Health Office
Welcome to the MCS Health Office!
What We Do
Among many tasks, the school nurse performs and coordinates mandated NYS screenings and advises parents on immunization and physical examination requirements. The school nurses also provide first aid, emergency response, acute illness related care and management of chronic health conditions including medication administration and other procedures. Requests for regular or routine and ongoing medical care require parent permission and a medical order from your primary care provider.
The district’s health services will provide parent/guardian notification of student illness, injury, or need of emergency health services in a timely and expeditious fashion by phone call, e-mail, and/or written notification as appropriate. Appropriate health alerts are also provided on the district’s website which parents should review on a periodic basis.
Emergency Contact Information & Parent's Responsibilities
It is important for the school to be able to communicate with parents by phone in the event of an emergency, or regarding an injury or illness. Therefore, it is important that parents keep their emergency contact information current at all times. Parents who discover that information is outdated should contact the Main Office to notify them of any changes. To ensure your child's safety while here at school, please update your child's school nurse with any changes in health conditions including new health conditions that may arise during the year, and any medications your child takes at home or may need here at school.
Confidentiality
The District adheres to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). Private health care providers must follow other laws including the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). In instances where the school needs to communicate with private health care providers, the parent will need to complete the required form(s) from their health care provider in order for school officials to be able to speak with them. Please be advised that certain confidential medical information will be shared with district personnel who need to know. This may include understanding the impact a medical condition may have on a child within the classroom setting or on the bus, and/or how to recognize and potentially manage significant medical concerns until medical help arrives. If you have any questions about the re-disclosure of information on your child to supervisory staff responsible for their safety, please contact your school nurse.
When to Keep a Child Home With Illness
Sometimes it can be difficult for a parent to decide whether to send children to school when they wake up with symptoms of an illness or complaints that they do not feel well. We suggest that you keep your child home if they are not feeling well and have any of the following symptoms:
o Fever or chills
o Cough
o Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
o Fatigue
o Muscle or body aches
o Headache
o New loss of taste or smell
o Sore throat
o Congestion or runny nose
o Nausea or vomiting
o Diarrhea
The following are a few other situations that warrant watching and evaluation by your health care provider in addition to staying home:
o Honey-crusted sores around the nose or mouth or rash on other body parts; OR a rash in various stages including boils, sores and bumps that may be chicken pox; OR a significant rash accompanied by other symptoms of illness such as fever
o Red, runny, crusty eyes that distract the child from learning
o Severe ear pain or drainage from the ear
o Any condition that you think may be serious or contagious to others.
Finally, if you know your child is still running a fever, please do not give them Tylenol and send them to school. As soon as the medicine wears off, you will receive a call from the school nurse asking you to come pick up your feverish child.
If you find a pattern of your child asking to stay home from school, especially if they are falling behind or appear anxious by the thought of attending school, or if there does not appear to be any obvious physical symptoms, it may be a good idea to contact your school nurse and healthcare provider to discuss your concerns. Whenever you keep your child home from school, please call the attendance office in advance of the start of the school day and leave a message that your child will be absent.
Food Allergies - How Friends and Classmates Can Help
More and more students are being diagnosed with food allergies. These allergies can range in severity. A few of these students have severe peanut/nut, seafood, or other food allergies. While many reactions can be mild, some students may experience serious symptoms that can be life-threatening. It is important to share this information with you so that you and your children are aware that other students are impacted by these allergies. By working together, we can reduce the risk of students having allergic reactions.
We would like to take precautions to prevent/reduce the likelihood of these students being exposed to peanuts, nut products, or other foods that can cause these allergic reactions. Please encourage your children to be sensitive to students with food allergies while in the cafeteria by keeping their food on their trays and not sharing their food with others. If bringing treats in to share with the class, we suggest bringing store bought that has a clear ingredient list in order to ensure those with food allergies can participate safely.
Thank you for making MCS safe for all students.
Medications in School
Any child who needs to take medication during school hours must have a written request from the prescriber stating that the medication is to be given in school, as well as the time and the dosage to be given. The school nurse must have a written request from parents to give the medication as specified by the prescriber. This requirement includes all medications – those given daily and as needed, and all over-the-counter medications including cough drops, Tylenol, TUMS, etc.
No medication should be brought to school by students. Medication must be delivered to the school nurse by a parent/guardian, unless the prescriber indicates otherwise.
All medication orders must be renewed annually.
IMMUNIZATIONS
Can be obtained from your private provider or St. Lawrence County Public Health. Please see the links below for more information!
Physicals are required for ALL students new to the district, in Pre-K or Kindergarten, Grades 1, 3, 5, 7, 9 and 11. Physicals are also required to participate in interscholastic sports.
Please submit the required school health exam form, from your private provider to the school nurse, no more than thirty (30) days after the start of the school year (Education Law §903, 8 NYCRR §136.3 [c][1]). If your child has an appointment for an exam that is after the first thirty (30) days of school, NYS requires you to notify the School Nurse, no more than thirty (30) days after the start of the school year, with the appointment date and time.
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that school age children receive a complete health appraisal by their primary medical provider each year. Regular visits with a primary care provider promote continuity of care and ability to better track growth and development. Please contact the Health Office if you have any questions or concerns, or need help in obtaining the required health examination for your child.
Communication between private and school health staff is important for safe and effective care at school. Your healthcare provider may not share health information with school health staff without your signed permission. Please talk to your providers about signing their consent form for the school at the time of your child’s appointment for the examination.
A Dental Certificate is requested but NOT required for the same grades as above. Please contact the School Health Office if you need assistance in finding a dental provider.
The district’s School Health Services program supports your student’s academic success by promoting health in the school setting. One way that we provide care for your student is by performing the health screenings as mandated by the State of New York. During this school year, the following screenings will be required or completed at school:
The following NYS mandated screenings will be done by the school nurse if not done during the required health examination by a private healthcare provider and submitted to the health office. School screenings can be done anytime after the first thirty (30) days of school, but are usually conducted in February/March.
Hearing
Hearing screenings are required for ALL students new to the district, in Pre-K or Kindergarten, Grades 1, 3, 5, 7, and 11.
Vision
Distance and Near vision screenings are required for ALL students new to the district, in Pre-K or Kindergarten, Grades 1, 3, 5, 7, and 11.
Scoliosis
Scoliosis screenings are required for GIRLS in Grades 5 & 7 and for BOYS in Grade 9.
Notification
Per NYS requirements, parents will be notified of all vision screening results via letter mailed home. Parents will also receive a letter home only if a concern is noted, on the Hearing and/or Scoliosis screening.
Weight Status Survey
As part of a required school health examination, a student is weighed and his/her height is measured. These numbers are used to figure out the student’s body mass index or ‘BMI’. The BMI helps the doctor or nurse know if the student’s weight is in a healthy range or is too high or too low. Recent changes to the New York State Education Law require that BMI and weight status group be included as part of the student’s school health examination.
A sample of school districts will be selected to take part in a survey by the New York State Department of Health. If our school is selected to be part of the survey, we will be reporting to New York State Department of Health information about our students’ weight status groups. Only summary information is sent. No names and no information about individual students are sent. However, you may choose to have your child’s information excluded from this survey report. The information sent to the New York State Department of Health will help health officials develop programs that make it easier for children to be healthier. If you do not wish to have your child’s weight status group information included as part of the Health Department’s survey this year, please submit that request in writing to the Health Office, no later than October 31st.
Morristown Central School
(315) 375-8814 ext 21209 Fax (315) 379-7941
[email protected]
~Students must be Healthy to be Educated, and Educated to be Healthy.~