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Sick Child

Is My Child Well Enough to Go to School?

The following items will help you decide whether your child is sick and should stay home from school.

If your child has:

  1. A fever of 100 degrees or more, he/she should stay home for 24 hours after the temperature returns to normal and remains normal without fever-reducing medication.
     
  2. Vomited or has diarrhea, he/she should stay home until 24 hours after the last episode.
     
  3. Had any rash that may be disease-related or the cause is unknown, check with your family physician before sending him/her back to school.

Remember, if your child is ill, please call the school to report the illness. If you have questions regarding your child's illness, please call your school nurse or family physician.

If Your Child Gets Sick or Injured at School

If your child becomes ill or injured at school, he/she may come to the health office to be assessed and treated.  Health office staff will determine whether your child should be sent home and will contact you (or your designated emergency contact) if they believe he/she shouldn't remain in school. The health office staff will consult with you in deciding if your child should be sent home.

 When a student has a fever greater than 100 degree, vomits, has diarrhea, or appears to have a possible communicable illness, parents/guardians are contacted, and the student is sent home. Parents/guardians are also contacted when an injury may require medical follow up or additional observation.

Students are not to contact their parents/guardians directly and ask to be picked up because they are sick or injured unless their call or email is made through the health office.

Should your child become ill or injured at school, it is critical that we have current contact information. If any of your contact information changes, please be sure to give that updated information to your child’s school.

When the Flu Season Arrives

Providing a healthy school environment for our students is a district priority all year long. During the flu season, we're guided by the recommendations of the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH). According to MDH, students with an influenza-like illness (ILI), which is defined as a fever over 100 degrees with a cough or sore throat, should stay home for at least 24 hours after the fever is gone without the use of fever-reducing medication.

Please help us track the number of students with flu-like illnesses by calling the school's attendance line each day your student is home sick. Please mention the specific symptoms your student is experiencing.

We report flu-like illnesses to state health officials when the total number of students absent with flu-like illnesses reaches 5% of the total school enrollment. The health department uses the information to track the spread of the flu throughout the state and to help determine if current immunization requirements and recommendations are effective.  No student name or other identifying information is shared with the health department for reporting flu-like illnesses.

Visit the Minnesota Department of Health's influenza (flu) link for up-to-date information about influenza. The following are also good resources:

Influenza (Flu) Information for Parents (pdf)
Influenza Symptom Screening Tool for Parents and Caregivers (pdf)

Is My Child Healthy Enough for School? (Infectious Disease Pamphlet pdf)