Health Services & Wellness

Influenza is a common upper respiratory disease. It is not what is commonly referred to as "stomach flu," which causes vomiting and diarrhea. Symptoms including fever, chills, coughing, headache, fatigue, sore throat and muscle aches. The symptoms are much more severe than with a common cold.

Call the doctor if you or your child has a persistent high fever, fever with a rash, trouble breathing or rapid breathing, bluish skin color, not drinking enough fluids, seem very sleepy or lethargic, seem confused, and have flu symptoms that get better but then get worse.
 Stay home from school or work when you are ill. Students can return to school 24 hours after their fever is gone without fever-reducing medication and are feeling well enough to participate in school. Flu symptoms may last 5 to 7 days.

Reference the Flu and Colds page to learn more about the symptoms you are experiencing. 

Stomach flu (not influenza which is a respiratory illness) is a gastrointestinal illness. Students have stomach aches, vomiting, diarrhea, slight fevers and fatigue. Students should stay home for at least 24 hours after the symptoms have stopped.Stomach flu is spread easily from person to person, so it is important to stay home while sick. It lasts anywhere from 1 to 2 days depending on the individual and the severity of the symptoms. If it lasts longer than that and you are concerned about your child's health, contact your health care provider.Prevent the stomach flu by washing your hands frequently as it is spread by touching contaminated items. Prevent dehydration by offering small amounts of liquids frequently. Offer nutritious bland foods when vomiting or diarrhea has stopped and slowly work up to regular foods.

Strep throat can start suddenly with fever, red sore throat and swollen glands. In some children and adults, headache, nausea, stomach ache, and vomiting may be more common. A fine raised rash could also occur. It is contagious, and students need to stay home for 12 hours after treatment has begun and they are fever free for 24 hours without the use of fever reducing medications. Antibiotics are given to treat strep throat.

Students who have lice are strongly recommended to be treated before returning to school or daycare. Head lice are very small brownish-colored insects that live on the head. They lay their eggs (nits) close to the scalp. The eggs are gray or white in color. They are stuck to the hair like glue. Anyone can get head lice.

The symptoms of head lice are:

• Itching of the head and neck
• Look for: crawling lice in the hair or the eggs that are glued to the hair (often found behind the ears and at the back of the neck)

Lice are spread by direct head-to-head contact with the hair of an infested person. They can't jump or fly. They crawl and can fall off the head. Head lice do not live longer than 48 hours off the head. Eggs do not hatch if they fall off the head. Head lice feet are specially adapted for holding onto human hair. They would have difficulty attaching to smooth or slippery surfaces like plastic, metal, and similar materials.

If you find head lice in your child's hair, call your child's school and daycare to inform them. Treat your child for head lice using the product/method of your choice. Remove eggs (nits) daily. It takes at least 2 weeks to get rid of lice. If all nits within 1/2 inch of the scalp are not removed, some may hatch and your child will be infested again. Parents should check their children's hair weekly for head lice. Catching it early helps prevent the spread of lice to others.

Lice Links

Myths and Facts of Head Lice
What Do Nits and Lice Look Like?
Minnesota Department of Health
Mayo Clinic

Please reference our Covid-19 Frequently Asked Questions page for more information.

Winter is a prime time for colds and flu. You can prevent them and other illnesses by simple hand washing. Wash your hands with soap and water for about 20 seconds before you eat or touch your face. Hands carry a variety of germs, and they enter our bodies through touching our eyes, nose, or mouth. Wash your hands after using the bathroom or cough or sneeze into a tissue. If you can't wash your hands with soap and water, use a hand sanitizer to kill the germs.

Stay home when you are sick. Going to school or work when you are sick spreads the germs to other healthy people. Students, even though you may have a test, presentation, or project due on a day you are not feeling well, stay home. You won't do your best during that activity and it is best to get well first. Stay home when you are sick.

Use the Flu Screening Tool for Parents and Caregivers to help determine if your child is well enough for school.

Protect yourself and your family from the flu:

1. Get a flu shot. Flu shots provide immunity against the flu viruses. A flu shot can be given at any time before or during the flu season.
2. Cover your mouth and nose. Cough and sneeze into a tissue or into your upper arm if a tissue is not available. Throw away used tissues and wash your hands.
3. Wash hands frequently. Use warm water and soap and wash your hands for at least 20 seconds. If you cannot wash your hands, use a hand sanitizer.
4. Don't touch your face. If you do need to touch your face, wash your hands first. Hands carry germs that may cause the flu so keep your hands away from your eyes, nose, and mouth.
5. Get 7 to 8 hours (more for younger children) of sleep each night to help your body replenish and fight any germs.
6. Eat nutritious foods. They help boost immunity to keep you healthy.
7. Get moving. Exercise 3 or 4 days a week for at least 30 minutes which can help boost your body's natural ability to fight off infection and the flu.
8. Use the flu screening tool to help you determine if your child is well enough for school.

Temperature at or above 100.4°F. Excluded until fever free for 24 hours without taking Tylenol, Ibuprofen or other fever-reducing medication.

It is recommended that your child stay home for 24 hours after his/her last episode of vomiting. If vomiting is due to a recurring problem such as milk intolerance or strong gag reflex, please let the nurse know so we may better assess your child.

Unexplained rashes need to be evaluated by a doctor to determine whether the rash is contagious. If treatment is started, please refer to the guidelines for the specific rash for returning to school.

No exclusion, unless the child has a fever or is not healthy enough to participate in routine activities. Antibiotics or a note from a health care provider are not required.

Please keep your child home for 24 hours after his/her last occurrence of diarrhea.

Students who have lice are strongly recommended to be treated before returning to school or daycare. It is recommended you remove nits for two weeks after initial treatment as traditional lice shampoos only kill live lice and not their eggs. Eggs left on hair may hatch into live lice.

Children may return to school 12 hours after beginning treatment with antibiotics and the child is fever free (without fever reducing medication).

May not return to school until treatment has been started. Any child with ringworm should not participate in gym, swimming, and other close contact activities that are likely to expose others if the lesions cannot be fully covered or until 72 hours after treatment has begun.

If it is the first infection, your child must stay home until the sore is healed. If it is a recurring infection, he/she may attend school with active sores.

None, if other rash-causing illnesses are ruled out by a healthcare provider. Persons with Fifths Disease are no longer infectious once the rash begins.

Please provide documentation by a physician of these skin conditions. This will help us better assess your child and prevent unnecessary phone calls if rash appears during the school day.

Your child may return to school as long as he/she does not have a fever. Sores or rash may still be present.

Your child may return to school when the fever is gone (without fever reducing medications) and he/she is healthy enough to participate in routine activities.

Scott County Department of Health recommends if your child has symptoms of whooping cough and is tested for pertussis, he/she should stay home until it is determined if the test is positive or negative. The test takes up to 3 days to complete. If the test is positive, students must stay home until the 5-day course of antibiotics is completed. If the test is negative, students may return to school as long as he/she is fever-free.

Until 24 hours after treatment and sores are drying or improving.

To attend school in Minnesota, students must show they've had the required immunizations or file a legal exemption with the school. Parents may file a medical exemption signed by a health care provider or a conscientious objection signed by parent/guardian and notarized.

Minnesota law requires written proof of these scheduled shots for children who attend a licensed child-care program or school grades K–12, with some exceptions. If a child has a medical reason, or if his/her parents are conscientiously opposed to any or all of the scheduled shots, a legal exemption is available. To file an exemption, you must complete a form, which is available at child-care centers and schools.

For more information, visit the Minnesota Department of Health Immunization Program.