Healthy Children Learn Better

Cassingham

Complex

Clinic

Sara Prater, BSN, RN, CPN

Cassingham Elementary

Chandler Hurst, BSN, RN, LSN

Bexley Middle School

Amy Poling, MSN Ed., RN, LSN

Bexley High School

Email: CSNurses@bexley.us

Phone: (614) 237-4309 ext 3146 or 3147

Fax: (614) 338-2090

Welcome to OUR Health and wellness resource For:

Cassingham Elementary

Bexley Middle school

Bexley High School

*The clinic provides screenings, first aid, and medical care to students during school days only. Clinic nurses cannot diagnose. A visit to the health clinic is not intended to replace the services of a primary physician*

Does your child have a health concern we should be aware of?

Please contact us CSNurses@bexley.us. It is imperative that we have this information prior to the start of school year. This allows us to prepare what is needed to keep your child healthy and safe at school.

Will your child need medications at school?

Scheduled daily medications or as-needed prescriptions? As well as any non-prescription as-needed medications that we can give here at school (Tylenol, Advil, Benadryl, Zyrtec, Claritin)? Please fill out the appropriate form and sign where it is indicated (prescription medications will need a Physician signature):

Cassingham Complex: 7:45-8:35 a.m.

FREE BREAKFAST!

Bexley Schools to Offer Universal Free Breakfast Beginning January 3, 2023

Made possible by by the Ohio Department of Education and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).

CASSINGHAM

School Immunization Requirements 2023

(Compliance must be met within the first 2 weeks of the school year)

Vision and Hearing Screenings

Each Kindergarten, 1st grade, 3rd grade, and 5th grade student will have their vision and hearing tested throughout the school year. You will only be notified if we have identified something that will need a follow-up from a physician. We always re-test students when they have difficulty hearing prior to making a referral. In other words, no news is good news!

Follow these steps to ensure they have an awesome day:

Set an appropriate bedtime each night and stick to it!
Make sure your child eats breakfast before school. Anything is better than nothing. Remember, they may not have eaten for about 10 hours and the morning is time to re-fuel their bodies. Food is fuel and the body/brain can't do it's job properly without it!
Hydrate. Hydrate. Hydrate. Have your child bring a water bottle everyday.
Give all required morning medications at home: ADHD medication, allergy medication, asthma medication, etc.
Dress them for the weather and then some. Layers make most sense for students. Avoid open toed shoes, especially flip flops.
Send extra clothes every day for students who tend to have bathroom accidents.

Kindergarten Readiness

Click here to read what the American Academy of Pediatrics has to say about kindergarten readiness.

And click here for more information on preparing your child for a healthy school year.

GENERAL REMINDER

It is your child's "job" to be a student, when they aren't feeling well it can certainly interfere with their learning. Click here to know when to keep your child home from school.

Communicable Diseases

Examples include but are not limited to: COVID-19, Strep Throat, Mononucleosis, Flu, and Conjunctivitis

CASSINGHAM

If there is a communicable disease reported in your child's classroom:

you CAN expect an Email/Letter to be sent home from your child's teacher on behalf of the Cassingham Complex Nursing team.

MIDDLE SCHOOL & HIGH SCHOOL

If there is a communicable disease reported in your child's grade level:

you cAN expect an Email alert to be sent from their respective school

from a <No-Reply> on behalf of the Cassingham Complex Nursing team.

Learn the difference between COVID-19, flu, and a cold.

The pandemic may seem like it is over, but the COVID-19 virus is still very much incorporated in our day-to-day. Our intention is to keep students IN SCHOOL whenever possible! If your child is showing symptoms of COVID-19, please call their healthcare provider and have them tested right away. The newest variants sometimes don't reveal themselves on the home tests right away. It is possible you may have to test your child more than once. The CDC is suggesting it may take up to 3 tests to detect the virus.

Our policy is a 5-day isolation from the start of symptoms or an asymptomatic positive test (Day 0). Earliest return to school/normal activity is on Day 6, as long as symptoms are improving and without a fever for 24 hours (without fever-reducing medication). Wearing a mask through Day 10.

Close contacts are encouraged to wear a mask for 10 days from their last exposure and test for COVID-19 if any symptoms arise.

COVID-19 & Attendance

While we request you still report positive cases to the clinic/attendance, moving forward you do not have to speak with a nurse for a return date if your child tests positive for COVID-19.

As a reminder, our protocol is in accordance with the CDC and Ohio Department of Health. If your child tests positive for COVID-19 the guidance is to isolate for 5 days from the start of symptoms or asymptomatic positive test date (Day 0). Earliest return to school/normal activity on Day 6 and wearing a mask through days 6-10.

We are trusting parents/guardians to count out these dates and accurately report their child's return date.

Please reach out if you have any questions regarding this new process csnurses@bexley.us

Find up to date information regarding COVID-19 vaccines by clicking the links below:

COVID19 Vaccine Information

COVID19 Vaccine Safety

Do you think you or your child may need a COVID-19 test? Call your physician first!

We do have rapid result COVID-19 testing kits available for free.

Please contact us either by phone or email and we can provide test(s): CSNurses@bexley.us

Get your flu shot!

Influenza (flu) is a respiratory virus that can cause: fever, cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, body aches, headache, chills, fatigue, sometimes diarrhea and vomiting. It's important to note that not everyone with flu will have a fever.

The best way to prevent the flu is to get a flu shot. Everyone 6 months of age and older should get a flu shot every year.

Vaccination is particularly important for people who are at high risk of serious complications from influenza.

Find out where vaccines are available near you!

REspiratory Synctial virus (rsv)

Almost all children get RSV at least once before they are 2 years old. For most healthy children, RSV is like a cold. But, some children get very sick with RSV.

What is RSV?

What does Respiratory Distress look like?

Can adults get RSV?

*Prevent the spread of RSV by covering coughs and sneezes, regularly washing hands, and taking the same precautions that prevent cold and flu-like symptoms.*

Seek immediate medical attention or go to the nearest emergency department if you or anyone is at risk of severe RSV infection has:

- Difficulty breathing
- High fever
- Bluish color to the skin, particularly on the nail beds or the mouth/lips.
- Infants (under two months) with fever above 100.4f

IN OTHER NEWS

Fentanyl

What is it?

A powerful synthetic opioid analgesic (pain reliever) that is similar to morphine but is 50 to 100 times more potent. Just two milligrams of fentanyl, which is equal to 10-15 grains of table salt, is considered a lethal dose.

What is happening?

There is a trend that appears to be a new method used by drug cartels to sell highly addictive and potentially deadly fentanyl made to look like candy to children and young people. It is being seized in multiple forms, including pills, powder, and blocks that resembles sidewalk chalk. Despite claims that certain colors may be more potent than others, there is no indication through DEA’s laboratory testing that this is the case. Every color, shape, and size of fentanyl should be considered extremely dangerous.

Learn more about this.

Human Trafficking

Human trafficking is a form of modern-day slavery and is defined by the U.S. Department of State as “the act of recruiting, harboring, transporting, providing, or obtaining a person for compelled labor or commercial sex acts through the use of force, fraud, or coercion.

As an educator or parent, you can prepare to start the conversation by making sure your own understanding of human trafficking is accurate and complete.