Announcements from the BFCCPS Health Office

Health Office Updates from BFCCPS
Today you'll find the next installment of Ben's Buzz Summer Updates. Today's issue includes updates from the BFCCPS Health Office for the 2016-2017 School Year.

Health Office:

To ensure that we have the most accurate health information to provide care for your students while they attend school, please complete the Health Information Form  which has been mailed to your home. This light yellow form is due to the front office in advance of  the first day of school Tuesday, August 30th.  You can also click here to download a copy of the form. 

If you would like for your child(ren) to be able to receive ibuprofen or Tylenol at school you must also fill out the Tylenol/Ibuprofen Permission Form that was sent home by mail in advance of the first day of school on Tuesday , August 30th . You can click to download a copy here

If you are an RN with a current MA license and you are interested in being added to our sub-nurse call list, please submit the substitute Nurse Form which has been sent home in the summer mailing.


Nut-Sensitive Policy:

All classrooms at BFCCPS are nut-sensitive. This means nuts, or products that may contain nut ingredients, may not be brought into any classroom. Our main purpose is to provide a safe and enjoyable environment for all students and your cooperation is greatly appreciated.

Due to the life-threatening risk of nuts, parents and volunteers to are required to follow the guidelines below:

Please note: Individual classrooms may have restrictions in addition to the following guidelines.

Snack: Snack is held in the classroom and therefore may not contain nuts.  Students can have snacks with  advisory labeling such as "may contain", "processed in a facility that also processes" or "made on equipment with"  as long as the No Food Trading/Sharing procedure is followed.  Please label or otherwise make sure your student knows which item(s) are for snack and safe for the classroom.

Lunch: May contain nuts, however any student with a lunch that contains nuts may not sit at the allergen sensitive table.

Field Trips: Nut products in snacks and lunch are not allowed.

BFCCPS has amended its Life Threatening allergy protocol found here in an effort to maintain the safety of all students, BFCCPS will no longer allow food, other than snacks and nut-free lunches in classrooms.  This includes after school and most evening activities.  The after school and evening activities involving food will need the written permission of the Head of School.   The school has established a Life Threatening Allergy Liaison to work with families and event coordinators in the instances where an evening event is planned that does involve food.

While we realize this is a change for our community, we are confident that it is necessary in order to ensure the safety of all students.  

For more information we invite you to review the Life Threatening Allergy FAQ found here. Detailed information can be found on the Health Office Website.
 
 
Concussion Information:

It is our school's policy to provide a procedure for prevention, training, management and return to activity decisions for students regarding traumatic brain injury (concussion) in order to protect their safety and health. 

In order for a student to participate in a BFCCPS extracurricular athletic activity, including marching band, they must submit the following before they are cleared to participate:

  • Completed Registration Form
  • Completed Pre-Participation Head Injury/Concussion Reporting Form
  • Signed Head's Up Concussion Information Sheet
    • required of a parent of a participating student
    • required of a participating student in grades 6 -8
  • Copy of the student's most recent physical exam dated within 13 months of the start of the activity must be on file at BFCCPS.  Students who meet the criteria at the start of an activity will remain eligible for duration of that activity

You can find all concussion related policies and forms on the Health Office Website. Please contact the Health Office if you desire further conversation about this.



Head Lice Policy:

Last year, BFCCPS re-examined our protocol for managing head lice.  You can find our complete protocol for managing head lice on the Health Office website here.  In summary, a School Nurse will examine any student with symptoms of head lice.  If a student is noted to have head lice, his/her parents will be notified and encouraged to seek treatment.  A notice to parents of students in the affected student's grade will be sent, alerting parents of a student with head lice in their child's grade and encouraging parents to check their own child for head lice.  Confidentiality will be maintained.  In alignment with the American Academy of Pediatrics, the National Association of School Nurses, and the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, students with head lice and/or nits will not be excluded from school. 

Health Records:

Parents of 4th and 7th grade students:  Please remember to send a copy of your child's most recent physical exam report to the Health Office as soon as possible, by mid September.

Parents of 7th grade students: Please make sure your child has received his/her booster Tdap (tetanus, diptheria, pertussis) vaccine, and submit evidence of this to the Health Office. Evidence of vaccination is usually noted on your child's physical exam report.  If your child has not received this vaccine, please call your pediatrician at this time and schedule an appointment to get it.  Please submit evidence of receiving this vaccine as soon as possible, by mid September.
 

Medication Administration:

Parents of students who need to receive medicine at school:

Please remember that medication must be passed from adult to adult at our school.  Adults may either give medication directly to a School Nurse, or to Front Office staff (with directions to pass along to the School Nurses.) Please do not ask your child to bring medication to the Health Office.  This process promotes the safety of all students at BFCCPS.  It is necessary for a physician order / parent permission form to be submitted as well, in order for your child to receive medication at school.  You may find this form on the Health Office webpage, under Medication Administration,  here .

Front Office Summer Hours:

The front office will be open from 9 to 3pm  Monday through Thursday (closed Fridays).  Normal business hours will resume the week of August 22, 2016.   

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Previous issues of Ben's Buzz Summer Editions can be found here:


The Benjamin Franklin Classical Charter Public School

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