Health Services

How Do I Know If My Child Is TOO SICK FOR SCHOOL?

Families and students often have questions about illness and when they should stay home from school. The following guidelines should assist you in making a decision. Students MUST stay home from school in the following instances:  

• Fever of 100 degrees F or higher in the past 24 hours. Student may return to school when symptom free for 24 hours without the aid of fever-reducing medication 
• Vomiting or diarrhea within the past 24 hours. Student may return to school when symptom free for 24 hours without the aid of medication. 
• Diagnosed strep throat. Student may return to school after a full 24-hours of antibiotic treatment. 
• New onset of cough and/or uncontrolled cough.  
• Evidence of head lice, including nits (eggs).  
• New onset of rash and/or lingering rash that has not been identified and treated. 
• Pink eye with thick white or yellow drainage and eye pain. An exam by your healthcare provider is recommended. 
• New antibiotic treatment. May return to school after monitoring the first 24 hours for a reaction. 
• Pain that requires a narcotic or other controlled medication for relief. Please discuss the management of chronic pain with the health office. 
• Too ill to actively participate in school activities. 
• Tested positive for COVID-19. 
• Experiencing multiple symptoms relating to influenza or COVID-19. 

• Confidential Health Information Form – Complete each school year. Up-to-date health information is important for planning for children’s needs.

• Immunization & Exemption Forms – Complete each school year to update immunizations, or for medical exemption or conscientious objection by parents or guardians. 
• Authorization for Medication Administration – Complete each school year if medication administration at school is required.
• Self-Administration of Non-Prescription Pain Medication – Complete each school year if self-administration of non-prescription pain medication is necessary. This form applies to Upper School students in Grades 6-12 ONLY. PreK-Grade 5 students are not permitted to self-administer medication.

Complete information on immunization requirements, medications, or general health can be found in the tabs below. 

The Minnesota School Immunization Law requires that all students get vaccinated against certain diseases or have a legal exemption on file to enroll in school. All immunizations must be up-to-date before the first day of school in September. If you are unsure of your child’s vaccination status, contact the Health Services office at your child’s school.

Exemptions:  
To be exempt from these requirement, you must provide one of the following: 

• Medical exemption signed by a health care practitioner. A health care practitioner is defined as a licensed physician, nurse practitioner, or physician assistant. 
• Non-medical exemption form signed by a parent/guardian AND notarized.
   

Exemption forms are required before entering kindergarten and updated before entering 7th and 12th grade.

Forms:

• Page 1 – Immunization Form

• Page 2 – Exemption Form (MUST be Notarized) 

 

Whenever possible, medication should be administered by parents or guardians before or after school. When prescription medication is needed during the school day: 

• A health care practitioner order is required before the medication can be accepted or administered. 
• An Authorization for Medication Administration form needs to be completed by a parent or guardian. This form must be completed annually. 
• Controlled medications must be transported to and from school by a parent or guardian.   
• Health care practitioner is defined as a licensed physician, nurse practitioner, or physician assistant. 

Prescription Medication:

•  All prescription medication must be in a pharmacy-labeled bottle and include the name of the drug, student’s name, dosage, route, time/frequency and expiration date. 
• Medication will only be administered from a properly labeled container. 
• Epi-pens and inhalers require a label on the device, not the box it comes in. 
• Changes to prescription medication require written documentation from a healthcare provider. 

Lakes International Language Academy Medication Policy

Non-Prescription Medication: 

• Over-the-counter, non-prescription medication may be administered long-term with written permission from a healthcare provider and parent/guardian. Long-term is defined as greater than 10 days.
• Over-the-counter, non-prescription medication may be administered short-term with written permission from the parent/guardian. Short-term is defined as up to 10 days.  
• Written permission for short- or long-term non-prescription must include the student’s name, medical condition, strength, dosage, time/frequency, and duration of treatment. 
• LILA has the authority to reject a request to administer non-prescription medications. 

Authorization for Medication Administration  

Self-Administration of Non-Prescription Pain Medication: 

• Students in grades 6-12 may self-administer over-the-counter, non-prescription pain medication such as Tylenol or Advil with parent/guardian permission. 
• Parent/guardians must complete the Self-Administration of Non-Prescription Pain Medication form as necessary – e.g. annually, when changes occur, etc. This form states that a parent/ guardian has declared the student is knowledgeable about the use of the medication as well as school policies and guidelines related to self-administration. 
• Written permission must include the student’s name, school year, and purpose of the medication. 

Self-Administration of Non-Prescription Pain Medication
(Upper School Students Only)

According to Mayo Clinic, a concussion is a traumatic brain injury that most commonly results from a fall or blow to the head during active play or sports. A concussion affects brain function, although effects are usually temporary. Symptoms can include headaches and problems with concentration, memory, balance and coordination. Most people recover fully after a concussion, but symptoms can interfere with learning and should be taken seriously. 

For additional information, review the resources below. If you are concerned about your child, seek assistance from your healthcare provider. 

• CDC Concussion Signs and Symptoms Checklist
• CDC Heads Up A Fact Sheet for Parents

According to guidance from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), lice are a fact of life for children. Since lice don't spread disease, the AAP recommends that schools do no more than educate parents to check their child's hair before and after activities such as sleepovers or camping, where the most head-to-head contact can occur. 

While we know that lice do not spread disease, we also know that having lice is uncomfortable and inconvenient. The itching can be very distracting and irritating, and we know that getting rid of them once they have spread through an entire family can be not only time consuming, but costly as well.

While many schools choose not to inform families of potential contact with lice, especially since it’s not a health hazard, LILA does inform parents via letter when a case has been discovered in their child’s classroom. Our choice to inform you with each reported case may give the mistaken impression that LILA has a higher incidence of lice, but rest assured we have no more cases of lice than other schools. In fact, because we inform parents and ask them to check their children with each occurrence, we believe we may see fewer cases within our school.

If lice and/or nits are found, treatment must be given immediately. While lice are not dangerous, they are a time-consuming nuisance for families and school personnel and they need to be eradicated quickly.

• Go to the drugstore and purchase a specially formulated lice shampoo and nit comb. Follow the product instructions carefully, ensuring both live lice and all nits are removed from the hair. 
• Mayonnaise, olive oil, and other home remedies are known to be ineffective.

 

Additional Resources: 

• Information about Head Lice

• CDC Head Lice Treatment

Food allergies are a growing concern in schools across America. Millions of children who are perfectly healthy and normal in every other way must pay attention to every single bite of food they eat or risk suffering a severe or even life-threatening illness. For some, merely touching a food containing peanuts can cause a serious reaction. 

Over the years, LILA has had several students with mild to severe allergies. The safety and well-being of all students is a top priority, so a major health issue such as this must be taken seriously. To that end, we have taken the following steps: 

• Designated spaces in school lunchrooms that are peanut and tree nut aware. 
• Established peanut and tree nut aware classrooms when there is a child present with nut allergies. 
• Provided Epi-pen training for relevant staff. Epi-pens help to counteract allergic reactions until emergency services arrives.  

Health Services, together with classroom teachers, notifies families by letter when their child’s classroom or grade-level has a student with peanut/tree nut allergies. If you receive a letter from school, please take the guidelines seriously. 

If you have questions or concerns about nut or other food allergies, contact your school’s health office.

For students with chronic or other health conditions, school nurses and other health care providers play a important role in the daily management of their conditions while at school. LILA Health Services works in partnership with families to create a plan of care.

If you indicated your child has a chronic or other health condition on the Confidential Health Information Form submitted at the beginning of the school year, or if your child develops a new health condition at any time during the school year, additional information is necessary to assist us in properly caring for your child. Please fill out the questionnaire below that best relates to your child’s condition.  

• Allergies Questionnaire

• Asthma Questionnaire

• Seizures Questionnaire

• Other Health Condition Questionnaire

• Special Dietary Needs Statement & Special Dietary Request Form