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Should I Send Them to School? Surefire signs to determine if your kid is really sick |
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Lehigh Valley Family
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Written by Carsa Kruppenbach, PSA HealthCare
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It’s 7:00am, the bus comes in 20 minutes, and your child is sick. You have an 8:30am meeting; others are depending on you to be at work. Not only will it cause problems for you, but your child will be missing lessons, assignments, and extracurricular activities.... What do you do? Keep your child home or send him to school anyway? Here are some recommendations to help you make the right decision: Keep your child home from school if he is having any of he following symptoms:
- Fever (temperature above 100 degrees)
- Vomiting
- Diarrhea
- Trouble breathing
- Frequent coughing
- Constant sniffles
- Itchy, scaly, spreading rash
- Moderate or severe pain (as from an ear infection)
- Eye redness and drainage
- Flu symptoms: fever, sore throat, coughing, sneezing, fatigue, vomiting or diarrhea
- Generally feeling or looking badly.
If your child is experiencing symptoms mentioned above he may not feel well enough to learn or participate, and he may infect other students. If the above symptoms last more than 24 hours or are severe, call your child’s physician. If your child is having unusual symptoms, contact the school nurse to see if something is going around and to alert the school of any contagious conditions. Allow your child to return to school when he:
- Is fever free for 24 hours
- Has no vomiting or diarrhea for 24 hours
- Is no longer contagious
- Has taken antibiotics for 48 hours
- Is feeling well enough to last through the day
- Physician has rendered him safe to return to school.
Teach your children to wash their hands with soap and water before and after eating and before touching their face; not to share cups or utensils; and to cough or sneeze into a tissue or bent elbow if a tissue is not available. When sickness occurs, it is never a convenient time. Sending a child to school when they need to stay home can delay their recovery and increase the time they (and you) need to be out.
www.lehighvalleyfamily.com
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