To School or Not to School?

It's never a good day when one of your children is ill. Parents are right to be worried and to pay attention to what might be ailing their child. When that child is of school age and parents are depending on the time spent at school as a release for them to pursue their own workday, an unplanned clash occurs that requires a cool head and careful assessment so that the decisions made are in the best interests of the one who is sick - not subordinated to the day's (now potentially disrupted) schedule. Fortunately for all, the majority of illnesses that afflict children are short in duration and rarely have lasting consequences.

There are a few principles that, if observed, will allow you as a parent to be confident in the choices that you make and will allow you enjoy guilt free sleep once the ordeal has passed:

1. First and foremost, any sickness in your child trumps all other activities that are planned for a particular day and require that you as a parent stop what you may be doing to assess the situation.
2. Make the decision that is the best for your child and that will have the best effect on his or her recovery.
3. Keep in mind that your decisions affect children's educational experience and that you want to manage the current problem in a way that will prevent them from missing out on important learning activities.
4. Consider your responsibility to the other children in class, as well as the teachers and other adults who will be exposed to whatever you send your child to school with.
5. Recognize that if your child has a chronic illness such as asthma you have an obligation to educate yourself about the signs and symptoms of an impending attack and take appropriate steps to keep the situation from getting worse.

Here are some straightforward observations that parents can make to help decide they should keep a child home:

• An oral temperature is over 100 degrees. If you don't have a thermometer, run out and get one and keep it where it can be easily found next time.
• Their symptoms are serious enough to keep them from learning (too tired from lack of sleep, body aches, chills).
• A cough makes breathing difficult or causes chest pain.
• Frequent episodes of diarrhea or vomiting.
• An undiagnosed rash or open sores with drainage.
• Headache severe enough to interfere with learning.
• Abdominal pain accompanied by elevated temperature, vomiting or diarrhea.
• A sore throat severe enough to interfere with swallowing or accompanied with a fever or rash.
• Pinkeye.
• Any bacterial infection requiring antibiotics, such as a strep throat, bronchitis or pneumonia, until the child has been on antibiotics for at least 24hours.

In the event that you choose to keep your child at home, use only over-the-counter medications to treat symptoms. Do not give your child unused antibiotics or prescription medications intended for someone else. Call your family doctor if you have any concerns about the seriousness of an illness and whether or not a quick visit would be a good idea.

"Your Health" provides easy-to-understand information about common health conditions.