When to Keep Your Child Home From School

Download: When to Keep Your Child Home From School.pdf

Sick children need to be kept home from school. Resting at home will help them get better more quickly and will prevent them from exposing other children or the staff to their illness.

Keep your child home and consult with your child’s Primary Care Provider if he or she:

1. Has a temperature greater than 100.4°F taken with an oral thermometer
2. Has nausea (upset stomach) or vomiting
3. Has diarrhea (frequent, loose, watery stools) Symptoms may include cramps, bloating, nausea and an urgent need to have a bowel movement.
4. Has stomach pain that is constant. If vomiting starts after the pain begins (call your health care provider that day)
5. Has a headache that is interfering with activities
6. Has a sore throat that causes difficulty swallowing
7. Has yellow discharge on eye lashes in the morning that comes back after being wiped off of lashes and eyes that are red (call your health care provider for a appointment the day this is observed)
8. Has a skin rash that causes itching and/or is on most of the body
9. Has a constant cough and/or difficulty breathing
10. Is complaining of feeling ill, has a lack of energy and/or a decrease in activity

What to do if your child has these signs of illness:

If your child has symptoms for more than 24 hours or if the symptoms become worse, call your health care provider for an appointment. Follow your health care provider’s advice on administering over the counter medications.

What will happen if your child gets sick at school?

If your child gets sick at school he/she will be seen by the nurse. The nurse will do an assessment to determine what is wrong with your child. If the nurses’ assessment confirms your child is sick, then you will be called to come pick him/her up. Therefore, it is important that you provide the school with up-to-date information and phone numbers. If you are not available to pick up your child, it is important that the school have emergency contact phone numbers of persons that can pick up your child in your absence. Be sure to give this information to the Registrar at your child’s school.

When may your child return to school?

Your child may return to school when your health care provider says he/she can (documentation from the health care provider may be needed), when symptoms are gone for 24 hours or if your child has taken the antibiotic prescribed by the provider for a full twenty-four hours. Keep your child home until his or her fever has been gone for 24 hours without medication. Please call your school nurse if you have any questions about this information.