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Health and Wellness

Health and Wellness

Julia McAlpin, RN

District School Nurse

jmcalpin@sdwd.k12.wi.us

608-253-2468  ext. 6200

Health Services are coordinated by the District’s School Nurse. The goal of school health services is to remove or minimize health obstacles to learning.  This involves many different aspects of health.

Health Concerns

If your child has a health concern that might affect them at school, providing the school with adequate information is vital to ensure your child receives the proper care.

Please share with the school if your child has:

  • Asthma
  • Severe Allergies
  • Diabetes
  • Seizures
  • Any other health conditions you want the school to be aware of

Information on a variety of diseases and conditions is available from reliable sources such as the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention, http://www.cdc.gov or http://kidshealth.org/teen/diseases_conditions

Out of School Activities (sports, clubs, etc.)

It is important you communicate with the coach or advisor about any health conditions your child has.  Please talk with the coach about how to manage your child’s health condition when the child is involved in the activity.  Make sure the coach knows how to contact you if there are concerns or your child needs care.

How Parents’ Can Help their Child with a Health Condition:

  • Teach your child about their health condition
  • Expect your child to participate in his/her own health management
  • Teach your child when they should ask a school staff person for help regarding their health condition
  • Help your child understand what will happen at school if they have a problem with their health
  • Make sure the school has current contact information for at least 3 people that can be reached in an emergency, so if your child has a health problem at school someone is available, if you are not immediately available.
  • For school activities send “special treats” that are safe for your child and the others children in the classroom
  • Consider having your child wear a MedicAlert bracelet that provides pertinent medical information. (For more information call 888-633-4298.)

Medication Administration

If your child needs medication(s) during school to treat a health condition, please make those medications available at school.   This would include:

Inhalers for Asthma

Epi-pens for Allergies

Glucagon for Diabetes

Diastat for Seizures

Medication(s) must be provided by the parent in the original labeled container.  Parents must complete a Medication Request and Authorization Form for each school year. If the medicine is a prescription, then the doctor also has to sign the form. 

If the medication is to treat an allergic reaction, please use the  Allergy Treatment Plan instead of the Medication Authorization and Consent Form. 

Stock Medications

If your child suffers from difficulty breathing with a history of asthma, the District has emergency inhalers that may be used.  The Stock Medication Protocols are an overview of the EpiPen and Inhaler use procedures. 

Allergies 

If your child has a severe allergy it is important for parents to work with the school nurse.  This may be an allergy to bee stings or a food other allergies.

The school nurse will need to know about the allergy so that student-specific prevention and treatment plans can be implemented.  If the student needs medication when experiencing a possible allergic reaction, please work with the school nurse to complete the  Allergy Treatment Plan.

The school nurse will work with the principal, teachers, food service and bus services to help minimize the risk that your child is exposed to the allergen while in school.  The District has developed a flow chart on how a severe food allergy will be identified allergy and determined what are the responsibilities of each school department personnel.

Asthma

Students with asthma are encouraged to have an inhaler, a spacer, and an Asthma Action Plan at school.  These will help assure the student is safe at school at all times.

The procedure that is followed at school during an asthma attack is:

  1. Student uses their medication, if one has been supplied to the school.
  2. Student is encouraged to relax with slow deep abdominal breathing, sipping warm water.
  3. A staff person stays with the student and monitors symptoms
  • If symptoms decrease after 15 minutes, returns to class
  • If symptoms remain the same after 15minutes, parent will be contacted for directions. If the parent or another emergency contact person is not available 9-1-1 will be called
  • If symptoms increase in severity, 9-1-1 will be called

Communicable Diseases

To protect everyone:

All lesions (scabs, cuts, sores, rashes) must be covered when in school.           

Students are excluded from school for any of the following reasons:

  1. Fever
  2. Vomiting
  3. Diarrhea in past 24 hours
  4. has a condition that requires immediate medical diagnosis or intervention, e.g., needs diagnosis of a rash, fever.
  5. has a condition that requires ongoing supervision that cannot be provided in the school setting.

Students are excluded from school until treatment has been provided for:

  1. Head Lice
  2. Scabies

Students are excluded from school until 24 hours after treatment has been started.

  1. Strep throat                     

Students are excluded until lesions are dried

  1. Chicken Pox
  2. Impetigo

If you have questions/ concerns please check with the building secretary.

Illness Surveillance

Schools are required by public health entities to know what illnesses students are experiencing.  We ask that you share with us why your student is home ill.  This will allow the school to act quickly in the event of an outbreak of a communicable disease.

Information on a variety of diseases is available from reliable sources such as the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention, http://www.cdc.gov or http://kidshealth.org/teen/diseases_conditions

Covid-19

Covid-19 Symptom & Exposure Protocol 

First Aid

First aid in a school is usually provided by the office secretary.  For example if your child gets a cut or bruise the secretary will look at the injury, ask the child to wash the area and then apply a band-aid.  

If your child is ill the secretary would call you to pick your child up from school at that time.  This would happen if your child vomits or has a communicable disease such as live head lice, impetigo or has a fever over 100 degrees.  It is very important that you provide the school your contact information and several others we might contact if you are not available.  Also please call the school and let us know if that contact information changes during the school year. 

If your child were seriously injured or became gravely ill at school the staff would call the ambulance to take the child to the hospital.  This could occur if your child had a seizure, broke their leg, or some other serious heath situation arose. 

Hearing Testing

Individual hearing testing is done upon the request of any teacher or parent.  Mass hearing screening is not done, as the school does not have an adequate screening area.  If you would like your child‘s hearing tested, please contact the school nurse at 253-2468 extension 6200.

Immunizations

Wisconsin Student Immunization Law requires that all students meet a minimum number of required vaccinations prior to school entrance.  Parents are legally obligated to notify the school of the required immunizations the child has had or to sign a waiver.  The document to be used for this purpose is the Student Immunization Record.  For more information please see the state department of health website, https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/immunization/reqs.htm

Kindergarten

The 4-Year Old Kindergarten Health Checklist and the 5-Year Old Kindergarten Health Checklist outline several health issues. 

Physical Examination

It is recommended that your child have a physical examination before kindergarten. Have the doctor complete the Physical Exam form and return the form to the school. 

Dental Examination

It is recommended that your child have a dental examination before kindergarten.  If your child has as an exam scheduled in the next 6 months you do not need to make a special appointment, just take the form when you go in the next time.  Have the dentist complete the Dental Exam form and return the form to the school. 

Eye Examination

It is recommended that your child have an eye examination before kindergarten.  After the eye doctor completes the Eye Examination for 4K and 5K , please return the form to the school.  School vision screenings are for distance only and may not detect all eye or vision problems.  Many eye doctors provide a reduced fee for pre-kindergarten vision exams.  Have the examiner complete the form and return it to the school.  For information about possible financial assistance, call toll free 1-877-435-2020.

Vision Screening

All students in Kindergarten and grades, 2, 4, and 6 are screened for problems with distance vision.  If your child fails the screening you will receive a letter recommending that your child be seen by an eye care specialist. If you would like your child‘s vision checked, please contact the school nurse at 253-2468 extension 6200.

            

Students must be healthy to learn.

Students must learn to be healthy.