Welcome to the Riverside Middle Health Room

Hi, RMS families!  I am looking forward to a wonderful year working with our students and their families. I'm here to assist in providing your student's health care needs. Students and parents, please read the guidelines of the health room so you will know what to expect. Please verify that your student's immunizations are up to date, and provide a copy of your child's immunization record. Don't forget about the 7th grade Tdap!

Paige Smith, RN

864-355-7994

In addition to the information provided below, the Greenville County School System provides additional information at GCSD Health Services.

Health Room Policy & Procedures
All medication must be delivered to the School Nurse or other designated school employee by the student’s parent, legal guardian, or a previously designated adult. It is against School District Policy for a student to carry any medication on their person without physician, parent, and school district permission to self-administer and self-monitor (SC Law S144). All medication will be maintained in the Health Room. Violations of the medication policy are dealt with sternly. Medication needed on field trips is also covered by this policy and must be given to and administered by an employee of Greenville County Schools designated by the Principal. There are separate permission forms for medications on field trips.

For your child’s safety, please remember:

• All prescription medication...must have written parental and physician authorization before medication can be administered at school (see Prescription Medication Authorization Form).
  • must be administered as labeled and OTC medications may not exceed package directions.
  • must be brought to school by a legal guardian or designated person over 18 years of age and given directly to the school nurse or designated school personnel.
• Over-the-counter medications may be provided by the parent if it is in the original container, clearly labeled with the student’s name and is accompanied by written parental permission (see Over-the-Counter Medication Permission Form).
• Parents are responsible for knowing the expiration date of any medication brought to school and replacing medication before the expiration date. School
• Nurses will not administer any medication past the expiration date.
• All medication must be in the original container.
• School nurses are legally required to administer only medications with FDA approval.
• No medication containing aspirin can be given at school without a doctor’s authorization. This includes but is not limited to Pepto Bismol, Excedrin, and some OTC cold medications.
• If your child forgets to take a morning dose of medication, school nurses are not allowed to give that dose at school. Parents may come to the Health Room to give the missed dose.
• Students with medication prescribed by a health care provider contained in the original packaging and appropriately labeled may carry these medications, may self-monitor and may self-administer these medications only if we have permission from the prescribing doctor and the parent/legal guardian. If there is sufficient evidence that unsupervised self-monitoring or self-medicating would seriously jeopardize the safety of the student or others (ex: stimulants, pain relief medication, anti-depressants), the school district may refuse to allow the student to carry his/her medication. Medications that are approved for self-administering are asthma inhalers, insulin for diabetic students, and Epi-Pens for severe allergic reactions.

Contacting Parents
If your child comes to the Health Room and needs to go home, we must contact a parent or legal guardian. We cannot send a student home with anyone until a parent has been notified. This is why it is so very important that we have current information about how to contact you at all times. If your child has an emergency situation or needs immediate care that cannot be provided at school, those contacts you list on the Health Card will be called if we cannot reach a parent first. Please understand that this is for your child's protection.

Student Emergency Information Form
On the first day of school, your child is given an Emergency Information Form to be completed by a parent. This is very important. Please print all information clearly. This will be the only way we have to reach you in case of an emergency at school. If at anytime ANY of this information should change please notify your school nurse immediately.

State Immunization Requirements
A child will not be allowed to attend any school or child development program without a valid SC Certificate of Immunization or a medical, religious, or special exemption.

If your child does not have a valid certificate, take his/her shot records to your physician or the Greenville County Health Department (864-282-4100). A parent or adult authorized by the parent must accompany a student under 16 who requires shots. For further information, call Medical Health Services at 864-355-3171.

All 7th through 12th graders will be required to have a Tdap vaccine. Tdap is a combination vaccine that protects against three potentially life-threatening bacterial diseases: tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis (whooping cough). Follow DHEC guidelines for appropriate Tdap administration. You must provide the nurse with a valid immunization record showing the Tdap vaccination prior to starting 7th grade. Students will not receive their schedules without this requirement. Parents do not have to wait until 7th grade. Children as young as seven years old may be vaccinated.

A new Hepatitis A vaccine requirement for school will begin for 5K with the 2020-2021 school year.