Health & Well-being

ELC COVID-19 OPERATING PROTOCOLS

 k - Grade 8 cOVID-19 OPERATING PROTOCOLS

Contagious diseases should be reported immediately to the school nurse or Main Office.   If the nurse is unavailable, please contact the Director of Early Learning or the Head of School, as appropriate. 

As a general rule of thumb, children experiencing obvious symptoms such as fever, vomiting and diarrhea should remain home until they have been symptom free for a period of 24 hours, without the aid of a fever reducer. 

Under the laws of the State of Connecticut, students cannot legally attend school unless Mead has received the required Health Assessment Record (if applicable), completed and signed by the Student’s physician by the beginning of the school year.  These must be kept current and updated as stipulated by the State of Connecticut.  The School has the right to prohibit your child from attending until we receive a current health record.

Most New York State communities provide bus service for eligible children who live within 15 miles of the School. For information regarding the New York services, contact the Board of Education in your city or town. 

All Mead School students, as stated in the contract, currently have permission to ride to and from school-sponsored activities, including athletic events, in the school-owned activity bus driven by a properly licensed driver and in commercial transportation retained by the School for these purposes.

Permission for a student to ride to and from school activities by any other means (including with another parent/guardian) must be formally authorized on the Private Automobile Permission Form or on the form specific to the activity. This permission is only valid for the school year in which it is given.  Note:  a child MAY NOT ride in a private vehicle driven by any staff member.  

A student must also receive permission from the appropriate Mead School event coordinator before traveling in vehicles other than the Mead School activity bus or school-hired vehicle.

Without the appropriately initialed and signed Private Automobile Permission Form, the School must assume that the family wishes their child be restricted to school-owned or school-hired commercial transport in going to and from school-sponsored events.

A child cannot be transported by other parents/guardians in private vehicles unless specific written and signed permission has been granted for a specific trip.

There may be times when you will be using your own vehicle to transport students on field trips or to athletic events, etc.  Remember that under these circumstances, your own automobile insurance is the primary coverage.

Children who are eligible to be on the playground unsupervised, and who have severe bee allergies, must have written permission from their parents/guardians and must have an agreement from the School in order to be allowed on the playground without supervision.

Food allergies are often common in school-age children.  Please notify us immediately if your child has been diagnosed with food or other allergies. 

If a child has any medically documented health-related allergy, you MUST provide the School with a Food Allergy Protocol and the Authorization for the Administration of Medicines by School Personnel Form.  These completed forms are kept on file with the Nurse or in the appropriate center.  Our staff is required to strictly follow the food/other allergy protocol which outlines the plan of action as directed by the child’s physician.  If an EpiPen is administered, 911 will be called immediately. 

If your child has a medically diagnosed health-related allergy you must provide the School with (1) An Allergy Protocol Sheet (2) Authorization Forms for all necessary medications, remedies, supplements and aids and (3) All necessary medication, remedies, supplement and aids in original containers, un-opened and labeled with your child’s name. 

The School is not a peanut or nut-free environment.  However, there are several centers in the Early Learning Pod that can be, depending on the needs of our enrollment. 

When a center is peanut free:

We will not order or serve any food items containing peanuts.  We ask you to refrain from sending in peanuts in any form, as well as any food items containing peanuts.

When a center is nut free:

We will not order or serve any food items containing nuts.  We ask you to refrain from sending in nuts in any form, as well as any food items containing nuts.

When purchasing prepared food be sure to read the label.  Ingredients change all the time and we will not serve items that read "may contain trace amounts of peanuts or nuts" or "produced (or processed) in a facility that also processes peanuts or nuts."  

Head lice is much easier to treat if caught early. Families should check their children for head lice on a regular basis at home. If at any point during the year you discover that your child has a case of head lice, please contact your child's Home Center Director immediately. The student will be permitted to return to school once they are confirmed to be nit-free. If a case of lice is found it is our policy to conduct head checks on all students and staff.

Washing hands is the most effective way to prevent the spread of germs.  Children and teachers are expected to wash hands before and after eating / preparing food, after coming in from outside, after using the toilet / changing diapers or wiping noses (ELC)….and various times in between. 

As a community, we can all help to prevent the spread of germs by washing our hands upon entering the building or your child’s center. There are hand sanitizer stations throughout the K-8 spaces.

For your convenience, we now have dispensers for hand sanitizer located at the entrance to each of our Early Learning classrooms.  This is meant for adult use only. 

As a general rule of thumb, children experiencing obvious symptoms such as fever, vomiting and diarrhea should remain home until they have been symptom free for a period of 24 hours, without the aid of a fever reducer. 

Rashes of unknown origin and symptoms related to conjunctivitis should be seen by a health care practitioner before returning to the program. 

Runny noses and the common cold are not as easily defined.  We do not have a runny nose policy.  When making an assessment, we take into consideration the whole child and look for changes in symptoms as well as behavior. 

Clearance from your child’s health care practitioner may be requested.

Communication is essential as we work together to care for your child’s health and safety.  We like to tell you if we’ve noticed any changes in behavior while your child is in our care, so you are not taken by surprise if you notice similar changes, or if your child falls ill, once you arrive home.  We greatly appreciate receiving the same kind of feedback from you about your child’s time away from the program. 

If for any reason your child has taken any kind of medication at home, be sure to keep us informed so that we can help monitor his/her health. 

If we have any doubts about a child’s medical condition, we will call 911.  After placing the 911 call, we notify the HCD, the Nurse, the Director of Early Learning (if appropriate) and/or Head of School (if available).  The School will then notify the parent/guardian(s) by referring to the Student Contact & Emergency Information Form provided by Parents/Guardians each year.

 We may contact your child’s doctor to inform him/her that the child has gone to Stamford Hospital Emergency Room.  The HCD will take the child and the child’s CONTRACT to Stamford Hospital Emergency Room.  One other person goes along to drive, unless an ambulance or the police have been called.

If the School receives further information from the parent/guardian, the HCD is telephoned at the Emergency Room – 203 276-7777.   A student accident report will be filed.

All Kindergarten through 8th Grade Faculty and Early Learning Center Staff are certified in First Aid and CPR training.

Medication should come to school only when absolutely necessary.  Many medications can be given in time-release form or dosages can be spread out so that medication can be given at home.  Medication must be brought to school by a parent or guardian, not the child.  The medicine authorization form MUST accompany the medication and the medication MUST be in original, pharmacy prepared labeled containers.  All over-the-counter medications must be in new, unopened containers.  The policy applies to both prescription and non-prescription medications. 

These items should come to school only when absolutely necessary. 

Each item (prescription & over-the-counter) requires an Authorization for the Administration of Medication form.  This form must be completed and signed by a parent/ guardian AND your child’s health care practitioner. 

Following are Instructions for the Authorization Form:

• An authorization is required for all medications, remedies, supplements and aid both prescription AND over-the-counter......with the exception of sun block & diaper cream.  Each individual item requires its own form.
• Please refrain from completing any portion of the "Physician's/Dentist's Order."   However, please do complete the section of the form specifically for "Parents/Guardians." 
• When submitting the form to your doctor's office, be sure they take the time to complete the form.  Quite often forms come back missing pertinent information.  Incomplete forms may not be accepted.
• Forms that do not include your physician's license number or office stamp will not be accepted.
• The name of the medication on the form must match the medication provided to the program. 
• Over-the-counter items must be in their original container, unopened and labeled with your child's name.  Prescription medication must be in its original container labeled with your child's name.

Please note: We are not permitted to administer these items, prescription or over-the-counter, without the proper authorization.  

NEBULIZER USAGE: 

Please be aware, a nebulizer cannot be administered without prior written authorization from a physician.  Parents/guardians must supply medication in unopened packets or vials. 

If your child needs to self-administer a medication in school, you and your family physician must fill out the proper form.  This also applies if your child needs medications for overnight trips.  If you have any questions, please call the school office.

Parents/guardians must remove remaining medications at the end of the contract year; otherwise, medication will be destroyed.

If a student’s physical and/or psychological health needs to take precedence over the student’s ability to attend school, the family may request a Medical Leave of Absence. The process begins with a conversation with their child’s Home Center Director and the Head of School.  The parents will need to provide documentation from their child’s physician, outlining the recommended course of action, along with an anticipated timeline for the child’s return to school.  Open communication between the family and the school is especially important, to strike the proper balance of confidentiality and the school’s need to know in order to appropriately respond to and support the needs of the student.

The occasion may occur that a student’s physical and/or psychological health or behavior interferes with the student’s ability to appropriately participate or attend school.  Under such circumstances, The Mead School may request that the student be evaluated, and not return to school until the family provides a letter from his/her physician attesting to the student’s physical/emotional ability to attend school and participate in normal school activities.

The Home Center Director and Head of School must receive a written letter from the physician(s) attesting to the student’s capacity to resume normal school activities, along with any stated restrictions.  Prior to authorizing the student’s return to school, a meeting among the parents, Home Center Director, Head of School and student (if appropriate) will occur to determine the best program for reentry.  Mead School has the right to request a second opinion, or to confirm that necessary treatment is continuing should this be a condition of reentry.