Messages from the School Nurse

Chest Pain in Children While chest pain in an adult can be serious, chest pain in children is usually not. Below are some things to consider if your child reports chest pain: Muscle Overuse. Chest pain can follow sports, lifting or upper body work. This type of muscle soreness often […]

It’s Time to Start Seasonal Allergy Prevention! On the unusual warm days in February, I started to see students reporting seasonal allergy symptoms which include sneezing; stuffy or runny nose; cough and scratchy throat due to postnasal drip; puffy, watery, itchy eyes and itchy mouth or skin. Allergy symptoms are […]

Healthy Sleep Habits: How Many Hours Does Your Child Need? The American Academy of Pediatrics endorses the recommendations developed by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. ? Children 3 to 5 years – 10 to 13 hours of sleep every 24 hours (including naps). ? Children 6 to 12 years […]

When to Keep Your Sick Child Home from School It can be difficult to decide when your child is too sick for school. Common sense, concern for your child’s well-being and the possibility of infecting classmates should all contribute to the decision. If your child is so uncomfortable that they […]

Common Finger Injuries Now that basketball season has arrived, I often see students who report “jammed” fingers. Below are some helpful tips from the American Academy of Pediatrics. Diagnosis Comparing the injured finger to the same uninjured finger on the opposite hand is always helpful. Seek medical care if the […]

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends the Take 3 approach to fight the flu: 1. Get the flu vaccine every year 2. Take preventative actions to stop the spread of germs: -Wash hands often with soap and water or use alcohol-based hand sanitizers when soap and water […]

Vision and hearing screenings will be done at the beginning of October. Connecticut state law requires that all students enrolled in grades K, 1 and 3-5 undergo yearly vision and hearing screenings. The purpose of the program is to identify possible problems as early as possible. Early detection and intervention […]

Poison Ivy Treatment Poison ivy commonly causes skin rashes in children during the spring, summer, and fall seasons. An allergic reaction to the oil in these plants produces the rash. The rash occurs from several hours to three days after contact with the plant and begins in the form of […]

Medication Safety Tips Over 7,000 children visit the emergency department every year for problems related to medication reactions and errors in giving medication. Errors commonly involve pain and fever medications such as acetaminophen and ibuprofen. In order to prevent these errors, safeguards must be put in place. – Keep medication […]

Spring Allergy Season Has Arrived Environmental/seasonal allergies should be suspected with repeated or chronic cold-like symptoms that last more than a week or two, or that develop at about the same time every year. These could include: * Runny nose * Nasal stuffiness * Sneezing * Throat clearing * Nose rubbing * […]