Programs & procedures

Woodridge School District 68 follows Illinois Dept. of Public Health for guidance on communicable diseases. If a student is suspected to have or has confirmed any of the following diseases, it is required that he/she be kept home for the number of days listed below. It is advisable to consult your doctor if symptoms persist longer than seems normal. 

1. Strep Throat – Children must stay home until treated with appropriate antibiotics for 24 hours or as advised by a health care professional; they must also be fever-free for 24 hours without use of medication. 
2. Influenza/RSV/Covid-19– Children must stay home until symptoms have begun improving and they have been fever-free for 24 hours without use of medications.
3. Hand, Foot, Mouth Disease – No exclusion is necessary UNLESS there is a fever with symptoms such as open sores and constant drooling. A child can return when the sores are healing and scabbed over, with no new, oozing sores, and are fever-free for 24 hours without use of medication. 
4. Pink Eye – If the child has pink/red eyes with or without drainage, parents will be notified; they will be required to be picked up. If a confirmed diagnosis, the child may return 24 hours after antibiotic drops have been started. 
5. Head Lice – The child must be picked up, and their hair must be treated with lice killing shampoo following instructions on the bottle, performed on all children in the home and wash all linen/ clothes in a hot cycle. Staff will then do a lice check on return and classroom check per request. 
6. Impetigo – Child requires immediate medical treatment. Children may return after the use of antibiotics for 24 hours and if lesions are covered or have crusted over.
7. Chicken Pox/Shingles – Children must stay home until they are fever-free for 24 hours without use of medication and until all scabs are crusted over with no new drainage evident – usually 5 days. 
8. Measles - Children must stay home at least 4 days after the start of the rash. Those who do not receive vaccine within 72 hours of exposure shall be excluded for 21 days after onset of last case. 
9. Whooping Cough - Students must stay home until 5 days of appropriate antibiotic treatment is completed or 21 days after cough onset if no treatment is received. 
10. Rotavirus/ Norovirus - Students must stay home until diarrhea, vomiting, and fever have ceased for 24 hours. 
11. Meningitis - Students must stay home until after at least 24 hours of antibiotic treatment received and/ or are fever-free for 24 hours without use of medication (viral).

If you have any further questions, please contact the health aide at your child’s school or the district nurse. 

All medications (prescription and over the counter) must be unexpired, as well as brought to school and picked up by a parent or guardian. Students are not permitted to transport medication to or from school. Medication not picked up before the last day of school will be disposed of, per district policy.

Medications must be in the original manufacturer container or pharmacy-labeled container (prescription) with the student’s name, medication name, dosage, and prescribing provider clearly indicated.

A completed Medication Authorization Form, signed by both the parent/guardian and the healthcare provider, must be on file before any medication can be administered. A new authorization form is required each school year.

Chapstick, body lotion, and lozenges are permissible if written consent is provided by the parent.

What are undesignated medications?
In accordance with Illinois law, our district maintains a stock of "undesignated" medications to be used in the event of a life-threatening medical emergency. These are available to any student or individual on school grounds experiencing a crisis, regardless of whether they have a prior diagnosis or a personal prescription on file.

Our program includes:

• Undesignated epinephrine auto-injectors (EpiPens): Used for individuals experiencing a severe, life-threatening allergic reaction (anaphylaxis).
• Undesignated asthma medication (Albuterol): An inhaled medication used for individuals experiencing severe respiratory distress. Albuterol is safe, effective, and works by opening the airway to make breathing easier.
• Undesignated opioid antagonists (Narcan/Naloxone): Used for suspected opioid overdoses.

Procedures and administration
These medications will be administered by the school nurse or other trained school personnel according to guidelines established by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) and the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH). In every instance where an undesignated medication is administered, the parent/guardian will be notified immediately, and emergency medical services (911) will be dispatched.

Important reminder for students with diagnoses
These emergency supplies are not intended to replace a student’s personal medication. If your child has a known diagnosis of asthma or a severe allergy, you are still required to provide their personal inhaler or EpiPen, along with a completed Emergency Action Plan and Medication Authorization Form from your healthcare provider.

Parental right to opt-out
If you do not want your student to receive these undesignated emergency medications during a life-threatening respiratory or allergic emergency, you must notify the Health Office in writing. If you do not opt-out, it is assumed that you are comfortable with the health office staff administering the undesignated medication in the event of a medical emergency. 

Please note: If you opt out, our protocol in a life-threatening emergency will be to call 911 (EMS) and wait for their arrival to provide medical intervention. 

If a concussion is suspected during school hours or at a school event, the student will be immediately removed from all physical and high-stress cognitive activities. We will contact you for pickup so that you can take the student to be evaluated.

To ensure we are following professional medical advice and state safety laws, clear documentation from a licensed healthcare provider is required with the following:

1. Initial diagnosis restrictions: After the injury, you must provide a note that confirms the diagnosis and outlines specific return-to-learn accommodations (e.g., needs a quiet room, half-days only, or no screen time).
2. The all-clear: Before a student can return to gym class, recess, competitive sports, or full-speed extracurriculars, we must receive a signed medical clearance form stating that they are asymptomatic and ready for physical exertion.
3. When these restrictions/accommodations are to end.

NOTE: This documentation is still required in the event that a student sustained a concussion outside of school.

Woodridge School District 68 provides vision and hearing screenings annually for students at the state-mandated grade levels, as designated by the Illinois Department of Public Health:

Vision screening is required annually on all children in special education (including speech), children new to the district, and teacher/parent referrals. Annual vision screening is also required for the following grade levels:

• Preschool; Kindergarten; 2nd and 8th grades

Hearing screening is required annually on all children in special education (including speech), children new to the district, teacher/parent referrals and students having a known or suspected hearing loss. Annual hearing screening is also required for the following grade levels:

• Preschool; Kindergarten; 1st, 2nd and 3rd grades

These mandated screenings are scheduled in advance during the school year. The District Nurse and vision and hearing technician also do vision and hearing screenings throughout the school year as needed.