Inova Alexandria Hospital has partnered with ACPS to help keep our schools healthy by providing more than 800 digital thermometers free of charge to school nurses to distribute to our families in need.
School nurses send students home who are ill with a fever with instructions to parents not to have the child return to school until they are fever-free for 24 hours. By having free access to a thermometer at home all families, no matter their background, are able to tell when their child is well enough to return to school.
It can be a challenge to determine whether a child has a fever for families who do not own a thermometer, may not be able to afford one and may not know how to use one. Thanks to this generous donation from Inova, school nurses can now give thermometers to families who need them and demonstrate how to use them. This will enable parents to make accurate fever assessments and keep their child at home until they are fever-free for 24 hours,” said ACPS Health Services Coordinator Dr. Barbara Nowak.
Ann Harbour of Inova and Mt. Vernon School Nurse Lisa Clausen
The thermometers were presented earlier this month to Lisa Clausen, the school nurse at Mount Vernon Community School who was recently recognized with the Flora Krause Casey award for her work in the area of public and community health.
This is a perfect example of how Inova Alexandria Hospital works with partners throughout the city to advance the health of the community we are all privileged to serve,” said Ann Harbour, MPA, Director, East Region Government and Community Relations for Inova Health System.
When to Keep Your Child at Home
With spring just around the corner, we’re looking forward to the end of cold and flu season. Until then, here are a few tips for staying healthy – along with a tremendous thank you to Inova Alexandria Hospital for their generous donation.
For the health of your child, other students and school staff, your child should stay home if they have had any of the following symptoms:
- Fever of 100 or higher in the last 24 hours
- Undiagnosed rash that is accompanied by fever or itching
- Bad cough or difficulty breathing
- Vomiting or diarrhea within the past 24 hours
- Sore throat with fever or swollen glands in the neck
- Symptoms of being sick such as being unusually tired, fussy, pale or difficulty waking
Thank you for following these guidelines and helping to keep our schools healthy!