In these instances, a spray is used to cover entire rooms so that more than just the vertical and horizontal areas are disinfected.
Please note the best way to prevent the spread of disease is by practicing good hygiene. Good hand washing goes a long way! We appreciate you taking the time to work with and remind your children of these best health practices.
Thank you for your support,
Keely Twibell, Principal
Prairie Vista Elementary School