Illness and Your Child: a Message From Nurse Doherty

We are seeing another spike in illnesses at the Greenwood School. Specifically, gastrointestinal illnesses (aka "the belly bug") and febrile cold symptoms. In an effort to try to reduce the spread of illness, if your child is sick, please keep him/her at home. Here are some guidelines for deciding if your child should attend school:

  1. The state requires that any child with a strep infection complete a full 24 hours of antibiotics before returning to school.
  2. The state also recommends children remain free of a temperature greater than 100.4 degrees for 24 hours before returning to school.
  3. Children must not have any episodes of vomiting or diarrhea for 24 hours before returning to school.
  4. All children with moderate to severe cold symptoms (including green nasal discharge, chronic cough, or flu-like symptoms) should remain at home. These illnesses are most often caused by a virus and are easily spread to others. Because most young children are unable to blow their noses properly, dispose of used tissues, and cover their mouths consistently when they cough/sneeze, they should stay home until their symptoms abate.
  5. Children with an unidentified rash that is spreading and/or worsening should not come to school until it has been diagnosed. Children with a rash (such as poison ivy) may come to school but the rash should be covered if possible.

Please consider the health of all the students and staff when determining if your child needs to stay home. It is our aim to keep everyone healthy.