Medication Policy
School medication is administered following these guidelines. These requirements were formulated with your protection in mind, and comply with provisions in the law of the State of Iowa. The administration of prescription medication by school personnel to the students in school shall be done only with written authorization and direction of a licensed medical or osteopathic physician or dentist. An “Authorization to Administer Medication” form shall be filled out and signed by the parent/guardian.
- Consent form signed by parents.
- Medication is in the original labeled container.
- Medication label contains the student name, name of medication, dose and time.
- Annual renewal of authorization and immediate notification, in writing, of charges.
- All medications over-the-counter and prescription drugs will be kept locked in the nurse’s office.
- Students using inhalers may keep that medication with them and self-administer with physician and parent approval. The forms are in the nurse’s office. Please inform the school if your child will be using an inhaler, how and when it is to be used.
- A written record will be kept on any medication given at school. This record will include the student’s name, the name of the medication, the amount of medication to be given, and the time at which it is to be given. After the medication is given, the person dispensing the medication will initial the medication sheet. A record shall be kept each time the medication is given at school.
- At the end of the school year, or at the end of the dispensing time, any remaining medication shall be returned to the pupil’s parents or destroyed. If medication is destroyed, it should be noted on the pupil’s health record.
- The school does keep a supply of Tylenol, cough drops or non-prescription drugs. No over-the-counter medications will be dispensed at school unless written permission from the parent is on file in the school office or nurse’s office. These must be renewed at the beginning of each school year, and all previous notes will be destroyed at the end of each school year.
With summer approaching and summer plans being made, remember to include updating your child’s immunizations. Immunizations are not just for babies.
The diseases that vaccines prevent can be dangerous, or even deadly. Vaccines reduce the risk of infection by working with the body’s natural defenses to help it safely develop immunity to disease.
The vaccines that recommended for adolescents include:
Tdap booster
MMR (make sure that have had 2)
Varicella (make sure have had 2)
HPV
Menactra
Tdap: Recommended at age 11 or 12. Td vaccine has been used for many years. It protects against tetanus and diphtheria. Tdap vaccine was licensed in 2005. It is the first vaccine for adults and adolescents that protects against pertussis (whooping cough) as well as tetanus and diphtheria.
MMR (measles, mumps and rubella): Most of our adolescents have had their 2 doses but important to check that your child has received both of them.
Varicella (chicken pox): The CDC now recommends a booster. So again check your child’s immunizations to see that they have had 2 shots.
HPV (human papillomavirus): This is a 3 dose series given over a 6 month period. Recommended ages for girls and boys to receive this vaccine is at 11-12 years of age. Can also be given to older adolescents. HPV can cause cervical cancer in women and the vaccine is important because it can prevent most cases of cervical cancer. Men can transmit this disease that is why it is important for males to receive this vaccine also.
Menactra: Meningococcal disease is a serious bacterial illness. Meningitis is an infection of the covering of the brain and spinal cord. Meningococcal disease can also cause blood infection. College students who live in dorms and teenagers 15-19 have an increased risk of getting meningococcal disease. 1 out of 10 who get the disease die from it, which is why it is important to prevent the disease through the use of vaccine.
Remember that August is a busy month – kids leaving for college, extra curricular activities start, etc, so you may want to schedule these appointments soon. If you have insurance that pays for vaccine, schedule your vaccinations to be done at the drs office. If you have Title 19, no insurance or your insurance does not pay for vaccines, schedule your appointments through Community Health.
If you have more questions regarding immunizations, Vaccine information statements are available through the KRHC Website: www.KRHC.com; Patient Services tab; Community Health tab; Immunizations; Vaccine Information located at the bottom of the page. Or you can always call your doctor, or Community Health at 515-295-4430.
All health-related concerns should be shared with the school nurse. We feel the health of students is of utmost importance and needs to be addressed along with academic concerns.
Iowa law requires that evidence of immunization or exemption be presented before any student is enrolled in the North Kossuth School District which includes North Kossuth Elementary, North Sentral Kossuth Middle School and North Sentral Kossuth High School. Immunizations required include diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, polio, measles, mumps, rubella, Hepatitis B, chickenpox, and pneumococcal. Prior to your child’s first day of class, a certificate documenting these immunizations is required to be on file at the school nurse’s office. This record can be obtained through your medical office.
Please see additional information regarding health under “Physicals and Screenings,” “Medication Policy,” “Accidents or Illness,” and “Medication”.
Accidents which occur on school property or at school functions must be reported as soon as possible to the building principal or event supervisor and to the school nurse. An accident report form will need to be filled out by the school employee witnessing the accident. Accident reports are available in any of the school offices or the nurse’s office.
The primary aim is to prevent accidents through close supervision and teaching safety in the school. However, if an accident should occur, or a child becomes ill at school, the parent/guardian will be notified at once. For this reason, it is very important for emergency contact information in the school office to be up-to-date and complete.
Illness in children can occasionally be hard to assess, and decisions whether to send your child to school are sometimes difficult. If the following conditions occur, your child should be kept home.
- Oral temperature of 100 degrees or higher within the past 24 hours
- Vomiting or diarrhea within the past 24 hours
- Earache lasting more than one day
- Persistent cough, croup, chest congestion, or sore throat
- Labored, painful breathing
- Reddened, mattering or crusty eyes
- Moist, draining lesions on the lips or skin
- Undiagnosed rash
Head lice affect more people than all other childhood communicable diseases not including the common cold. But like a cold, when children come in close contact with each other, it is easy to pass head lice along. Shared hats, clothing, brushes, pillows and other personal articles are perfect vehicles to transfer lice from one person to another. It is important to act immediately to prevent their spread to other classmates and to your family as well. Students identified with live lice will be able to finish out the school day, unless, at the discretion of the nurse or secretary, the parent/guardian may be called. The discomfort of the child and improbability of the student’s inability to learn may require the parent/guardian to pick up their child. The child may return 24-hours after adequate treatment with an over-the-counter item or prescription treatment to kill lice and nits. Please note that treatment with mayonnaise, olive oil or butter will not be considered adequate treatment.
Students entering the 3-year-old preschool program or entering our school for the first time are required to have a physical examination by a licensed physician before attending the first day of class. A physical form should be provided to the school nurse. This physical form will be kept on file in the student’s health file in the nurse’s office. If the student attended the 3-year-old preschool and is now entering the 4-year-old preschool program ,a new physical is not needed (likewise if a student moves from preschool to kindergarten).
Students in grades 7-12 who wish to participate in athletics shall have a yearly physical examination by a licensed physician and provide proof of examination before the first day of practice. Physical forms are available in any of the school offices.
Iowa state law now requires dental screening to be done on all kindergarten students, out-of-state transfers, and all students in the 9th grade. Foreign exchange students are not included in this law. A form will be given out at school registration or is available from the school nurse. This form is the only form accepted by the State of Iowa, and it is to be completed before the first day of school.
All kindergarten students are now required to provide a blood lead screening by the first day of school. Contact your doctor’s office for a copy of the results and provide these results to the school nurse.
Vision screening for kindergarten is strongly encouraged. Forms are available in the elementary office or on the school website.
The Iowa Poison Control Center has received calls from Iowans who have been exposed to Ethanol-Based Hand Sanitizers. Many hand sanitizers contain 62% ethanol, though a few are up to 75%. Many perfumes have high ethanol concentrations, ranging from 60% to 90%. The main poisoning concern regarding EBHS is from people drinking these products. Ingestion of an EBHS can lead to ethanol intoxication and have all the same signs and symptoms of ethanol intoxication that results from drinking beer, wine or mixed drinks. Some hand sanitizers use isopropyl alcohol instead of ethanol. These isopropyl hand sanitizers pose the same danger to children as the EBHS’s.
How Much EBHS is too much?
A single lick of a hand sanitizer that has been spread on the hands is unlikely to cause intoxication or produce symptoms more than irritation of the mouth and tongue.
Ethanol intoxication by absorbing the ethanol through intact skin is highly unlikely. Drinking the liquid poses more danger. If a typical two-year-old, weighing about 27 pounds, drank an entire two ounce bottle of EBHS, he would have a theoretical blood ethanol level of 445 mg/dL. The legal limit for drunk driving in Iowa is 80 mg/dL. Symptoms of ethanol intoxication in children can begin at a level of 50 mg/dL.
The symptoms of ethanol intoxication in a child include irritability, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, unsteady gait, loss of muscle control and sleepiness. Severe ethanol intoxication can lead to coma, respiratory arrest and death. Children who are intoxicated with ethanol are particularly susceptible to dropping their blood sugar and can suffer the effects of low blood sugar (irritability, clouded thinking, seizure, coma, death).
Soap and Water versus Hand Sanitizers
Washing hands with soap and water for twenty seconds is the best way to removed dirt and germs from the hands is preferred to the use of EBHS. However, EBJHS are an excellent choice when there is no access to soap and water.
What To Do if a Child Drinks Some EBHS
First is prevention: the same way you would not let children play with a bottle of liquor, they should not be allowed to play with bottles of EBHS. In case of suspected poisoning, call 1-800-222-1222.
What You Can Do to Stay Healthy
There are everyday actions people can take to stay healthy.
- Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Throw the tissue in the trash after you use it.
- Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze. Alcohol-based hands cleaners are also effective.
- Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs spread that way.
Try to avoid close contact with sick people.
- Influenza is thought to spread mainly person-to-person through coughing or sneezing of infected people.
- If you get sick, CDC recommends that you stay home from work or school and limit contact with others to keep from infecting them.
The swine influenza virus appears to be spread from one person to another. Swine influenza viruses are not transmitted by food, and a person cannot get swine flu from eating pork products. As with seasonal influenza, Iowans are urged to help prevent the spread of swine flu by taking the following precautions:
- When you cough or sneeze, cover your nose and mouth with a tissue or your sleeve (if you do not have a tissue). Throw used tissues in a trash can.
- After you cough or sneeze, wash your hands with soap and water, or use an alcohol-based hand gel.
- If you are ill with a respiratory illness (coughing and sneezing), stay home from work or school so you don’t make others sick.
- Avoid close contact with others who are coughing or appear to be ill.
- Symptoms of swine influenza include fever (greater than 100 F), along with cough, sore throat, headache and body aches, and extreme tiredness. Some people have also reported diarrhea and vomiting associated with swine flu. If you have any of these symptoms, contact your health care provider.
If you have recently visited Mexico or areas in the U.S. where swine influenza cases have been confirmed, and develop swine flu symptoms within seven to ten days after your return, it’s important to contact your health care provider, and remind them to contact local public health officials.
Growing Together is a parent education program that works in collaboration with local school districts to provide a fun learning rich environment for both parents and children. When you enroll in a Growing Together class:
Children and parents attend programs together in local preschools giving children and their parents a familiarity with the school.
Upon entering the class, children and parents are given a variety of developmentally appropriate activities to do together. Teachers will provide a link between the activity and how it fits into the Iowa Early Learning Standards.
Classes provides a bonding time for parent and child while modeling kindergarten readiness skills.
Parents and children have a teacher lead circle time together consisting of a story, finger-plays and song.
After circle time, children have a snack and free play time while parents participate in a discussion with information on parenting topics. Topics and information center on parenting skills, health and safety issues and early literacy.
Contact: (515) 295-7784 (866) 540-3855
hawk-i is a program that provides health care coverage for Iowa children in families with limited incomes.
If your child is under 19 and has no health care coverage, click on the link below to find out more about hawk-i. Many families who work hard to make ends meet can get low-cost or free health care coverage for their children up to age 19.