District Departments » Health Services » Health Services

Health Services

 
Susan Neville
School Nurse
Wk: (619) 669-7854
Fax: (619) 669-0438

Credentialed School Nurse

The Credentialed School Nurse is a bachelor’s degree prepared Registered Nurse, Public Health Nurse licensed by the California Board of Registered Nursing and credentialed as a school nurse by the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing.

The Credentialed School Nurse uses the nursing process, clinical expertise and professional judgment to design and implement health services programs that ensure that all students will receive the optimum benefit from their educational experience. This is accomplished by working collaboratively with students, families, teachers, other members of the multidisciplinary team, and utilizing resources within the community, to meet the physical, mental, emotional and social health needs of students.

Student Health Care Specialist (RN)

Under the direction of the assigned administrator and the professional direction of a licensed credentialed school nurse, the student health care specialist performs specialized physical health care services for pupils with disabilities and chronic health problems. The site health office staff is also available to provide basic first aid to students who present to the health office.

The American Lung Association has resources and support to help you and your family make a plan and manage his/her asthma so your child can enjoy a full and active life. Call the American Lung Association’s free Lung HelpLine to talk to an expert. Speak to an experienced registered nurse and respiratory therapists to learn more about asthma and understand your child’s diagnosis. Their compassionate and knowledgeable staff can provide parents with the support you need and the answers you ae looking for.
 
Available 7 days a week, 8am to midnight (EST).
 
1-800- LUNGUSA (10800-586- 4872
Email a question to [email protected]
 
The more you know about asthma, the better prepared you are to support your child’s asthma management. This free online course can help you to understand asthma, identify symptoms, recognize triggers and respond to an asthma emergency.
 
 
Lungtropolis ®
 
Visit this website with your child to find action-packed games that help kids learn how to manage and control their asthma, plus advice for parents like you.
 
 
Lung Connection Community
 
Share experiences and learn from friends free in this free online forum. Our Living with Asthma virtual support group can help build your support network and give you a place to chat with peers about how 
asthma affects you and your family.
 
Visit http://bit.ly/helplinechat to chat online
.

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/adhd

Autism Spectrum Disorder

http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/index.html

The Child Health and Disability Prevention (CHDP) program helps to prevent and identify health problems by providing periodic well-child exams to children who qualify and by linking them to ongoing healthcare coverage so they will grow up healthy.  The second part of the CHDP program requires all children entering first grade to have a physical exam. This assessment must be done within 18 months prior to entry into the first grade or within 90 days after admission.  

CHDP Website

http://www.sandiegocounty.gov/content/sdc/hhsa/programs/phs/child_health_disability_prevention_program.html

Covered California Insurance Website

http://www.coveredca.com/

Color vision screening is mandated for male students in first grade. 
 

A communicable disease is an infectious disease that can be transferred/transmitted from an infected person to another individual. Organisms like bacteria, viruses, and parasites cause infectious diseases. Illness caused by an infectious disease is a common occurrence in students.

Most cases of illness are isolated to one student, but occasionally an outbreak of a particular disease can occur in a school.  The law requires school personnel to report to the local public health agency a list of specific reportable disease or conditions.  Please notify the school as soon as your student has been diagnosed or is suspected to have a communicable disease. Examples include Pink eye, Flu, Impetigo, Chicken pox, Scabies, MRSA infection and Hand, Foot and Mouth disease.

It is not always easy to know when to send your child to school, and when to leave your child home. These Guidelines are based on public health science. If you have any questions about them, please contact the school nurse.

A communicable disease is an infectious disease that can be transferred/transmitted from an infected person to another individual. Organisms like bacteria, viruses, and parasites cause infectious diseases. Illness caused by an infectious disease is a common occurrence in students.
Most cases of illness are isolated to one student, but occasionally an outbreak of a particular disease can occur in a school.  The law requires school personnel to report to the local public health agency a list of specific reportable disease or conditions.  Please notify the school as soon as your student has been diagnosed or is suspected to have a communicable disease.

Please do not send a child with the following symptoms to school:

▪ Fever of 100.3°F or more, taken orally (or 101°F taken by ear, rectally or temporal scan). For infants under age 1 year, the upper limit for temperature is 100 degrees (rectally, by ear or by temporal artery), not 101 degrees. Note that ear temperatures are often not accurate and temperature should be taken using another route, if the temperature is high.

▪ Cough and difficulty breathing – do not send to school if child has labored breathing (heaving of chest muscles with each breath), rapid breathing at rest, blue color to skin, or wheezing (if never previously evaluated and treated), and see a doctor. Keep home if your child has pertussis (whooping cough) until 5 days of antibiotics have been received, or tuberculosis (until treated).

▪ Rash that is undiagnosed, especially when there is a fever and behavioral change.

▪ Chicken pox - keep home until all blisters are scabbed over and there are no signs of illness.

▪ Diarrhea - keep home if the student wears diapers, if there is blood or mucous in the stool (unless from medication or hard stool), if the stools are all black or very pale, or if the stools are very watery and are increasing in frequency. See a doctor immediately if diarrhea is accompanied by: no urine output for 8 hours; jaundiced skin; or child looks/acts very ill.

▪ Vomiting more than once a day or accompanied by fever, rash or general weakness.

▪ Impetigo - Keep the child home for 24 hours after starting an antibiotic treatment.

▪ Ringworm (a contagious skin fungus infection). Keep home until treatment is started. If it is in an exposed area, upon return, cover visible area with dressing and/or clothing. Ringworm on the scalp requires an oral medication, but child may return to school if covered with appropriate cream or covered.

▪ Cold sores - Cold sores can be passed from one person to another, but only through direct contact. Children who drool or place toys in their mouths when they have cold sores should stay home; other children may come to school.

Unless otherwise indicated, students with above symptoms need to be absent for at least 24 hours prior to returning to school.

Antibiotics

Children who are placed on antibiotics for impetigo, strep throat, and several other bacterial infections, should be on them for a FULL 24 hours (longer for Pertussis/Whooping Cough) before returning to school to prevent the spread of those infections. If you are uncertain, ask your school nurse.

If at any time you are unsure if your child's illness is contagious, you may want to call your child's primary care provider. If you have further questions, please contact your school site to speak to the school nurse. Thank you for your continued support of the families in our school community.

Please keep the office at your child’s school informed of your current contact numbers. It is very important to be able to reach you when your child is sick at school and needs to go home or when your child needs medical attention.

 

Please call the JDUSD Attendance Line at (619) 669-2784 and state reason for your student’s absence.

Covered California Insurance Website

http://www.coveredca.com/

Coverage for undocumented children

Beginning in May 2016, all children, regardless of immigration status, qualify for Medi-Cal coverage Medi-Cal is free or low-cost health coverage for children and families with limited incomes. Thanks to recent actions, all children and youth younger than 19 whose families meet the income guidelines will soon qualify for the full scope of benefits under Medi-Cal. For example, all children in a family of four that has a monthly income of $5,375 will qualify for coverage.

State law requires that all students under age 18 years, pre-kindergarten through grade 12, be immunized against certain diseases unless they are exempt for medical reasons. At the time of registration, the school is required to have proof that your child has received all currently due immunizations. Your child may be excluded from attending school if these requirements are not met.

Elimination of Personal Belief Exemption  effective January 1, 2016

Starting January 1, 2016 Senate Bill (SB) 277 changes immunization requirements for children entering child care or school. 

  • Parents or guardians of students in any school or child-care facility, whether public or private, will no longer be allowed to submit a personal beliefs exemption to a currently-required vaccine.
  • The immunization requirements do not prohibit pupils from accessing special education and related services required by their individualized education programs.
 

The district participates in the San Diego Regional Immunization Registry (SDIR), a countywide computer system that keeps track of immunizations (shots).

Children entering kindergarten must have:

  • 5 DTaP (4 doses meet requirement if at least one was given on or after the 4th birthday);
  • 4 Polio (3 doses meet requirement if at least one was given on or after the 4th birthday);
  • 3 Hep B;
  • 2 MMR (first dose on or after 1st birthday);
  • 2 Varicella
 

Children entering 7th grade must have:

  • 4 DTaP (1 more required after the child's 7th birthday);
  • 4 Polio (3 doses meet requirement if at least one was given on or after the 2nd birthday);
  • 2 MMR (1st dose on or after 1st birthday);
  • 2 Varicella 
  • Tdap
 

Parent’s Guide to immunizations required for school entry

Lice/Pediculosis

Treatment for head lice is recommended for students with an active infestation and/or the presence of nits or eggs. All household members and other close contacts should be checked; those persons with evidence of an active infestation should be treated. Consider treatment for persons who share the same bed with actively-infested individuals. All infested persons (household members and close contacts) and their bedmates should be treated at the same time.

Each over-the-counter product approved by the FDA for the treatment of head lice contains one of the following active ingredients:

Pyrethrins combined with piperonyl butoxide;
Brand name products: A–200*, Pronto*, R&C*, Rid*, Triple X*, Licide*

Permethrin lotion, 1%;
Brand name product: Nix*.

Contact your health care provider for prescription medications.

For more information

http://www.cdc.gov/parasites/lice/head/treatment.html

Measles starts with fever, runny nose, cough, red eyes, and sore throat. It’s followed by a rash that spreads over the body. Measles virus is highly contagious virus and spreads through the air through coughing and sneezing.

The California Education Code states that any student who is required to take medication prescribed by a physician during the regular school day, may be assisted by the school nurse or other designated school personnel if the district receives: (1.) a written statement from the physician detailing the method, amount and time schedules that the medication is to be taken and (2.) a written statement from the student’s parent/guardian authorizing the school district to administer the medication. (E.C. 49422, 49423)

Prescription medications must be in the original pharmacy container with the original prescription label adhered to the container. *Medications will NOT be accepted in unlabeled containers, in baggies, or transferred from another container. The Authorization to Administer Medication(s) form must be renewed annually at the beginning of every school year. Medications should be brought to school by the parent/guardian or other authorized adult. Medication should not be sent to school with the student. Contact the school nurse if you have questions.

Effective January 1, 2007, an Oral Health Assessment (dental examination) by a licensed California dental health professional is required for children entering public school for the first time. The Oral Health Assessment must be completed and re-turned to the school by May 31 of that first school year. Assessments done 12 months prior to school entry also meet this requirement.

Oral Health Assessment forms  English  Spanish

Denti-Cal Provider List pdf

Big Smiles Dental Program

Big Smiles creates access to a dental home for under-served children whose families face barriers in obtaining oral health care. This includes preventing dental issues as well as fixing them so that a child’s smile can be restored and pain diminished so they are better prepared to learn at school. The school-based dental services are provided in a safe and compassionate manner with the same standard of care patients receive in a traditional office setting.

The Big Smiles Dental Program visits our district two times per year. Please call the district nurse for clinic dates.

California Health Laws requires that students entering the 7th grade must have a Tetanus, Diphtheria, Pertussis (Tdap) booster prior to entering the 7th grade. This school immunization law affects all students in public and private schools. Parents must show their child's Immunization Record as proof of immunization. Transfer students from out-of-state entering any grade level (K-12) in California may need to meet additional school immunization requirements.

Elimination of Personal Belief Exemption  effective January 1, 2016

Starting January 1, 2016 Senate Bill (SB) 277 changes immunization requirements for children entering child care or school. 

  • Parents or guardians of students in any school or child-care facility, whether public or private, will no longer be allowed to submit a personal beliefs exemption to a currently-required vaccine.
  • The immunization requirements do not prohibit pupils from accessing special education and related services required by their individualized education programs.

Hearing and vision screenings will be provided as required by state law. New students and students referred by parents or school personnel will also be screened.

• Hearing screening for all students in grades K, 2, 5, 8

Students receive hearing screenings from a credentialed school audiometrist during the kindergarten year or upon first enrollment in an elementary school, and in grades 2, 5, and 8. Students who do not pass their first screening will be given a threshold test no less than two weeks after the screening exam. Referrals will be made after this.

• Vision screening for all students in grades K, 3, 6, 8

Vision screenings are conducted using a PediaVision® SPOT vision screener. The SPOT is a child friendly, fast and highly accurate tool that measures size, shape and contours of the eye. It utilizes an infrared camera that combines auto-refraction and video-retinoscopy.

From a distance of 3 feet, the camera is used to take a digital photograph. The information acquired is used to automatically assess a child’s vision in as little as five seconds. These measurements detect common vision problems that affect children such as Myopia (near sightedness,) Hyperopia (far sightedness), Astigmatism (blurry vision), Amblyopia (lazy eye) and Strabismus (misalignment). The PediaVision® SPOT vision screener is on loan to the district through the generosity of the El Cajon Lions Club. A summary report of your child’s individual screening results will be provided to you by the school. Assistance with comprehensive vision exam/glasses is available for income qualifying families.