STUDENT HEALTH
ILLNESS
Sometimes children will get sick. The BEST thing you can do is to keep children home when they are sick. This will help stop the spread of illness to other children and teachers. Children need to be kept home when they have any of these symptoms:
● Fever of 100.4 degrees or higher.
● Children should stay home until they have been without fever for at least 24 hours.( Children should not be given Tylenol or Advil (ibuprofen) to reduce the fever and then sent to school. The child may be highly contagious to others)
● Nausea or vomiting within the last 24 hours.
● Severe headache
● Diarrhea within the last 24 hours.
● Red, watery eyes with yellow drainage
● Unexplained rash
If your child is sick at school, someone will call you to take the child home. Please be certain that the office has an up-to-date list of business telephone numbers and emergency numbers including friends and relatives.
MEDICATION GUIDELINES
If a child must receive medication at school for the administration of both prescription and nonprescription (over-the-counter). The Alamance-Burlington School System will require a written authorization signed by a parent/guardian and a licensed medical practitioner (physician, physician assistant, or nurse practitioner). By policy, school personnel are forbidden to administer any medication to students unless they have received a properly completed medication form and it has the proper authorized signature. The Alamance Burlington school system policy requires the following:
Medication authorization form with the doctor and parent signature. .
All medication must be in the original container with the correct labels. A prescription container does not suffice as a medical provider’s signature
Medicine must be delivered in person by the parent or guardian.
Children cannot be given aspirin, Tylenol, Motrin, Neosporin, any creams, and cold medicine without a Medication Authorization form from the doctor.
There will be no exceptions to this policy. Parents may come to school to administer medications at the appropriate time if they so choose. At the end of the school year, please remember to pick up all medication. Two weeks after the last day of school, all medication not picked up will be discarded.
STUDENT INSURANCE PROGRAM
Membership in a group accident insurance program will be made available to students each year. In arranging for this insurance, the board will make every reasonable attempt to identify a company offering comprehensive insurance at economical rates. Information on the plan will be made available through school publications.
Purchase of this insurance constitutes an agreement between the student and/or parent and the insurance company. The school system is not a party to this agreement. The school system does not assume any contractual responsibility for expenses not covered by insurance.
Students who choose to participate in programs that may have a higher risk of physical injury than most school activities, including off-site internship programs, football, and other interscholastic sports, are required to have accident insurance through the group plan or comparable coverage. The superintendent may designate other activities, including certain school trips, as requiring accident insurance. ABSS Board Policy 4220
GARRETT’S LAW
On July 17, 2004, Governor Easley signed Senate Bill 444, referred to as “Garrett’s Law.” This law mandates at the beginning of every school year local Boards of Education shall ensure that schools provide parents and guardians with information about meningococcal meningitis, influenza and their vaccines. Beginning July 2007 information about Human Papillomavirus (HPV) and the HPV vaccine will also be provided. This vaccine is available for females and may prevent certain diseases and cancers. Copies of this information are available in the office. Additional information on the diseases and the vaccines can be found at www.cdc.gov, www.immunizenc.com, www.acha or www.immunizationinfo.org.
ANNUAL SCHOOL HEALTH SCREENING
Each year the Alamance-Burlington School System conducts student health screenings to better serve the students in Alamance County. Hearing and vision screenings are conducted by trained and certified staff members. The screenings are performed at selected grade levels and parents/guardians may contact their child’s school for specific screening dates and times. Parents/guardians shall be notified in writing if a student fails a health screening and may need additional evaluation and/or follow up care.
DENTAL SCREENINGS
As part of the regular school preventive programs, the Public Health Dental Hygienist employed by the North Carolina Oral Health Section, Division of Public Health, will conduct dental screenings for all Kindergarten students. The screenings will be conducted using non-latex gloves, a flashlight, and a tongue depressor. A letter will be sent home to the parent(s) or guardians(s) of each child with findings.