Health and Safety

The administration of Prescription Medication to students will be limited and will only be carried out in compliance with the proper procedures.

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• Any medication must be sent in its original container with the prescription name, dosage, student name, physician name, and phone number. 

• Parents must complete and sign the medication authorization form, including the day, time, and type of medication. These forms are available in the office. Please let us know if you need help filling them out, and we will assist you.

• Lead teachers will administer the prescribed medication and must record it in the medication authorization form.

• Non-prescription medicine, essential oils, cough drops, Tylenol, Aspiring, cold medications, etc., are not allowed on the SMA campus and cannot be administered by our staff.

• Under no circumstances may a student bring any medication to school to be given to their teachers. This is the responsibility of the adult. 

• A staff member will return medications to the caretaker at the end of the day if needed at home.

• All medications are to be stored in individual Ziplock bags and kept out of the reach of children in the first aid medication cabinet. If refrigeration is needed, the medication will be stored in a Ziplock bag in the office refrigerator.

• If your child is too ill to attend class, we ask that you keep your child at home

It is not uncommon for the illness of one child to spread rapidly through other children and to staff members in the school setting. For this reason, we take stringent measures to limit and hopefully prevent the spread of disease. We ask our staff, parents, and students to practice handwashing safety procedures to minimize the spread of communicable diseases. 

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If a child experiences any of the symptoms below, he/she may not attend school. If these symptoms develop at school, the child will be sent home. We ask that if your child is sent home, promptly pick him/her up from school. Your child may not return to school until he/she is symptom-free without medication for 24 hours and with a doctor's note.

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• Temperature of 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit or higher.

• Severe coughing (child gets red or blue in the face)

• High-pitched whooping or croupy sound with a cough

• Difficult or rapid breathing

• Stiff neck

• Yellowish skin or eyes

• Exposed, open skin lesions.

• Conjunctivitis (pink eye)

• Rash with fever

• Rash with hives or itching

• Sore throat or trouble swallowing

• Lice (child may not return to school until treatment has occurred and all nits have been removed from hair)

• Scabies

• Vomiting

• Diarrhea (more than one loose stool within 24 hours)

• Continual greenish/yellow mucus discharge from the nose
   

These symptoms are usually indicative of a contagious illness. If your child does not show the above symptoms but is too uncomfortable/irritable/lethargic to successfully participate in a group setting, he/she will be sent home.

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If your child cannot attend school, please call the office in the morning and let us know.

Students with an infectious, contagious disease must stay home until the contagious stage has passed. Please inform the office immediately of your child’s doctor’s diagnosis so we can take preventive measures. (Your information is confidential)

Anyone who has a positive diagnosis of COVID-19 may not attend school until:

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• You receive a negative test result and are asymptomatic.

• You received written permission from your physician.

• Five days have passed since the onset of illness, and no fever for 24 hours without medication.

 

Note: If the health department changes COVID-19 guidelines, you will be notified.

In the event of an accident or sudden onset of a severe illness, the school will seek proper care for the child. The child’s emergency plan will be followed, and parents will be called. If the parent is unavailable, the school will call the emergency contact listed on the child’s file and continue trying to reach the parents. If necessary, the child's physician and/or 911 will be called. First aid or appropriate care will be administered.

Should the child need to be transported from the school to a medical facility, an ambulance will be called, and the child’s medical information will be given to the first responders.

All SMA staff are required to take the Red Cross First Aid training and Pediatric and Adult CPR.