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THE NURSE’S CORNER by Charlotte O'Connor, GIS School Nurse

Your child is sniffing, sneezing and complaining of a scratchy throat, but his temperature is normal….should you pack his lunch and send him off to school?

Parents make tough calls like that every day, often with little else to go on other then there gut instinct. Parents are “pretty clued in to their kids” and know when their child isn’t feeling well, says Marlin Kinne, a school nurse practitioner and school projects coordinator at the National Association of school nurses. “If, in their best judgment, the child is running a fever and has other symptoms, then it just seems prudent to give them a day at home resting (and to) give them extra fluids and keep an eye on them,” she says. Surely that’s what June Cleaver, the fictional television mom from the early 1960’s situation comedy “Leave it to Beaver” would have done, But in today’s dual –income society, few moms-or dads, for that matter-have the luxury of taking a day off from work to serve chicken soup to their ailing child.

How sick is to sick for school?

Flu symptoms include: Fever, headache, extreme tiredness, dry cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, muscle aches, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea may also be present. It’s up to parents to separate true malady from truant behavior. A child who simply complains, “I don’t feel good, could be cooking up a mild excuse to skip school.

So when should your youngster absolutely stay school?

A child with a fever above 100 degrees should be kept home and nursed back to health. If he/she is vomiting, it’s also best to stay home. Colds, obviously, are mildly contagious but not necessarily a reason for children to miss school. It may depend on how uncomfortable they are. Likewise, it’s probably safe to send a child to school with a mild cough if unaccompanied by fever and other symptoms. Encouraging fluids and nose blowing also can aid in alleviating these symptoms. 

Strep throat is different! Even if your child is being treated with antibiotics, he or she is considered contagious during the first 24 hours and/or until 3 doses of the prescribed antibiotics have been given, so please keep your child home for at least a day.

Diarrhea? The key with diarrhea is very good hand-washing to keep the infection from spreading to others. If your child is having 3 bouts of diarrhea a day, he or she is best kept at home if not being treated with antibiotics for a different illness.

Lice? That hated word. We have a zero-tolerance policy with regard to children who have head lice. Sorry, if you got um’ you can’t come back till their gone. I have some interesting info. on how to help deter head lice for any one who is interested.

The bottom line: A good dose of common sense can go along way toward getting your child back on her feet and in the classroom.