Student Health

SICKNESS

The school does not have adequate facilities for children who take ill during the day.  The school must have current information so that parents can be contacted quickly and efficiently.  Children who are just feeling ‘under the weather’ will be sent back to class until you are able to collect them.

HEAD LICE

From time to time every school has a problem with Head Lice.  The policy of the school is that a child with head lice will be excluded from school until treatment has commenced.  Family contacts will not be excluded, though it would be advisable for all to have the treatment as they will probably be infected.
Head lice can only be caught by head to head contact.  Head lice do not jump, fly or swim.  Any lice found on chairs, clothing or bedding are usually injured or dying and would be incapable of climbing onto another host.  Any hair longer than shoulder length must be tied up.

COMMUNICABLE DISEASES

Sometimes it is better for sick children to be kept at home. Specifically the Victorian State Government mandates school exclusion periods and procedures for a range of communicable diseases. More information can be found by following the link below:

Ambulance
​As we do not have access to trained medical expertise on-site, in the event of a serious accident where parents cannot be contacted, an ambulance will be called at parent’s expense.

MEDICAL / HEALTH CONDITIONS

Please ensure that these are listed on your Childs Medical Information form and that this information is kept up to date.  Some conditions such as asthma, diabetes, epilepsy or allergies require a detailed health management plan which will be developed in consultation with parents and your doctor.  We require information in regard to developmental concerns, communication skills, gross or fine motor deficiencies or lack of socially acceptable behaviour.  This may assist us in accessing resources to assist your child.

MEDICINES

If your son or daughter requires medicine during the day, even over a short period of time, it should be given to the front office. Please download and fill in the Medication Request form. All medications that are being kept at school or administered during school hours must be taken to the office on the first day of occurrence, and kept there along with a completed copy of the Medication Request form.

Parents are requested to make sure that the emergency address, phone numbers and email addressed registered on their child’s enrolment forms are up to date. This helps avoid unnecessary delays in contacting parents.

FOOD ALLERGIES

Food allergies are extremely common and a growing issue for many schools, as the incidence of food allergies in the general community has increased significantly over the last few years.  It is important for us to have a shared sense of duty of care.
As a school, we can minimize the risk by ensuring that:

• Students do not share food, utensils or food containers
• Students with allergies only eat food that is prepared at their own home
• All food and drinks containers are clearly labelled with student’ names to avoid confusion of ownership.
• Make the teacher aware if you send in any birthday cakes, etc. to share around the class.

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If your child does react, please make sure that we have a copy of their emergency plan.

SCHOOL NURSE AND SCREENING

The school has a nurse who visits the school on a regular basis from the Department of Education and Training.  The main role of the nurse is health promotion and monitoring the health status of children.  Teachers and parents have access to the nurse through a referral process.
If you wish your child to be seen by the nurse at school you must complete a permission form, sign your consent to examination and return the form to school. 
With parent consent a school-based community nurse will carry out a full health appraisal for all Prep students, sometime during the course of each year.  This will include:

• vision screening
• hearing screening
• assessment of co-ordination, posture and gait
• examination of skin and mouth
• measure of height and weight.

If any concerns are identified during the course of the appraisal, parents will be notified.  Appropriate action is then jointly decided and acted upon through arranging a visit to the family doctor, community and child health medical officer, child development team or other appropriate agency.
Parents are encouraged to contact the community nurse at any time during the school year to discuss any concerns regarding their child’s health.

IMMUNISATION

The close contact between children at school puts them at risk of contracting contagious diseases.  On enrolment to the school parents will be asked to show their child’s immunisation record because immunisation provides the best possible protection available against childhood diseases.