Nursing Services

1. Illness or Injury
2. Procedures for Students with Fever
3. Other Illnesses or Symptoms
4. Individual Emergency Action Plan
5. Medication in School
6. Immunizations

In the event of a serious injury or illness, the nurse will contact the parent(s) or guardian(s) so the student can be transported to a medical facility for further evaluation and management. In some cases, the nurse may accompany the student to the facility and meet the parent(s) there. Upon the child’s return to school after a serious injury or illness, parents are asked to submit a copy of the medical certificate to the Nurses Office.

We will contact parent(s) for minor conditions that require attention, or when a student needs to go home because of illness. Parents are expected to take a child home if the student has symptoms of disease, a fever above 37.5 C, or a contagious rash. Because some rashes, pink eye, impetigo, chicken pox, ringworm, scabies, and head lice can be highly contagious, the school may require a note from a physician stating that the child is not contagious before the child can return to school.

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In recent years, numerous global outbreaks have emphasized the need to strictly follow our fever procedures. Fever, in this regard, is defined as any temperature over 37.5 Celsius or 99.5 Fahrenheit. A child who has a fever at school must return home immediately. The Nurses Office is a very temporary place for students with fever, as we do not want children who come into the Nurses Office for other reasons to be exposed to fever. A student who is sent home by the nurse must, upon returning to school, obtain a clearance slip from the Nurses Office before returning to classes.

A child who goes home with a fever may not return to school until he/she is fever free for 24 hours without taking anti-fever medication such as Tylenol, Panadol, Acetaminophen, Advil, Motrin, or Ibuprofen. These medications are given individually or as a combination cough/cold formula. Please read the following examples, which will clarify most common situations.

Q: My child had a fever of 101.2 F last night at 9:00 pm before going to bed. This morning he is fever-free ever since he took medication at 9:05 pm last night. Should I send him to school?

A: Children must be fever-free for a full 24 hours without medication before returning to school. In this case, the child should NOT come to school.

Q: My child was sent home yesterday by the nurse at 11:00 am with a fever. This morning she doesn’t have fever. Neither the nurses nor our family have given her any medications. Should I send her to school?

A: Parents should monitor the child as to when she becomes fever-free. If her temperature was normal by 2:00 pm yesterday without the assistance of anymedication, she can come back to school at 2:00 pm today. Nevertheless, it’s best for her to stay home and receive adequate rest for faster recovery.

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If your child has the following signs or symptoms, please keep your child at home and consider seeing a doctor for further evaluation and management:

• Diarrhea and vomiting - starting 12 hours prior to school or with persistent diarrhea
• Skin rashes of unknown origin
• Conjunctivitis / pink eye - watery or purulent discharges from the eye (children with confirmed diagnosis can return to school when treatment has begun)
• Moist cough if the child cannot be relied upon to cover the cough
• Heavy head cold with a lot of nasal congestion / sneezing
• Live head lice (children who have had head lice must be cleared by the nurses’ office before returning to school)

If your child has a contagious illness such as chickenpox, hand- foot and mouth disease, or head lice, please let the school know, so we can alert others. Confidentiality will be maintained.

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Children with life-threatening conditions such as severe food allergies or allergy to bee stings, severe asthma, diabetes, seizures, etc., are required to have an Individual Emergency Action Plan. Individual Emergency Action Plan forms MUST be completed at the start of each school year, or when there is a change in your child’s treatment or condition. The forms require a signature by your child’s Physician/Healthcare provider. Please stop by to talk to the nurse about these or any other concerns. Emergency Action Plans are available on the website or from the Nurses Offices.

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The nurses office stores and administers medications required by students. We discourage self-medication by students unless arrangements have been made through the school nurse. Asthma medication, Epipen and insulin for Middle and High School students are the only exceptions. Elementary students must go to the nurse for all medications. If your child requires other medications, please bring these yourself in a tightly sealed envelope to the nurses office. A parent must fill out the “Medication to be Given” form, available under 'Health Tips and Forms' or from the nurses clinics, and specify the medication name, reason for medication, amount, time given, days to be given, and parent signature. If you have medication labeled in another language, please label clearly in English, send written instructions and call the nurse. The nurses will not administer any medication not properly labeled.

The nurses will administer some over-the-counter medications (i.e. Tylenol, Panadol, Ibuprofen, antacid tablets, anti-spasmodic, Imodium, sore throat lozenge/syrup, Benadryl, Claritin (for allergies), moisturizing eye drops, and topical ointment for rashes etc.), if we have parental permission on file.

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You may find that your immunization schedule does not tie in exactly with the criteria below, because different countries have different requirements and often use different types of vaccines and schedules. Please contact us if this is the case, so that we can confirm that your child is properly immunized.

The school requires evidence of the following immunizations prior to admission to ISB:

• Polio - 4 vaccinations at 2, 4, 6 -18 months and 4 - 6 years
• DTP (diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus) - 5 vaccinations at 2, 4, 6, 18 months, and 4 - 6 years; after which, a tetanus booster is recommended every 5 to 10 years.
• Dtap or Td – booster after age 10 and recommended every 5 to 10 years.
• MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) - 1 vaccination at 15 months and a booster by age 11
• Hepatitis B - a complete series of 3 vaccinations

Physical Examination

Mandatory Tuberculosis Screening

Type of Test (choose any): within one year prior to admission regardless of BCG vaccination.

1. PPD/Mantoux Test;

2. Chest X-ray; or

3. T-Spot test.

Please notify the nurses when your child has a booster or receives a new vaccination during their time at ISB, so that we can update our medical records.

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