EHPS Contact

Health Centre

Is your child well enough to attend school?

As we all know, attending school is vitally important to all students, BUT it is also important to know when your child is not to attend school due to illness. This can be very difficult at times for parents to judge, especially with COVID around.

 

As we are aiming to build resilience in all of our students, we want them to learn to put up with minor health issues. If a child is continually attending the first aid room complaining of minor things, it’s usually for one of two reasons: they want to miss out on class time OR they are anxious about something. 

 

We will be in touch with you if your child is a regular visitor to the Health Centre. 

 

As a school, we have the responsibility to care for all students by preventing outbreaks of any contagious illness. In doing this, we need students to stay at home when the following has occurred:

  • Testing POSITIVE to a Rapid Antigen Test the night before or on the morning of school.  You must keep your child at home.  Students who report a positive result are recommended to isolate for a minimum of 5 days and not attend school until their symptoms have resolved. Once there are no symptoms, your child can attend school again. It is also recommended that if any household contact is positive for COVID that masks should be worn by any member leaving home. Regular RAT testing is requested also. 
  • If your child has vomited at home, please keep your child home from school for a full 24 hours from the last vomit.  Many students are sent home again after coming to school due to vomiting in the classroom after they arrive.  This spreads the germs and greatly disrupts the classroom and learning of other students.  
  • If you need to administer Nurofen or Panadol to your child in the morning before school, then your child is unwell for school.  These drugs wear off around lunch time and the student starts to feel unwell again.  These drugs camouflage underlining illnesses and the germs can still spread.
  • If your child has had diarrhoea within the last 24 hours, stay home. For information about gastroenteritis in children - click here for information about Gastroenteritis   
  • Above average temperature (or fever) The average temperature for a child is 36–37 °C. Return to school when the temperature is back to normal (usually 24 hours later) and symptom free. 
  • Contagious diseases or illness (e.g. hand foot and mouth, measles, mumps, chicken pox etc). Please inform the school and then get your doctor's approval before attending school again. For details of the exclusion period from school - click here 

 

Please discuss personal hygiene with your child. Remind children to cover their mouth and nose when they cough or sneeze, dispose of any tissues in the bin and wash their hands properly and regularly. 

 

If your child has been prescribed antibiotics that are to be administered three times per day, these can be administered at home. The first dose can be administered between 7am – 8.30am, the following dose can be administered between 3.45pm – 4.30pm. Then the last dose can be given at 8pm or before bed. 

 

Please be aware the school is not allowed to provide pain medication, e.g. Panadol, to students.

 

If your child becomes unwell at school, you will be contacted and required to arrange for your child to be picked up within a reasonable timeframe.

 

While a child may feel better at home, if they come back to school too early, they will fall into a heap quickly due to going back into a busy classroom. If you have to give them medication such as Panadol before coming to school, then they’re not well enough to come back.  

 

Thank you for supporting these procedures and helping to contain illnesses and keep our school community healthy.

Julie Zuk 

First Aid Officer