Health Suite

HEALTH SUITE

The Health Suite is located in the administrative hall near the Main Office. It is open from 7:10 a.m. to 2:35 p.m. Students report here for vision screenings, first aid, illness while at school, health counseling, and to take authorized medication.  

Students who request to see the nurse or are sent home frequently may be required to obtain a physician’s note.

The Owen J. Roberts School District recognizes that parents have the primary responsibility for the health of their children.  Although the District strongly recommends that medication be given in the home, it realizes that the health of some children requires that they receive medication while in school.  Parents should confer with the child's physician to arrange medication time intervals to avoid the administration of medication during school hours.  When medication absolutely must be given during school hours, the following procedures must be followed:

Prescription and Non-prescription Medications:

Medications to be given during school hours must be brought by the parent or guardian directly to the school nurse, or, in her absence, to the school principal (or their designee).  The medication, accompanied by a written order from the prescribing physician and a note from the parent or guardian giving permission to administer, must be sent to school in the original pharmaceutically dispensed and properly labeled container.  All medications will be kept in a locked container in the nurse’s office.  Students will be responsible for reporting to the nurse’s office at the time the medication is to be given.  Procedures for dispensing medications on field trips and the use of inhalers in school are available in the nurse’s office.

The above information is an excerpt from District Policy 210 concerning the administration of medication.  A complete copy is available at the Administration Building or online at the link above.

Use of Opioid Antagonists

Across the country and in Pennsylvania, the rate of deadly heroin and prescription opioid overdoses is unprecedented. As a means of enhancing the health and safety of its students, staff, and visitors, and in accordance with Pennsylvania General Assembly Act 139, the Owen J. Roberts High School will maintain a supply of an opioid antagonist, specifically naloxone, for emergency use in individuals believed to be experiencing an opioid overdose.  The school nurse, athletic trainers, and school resource officers have been trained in the administration of naloxone.

An “opioid” refers to an illegal drug, such as heroin, or prescription medications used to treat pain, such as morphine, codeine, methadone, oxycodone, hydrocodone, fentanyl, and buprenorphine.  An individual with an opioid overdose could present with the following symptoms: he/she may become unconscious or unresponsive; he/she may not be breathing or have slow, gurgling, or shallow breaths; he/she may have blue lips or nail beds, with pinpoint pupils and clammy skin; or the individual may be in cardiac arrest and require CPR.

Naloxone is a medication that can reverse an overdose caused by an opioid drug.  Naloxone, given by nasal spray or injection, displaces opiates from receptor sites in the brain and reverses the respiratory depression that is the cause of overdose deaths.

An individual’s condition may be deemed a drug overdose if a prudent person, having an average knowledge of medicine and health, would reasonably believe that the condition is in fact a drug overdose and requires immediate medical attention. High school students, staff, or visitors who suspect that an individual is experiencing a drug overdose should report their concerns to the school nurse and an administrator immediately.

People who report a suspected overdose using their real name and who remain with the overdosing person until EMS or law enforcement arrive, and the person whose overdose has been reported, will be protected from criminal prosecution.  In addition, people who report overdoses or administer naloxone in overdose emergencies will be protected from civil liability. 

Yearly State-Mandated Health Screenings

The state mandates that every student undergo height, weight, and vision screenings every year.   Students in eleventh grade also have a hearing test. The results of the screenings are available on Skyward.  

The state also requires that all students in 12th grade receive a 2nd Meningococcal vaccine (MCV4) by the 5th day of the start of the school year, or they will be excluded until an updated immunization record is received by the nurse. 

State-Mandated Physicals in Eleventh Grade

All eleventh grade students are required to have a physical exam. Sports physicals and physicals for drivers’ permits meet the requirement. Physicals given up to one year prior to the school year will be accepted.  If you do not have access to a health care provider, the district health care provider performs physicals for eleventh graders at the high school in the spring, at no cost.

Use of Epinephrine Auto-injector

School nurses are permitted, by Pennsylvania law, to use emergency epinephrine if a student shows symptoms of anaphylaxis, a rapid, severe, life-threatening allergic reaction.  The Pennsylvania Public School Code, Section 1414.2(g) allows parents/guardians to request an exemption to the administration of an epinephrine auto-injector for their student.   In order to request this exemption, contact the school nurse to make an appointment to discuss this decision, review and sign the opt-out form.

Self carry and Self administer inhalers/ auto-inject epinephrine

The state allows students to self carry and self administer an inhaler or auto-inject epinephrine with a note from the MD stating the student may self carry and self administer, and have a parent signature.  The note must be updated with each new school year, and be kept on file in the nurse's office.  Please find attached form here or can be found in the OJR website--departments--student services--health forms.