Policies
School Nurse Service Regulations and Information
NOTE: Certain sections of this document refer to attached forms/documents; these are in fact not attached but can be accessed directly within the SNapp website once you have registered as a user. If you have not yet registered, click here; if you have already registered click here.
Student Care
Sunny View School following a methodology of good practices, aspires to preserve the safety of the student body by applying maximum safety regulations and adopting reasonable means of reducing risks of injury or accidents.
Care and attention are concepts that go above and beyond attending to an occasional emergency or administering a one-time or continuous treatment. They are concepts that refer to protecting our students and searching for ways of possible early detection of heath problems, promoting healthy habits, providing students with certain criteria related to their health, and learning self-management.
Because care and attention are so important to us at Sunny View School, we have added the new post of SCHOOL NURSE. This important position will add to the strong foundation of our school. We have contracted this service from Educación para la Salud s.l. (SCHOOLNURSES®). Besides specialization, quality, and independence, this service provides a new type of support in all aspects of the school community’s well-being.
The purpose of the Care and Attention Policy is to establish a clear plan of action and a framework of responsibilities and legal duties related to the well-being of each student. We aspire to provide a reliable and effective answer to any problem that arises related to the students’ well-being and to give support to each student and his or her family.
At the beginning of each school year, or at some point during the year, if required, the school nurse will be able to carry out assessments, revisions and other types of school health examinations in a safe and confidential way. The gathered data will be assessed and safely archived, according to the current standards, along with records of medical history, allergies, intolerances, vital signs, weight, height, dental state, sight, hearing, psychomotor development, etc. For this to take place, it is necessary for families to properly complete and sign the attached documents and bring them to school. The documents are as follows:
Authorization for Assessments and Data Protection
Authorization for the Administration of Over-The-Counter or Prescription Drugs
Health Data Form/Sheet
In case of emergency at school, the nurse is the competent, public authority in health matters and the person who determines the gravity or the protocol to follow, but under no circumstances can assume the role of doctor or paediatrician.
The nurse’s office or the school itself is not a care service for sick children, therefore we ask:
For the sake of the other children please DO NOT send your child to school if you suspect that he or she is ill. If your child is feverish or showing symptoms of an illness or any other infectious ailment, he or she should first visit his or her health center or pediatrician so that a doctor can indicate whether or not the child can attend school and, if necessary, the appropriate treatment.
Always notify the nurse service if your child is following some type of treatment or if an antipyretic (fever reducer) or other type of medication has been administered, the dosage (treatment plan for administering a drug over a period of time) and the time of each dose (to avoid administration of other previously authorized medications), in case the nurse can’t get in contact with you. Administering medication at home is recommended as much as possible.
REQUIREMENTS FOR ADMINISTRATION OF MEDICATION IN SCHOOL
Copy of the prescription from Social Security or for cases in which the prescription comes from a private doctor, the original or photocopy of the prescription. In either case, the student’s name, dosage and instructions, and start and end dates for the treatment should appear clearly on the prescription. Otherwise, it should be clearly detailed in the Authorization for administration of medications.
Authorization for Administration of Medication (attached below).
No medication will be administered without complying with the two previous requirements.
Medication bought by parents, without a written, direct prescription from a doctor will NOT be given to students. The school or nurse will not be liable for any adverse reactions from taking uncontrolled medication.
Medication needs to come in its original packaging along with the manufacturer’s information pamphlet. The student’s first name, surname, and class should be clearly marked. The prescription with the corresponding dosage and duration of treatment should also be included.During treatment, the medication will remain in the nurse’s office at school, and once it has finished, the medication will be discarded or returned to the family.
The nurse will reconstitute any medication if necessary.
Medication that doesn’t come in its original packaging will not be administered. Single, loose pills or any medication that is stored in a package that differs from the original will not be administered. If a medication needs to be refrigerated, it will be stored in the refrigerator set up in the nurse’s office.
At no time will the student carry the medication on his/her person.
Parents/legal guardians will personally hand medication to the tutor or nurse.
If students leave the school premises and go by bus or other transport to another location, the person in charge will carry the medication (usually the tutor).
In case the Authorization for the Administration of Medication has not been previously turned in, it should be properly filled out and sent before 10:00 a.m. via e-mail, dropped off in the nurse’s mailbox, or handed in to the nurse or the student’s tutor in person.
RULES FOR ADMINISTERING PRESCRIPTION MEDICATION AND ACCIDENT PROTOCOL
The following rules are necessary to guarantee the safety of your children and to guarantee that prescribed treatments are carried out with professionalism, avoiding any errors related to the medication and avoiding absences from school.
a) Chronic illnesses are those that require or that can require treatment during the school day: diabetes, asthma, epilepsy, allergies, etc. Parents should set up an interview with the nurse and provide a medical report.
b) Acute illnesses are those that require administration of antibiotics, anti-inflammatories, inhalers, or any other prescription medication during a short time. It’s obligatory that parents or a responsible adult bring the following to the school nurse in person or to the tutor in person or via school agenda:
- Original prescription or copy
- Parent authorization form with the student’s full name, class, dose, times, and treatment duration
- Medication in original package
c) Common illnesses
- In case of vomiting, diarrhea, fever, signs of cold or fever, earaches, or stomach aches, the nurse will perform an initial assessment. If a solution cannot be found, the parents will be contacted to come pick up their child and, if necessary, the nurse will recommend that the parents make an appointment at their medical centre or doctor’s office.
- In case of headaches, menstrual cramps, or other small physical discomforts, the student can receive medication from the nurse, if he/she has previous authorization, and return to class. The student’s evolution will be observed and if there is no improvement, the parents will be contacted to come and pick up the student. Parents will be contacted previously in the case of small children, and once again if they need to come pick up their child.
d) Minor accidents: minor accidents such as scratches, blisters, abrasions, and bumps will be attended to at the nurse’s office without any process involved. However, it is important to make sure the nurse knows if a student is allergic to any antiseptic or medication at the beginning of the school year.
e) Moderate accidents: if medical attention is required but can be delayed (ex: blows, sprains that require X- rays, or wounds that require stitches), care will first be given at the nurse’s office, after which the parents will be notified so that they can take the student to the health centre/hospital of their choice or to the hospital(s) in the school’s insurance network. In case parents/guardians can’t be located, the ambulance will have to be called in order to transport the student to a hospital in the school’s insurance network.
f) Serious accidents: in the face of a vital emergency that requires immediate medical attention (ex: cardiac arrest, compound fracture, severe asthma attack, or serious allergic reaction) the following steps will be taken (simultaneously, when possible, and following the order below): Emergency services will be contacted (the CICU – Centro de Información y Coordinación de Urgencias) and/or an ambulance will be called to the school. First aid will be performed, and prescribed medication will be administered (provided that the parent/guardian authorization has been filled out, signed, and turned in).
Parents/guardians will be contacted to inform them of what took place and the hospital where their child will be taken so that they can arrive as quickly as possible. A staff member or the nurse himself/herself will accompany the student every step of the way and will stay with him/her until the parents arrive.
SCHOOL NURSE SERVICE FUNCTIONS
General functions:
Attend to any student that suffers an accident or discomfort, give emotional support, assess and give a nurse diagnosis, and provide care, elaborating professional clinical judgement, planning interventions, and autonomously resolving the identified problem and/or referring the student to another professional.
Refer the students to a clinic or hospital in case of emergency or grave illness, contacting the parents/guardians beforehand.
Administer pain relivers and other medicine, only if authorized by parents/legal guardians and/or prescribed by a physician. For this to take place, we ask that parents sign the “Authorization for the Administration of Medication”. Whenever possible the nurse will contact that parents via telephone before administering.
The only person authorized to administer medication is the nurse, however, if someone else must act based on a need for assistance, and the nurse is not present, there will be no type of responsibility (according to Articles 20 and 195 of the Penal Code).
Administer chronic treatments, monitoring or care after having met previously with the mother/father/legal guardian to discuss the individual protocol for the minor in question. For the administration of medication, the nurse will go directly to classes in preschool and 1st, 2nd, and 3rd grades. The rest of the students should go directly to the nurse’s office to take any required medication. This should be done, if possible, during break times to avoid missing class and unnecessary interruptions.
Meet with the parents to exchange information and clear up any doubts about school health education as well as establish and define specific protocols for children who require it. In case of rescue medication, such as adrenaline (epinephrine) for allergies, Glucagón® for diabetes, Stesolid® for epilepsy, or bronchodilators (inhalers) for bronchial spasms or asthma, it is of the upmost importance that that nurse has a copy of the medical report for the child in question with the specific protocol to follow and the prescribed medicine to take during an emergency, all of which will be safeguarded by the nurse. The nurse will also make sure that the teachers and other staff who have regular interaction with children who might require particular medical intervention are kept up to date with the correct protocols and know how to act in case of an emergency.
Health education. The nurse will give lectures directed towards each educational stage and adapted to the different age groups. Besides the previous points, another goal is to cultivate the general knowledge of the entire school community in order to learn how to act in certain personal emergency situations or in emergency situations involving others.
Help out with recess and lunch duties and sports activities, as well as accompanying students on field trips, according to the criteria of the school’s Directive team.
Collaborate on Health Education Programs and vaccine and prevention campaigns, launched by centres in the local area.
Foment and provide contents for the parent’s school and foster proactive and healthy communication to better the child’s well-being.
Maintain an updated Health Data Sheet for each student, register daily activity, send intervention reports, and keep a clean, organized, and well-equipped nurse’s office.
Nurse’s Office Hours: Monday – Friday from 10:30 to 14:30
