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Health Services
The Ashland Public Schools Health Services Department ensures a safe and healthy learning environment by providing health screenings, immunization compliance and other essential health services.Attendance and Absences
Students experiencing certain illnesses or symptoms may be required to stay home. Please refer to our clinical guidelines below and get in touch with your child’s school nurse if you have any additional questions or concerns.
If a student will be absent from school, their parent or caregiver must notify the school. All schools have an answering machine that takes calls outside of normal school hours. Please include your child's name, homeroom number or teacher's name, and reason for absence when leaving a message.
- Ashland High School: 508-881-0177
- Ashland Middle School: 508-881-0196
- David Mindess School: 508-881-0194
- Henry Warren School: 508-881-0188
- William Pittaway School: 508-881-0160
Our Clinical Guidelines
To help prevent the spread of illness, we provide clinical guidelines to help with your decision on whether to send your child to school. Please refer to our guidelines below and get in touch with your child’s school nurse if you have any additional questions or concerns.
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Bacterial Conjunctivitis (also known as "Pink Eye")
The child must have 24 hours of antibiotic treatment before returning to school.
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Diarrhea/Vomiting
A child with diarrhea or vomiting should stay at home and return to school only after being symptom-free for 24 hours without the use of anti-vomiting or anti-diarrheal medication.
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Fever
If a child is not feeling well before school, the parent should check the child's temperature. A child should not be sent to school with a fever. A child with a temperature of 100 degrees F (37.7 degrees C) or higher will be sent home from school. The child must remain home for the next full school day fever-free without fever-reducing medication for 24 hours before he/she returns to school.
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Head Lice
Ashland Public Schools supports the recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Centers for Disease Control, and the National Association of School Nurses in managing head lice in the school setting. If a child at school is found to have live lice, the student may be sent home immediately for treatment at the discretion of the building nurse. The student must be treated and free of live lice before returning to school. When the child returns, the building nurse will assess the student's hair for evidence of treatment. If the nurse deems it appropriate, a parent will be asked to accompany the child to school for this assessment.
Note that, per the American Academy of Pediatrics and the CDC, Ashland Public Schools does not participate in whole classroom screenings, exclusion for nits, or notification to anyone other than parents/guardians of students with head lice. View our APS Lice Brochure here.
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Impetigo
A child must be on prescription medication for 24 hours before returning to school. Weeping sores should be lightly covered with a dressing until they are crusted over and dried up completely.
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Other Conditions
Guidelines for handling other conditions are at the discretion of the school nurse.
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Strep Throat
A child must remain out of school until the culture results are known. If the result is positive, the child must be on antibiotics for 24 hours before returning to school.
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Students Requiring Crutches or Braces
Students who become injured and require crutches or hard splints/braces/casts must have a physician's letter stating the reason for needing the equipment and the length of time the equipment will be required. Students who are utilizing durable medical equipment should sit out from physical activity (both PE class and recess) at school until the brace or crutches are no longer required and a clearance letter for participation in physical activity is provided by the physician.
