When pupils are taken suddenly ill in school, they shall be sent or escorted to the nurse’s office. If the nurse is not in the medical office, the pupil shall be sent or taken to the chief school administrator’s office. In general, the same procedures that apply to accidents shall apply to sudden pupil illness. The chief school administrator, in cooperation with the medical inspector, shall implement this policy.

Control of Contagious Diseases or Conditions

In order to protect the health of the pupils in our schools, all regulations of the state department of education, the state department of health and the local board of health shall be scrupulously observed, particularly those dealing with contagious or infectious diseases or conditions. Pupils who have been absent because of contagious or infectious diseases or conditions must present a certificate of recovery from a licensed physician or be examined by the medical inspector.

The school nurse shall observe pupils who show evidence of communicable disease and recommend their exclusion to the chief school administrator/principal. Recommendations shall be consistent with reporting requirements on communicable diseases as set forth in the New Jersey Health Code. Such pupils shall be isolated in the nurse’s office until a parent/guardian picks them up, and any necessary measures have been taken to prevent spread of the infection. The school nurse, under the direction of the medical inspector, shall instruct all teachers in the symptoms of the most common diseases or conditions at least once a year.

Any student with HIV infection or AIDS or who lives with or is related to someone with HIV or AIDS shall not be excluded from general education, transportation services, extracurricular activities, athletic activities, assigned to home instruction or classified as eligible for special education because of the HIV infection. The school nurse shall recommend the exclusion of any individual with weeping skin lesions that cannot be covered.

In addition to the review of health and safety measures required by law, the school nurse shall individually instruct teachers from whose classrooms a pupil has been excluded in the symptoms of the disease for which the pupil was excluded. Student rights and confidentiality shall be protected in accordance with law. No teacher shall attempt to diagnose any illness of a pupil, but shall refer suspected cases to the nurse immediately.

Handling Blood and Body Fluids

The chief school administrator and medical inspector shall develop detailed routine procedures based on New Jersey administrative code and guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control for proper handling of blood and body fluids resulting from illness/accidents in the schools. These procedures shall be disseminated to all district staff and volunteers.

The medical inspector shall report all cases of communicable disease to the local board of health as required by law.

Adopted: October 3, 2007
NJSBA Review/Update: January 2009, October 2017
Readopted: January 21, 2009
Revised:

Key Words

Illness, Sickness, Body Fluids

Legal References: N.J.S.A. 18A:16 6 Indemnity of officers and employees against civil actions
N.J.S.A. 18A:16 6.1 Indemnity of officers and employees in certain criminal actions
N.J.S.A. 18A:40 3 Lectures to teachers
N.J.S.A. 18A:40 7 Exclusion of pupils who are ill
N.J.S.A. 18A:40 8 Exclusion of pupils whose presence is detrimental to health and cleanliness
N.J.S.A. 18A:40 10 Exclusion of teachers and pupils exposed to disease
N.J.S.A. 18A:40 11 Exclusion of pupils having communicable tuberculosis
N.J.S.A. 18A:40 12 Closing schools during epidemic
N.J.S.A. 18A:40-25 Boards of education to provide nursing care to students in nonpublic schools
N.J.S.A. 26:2T-1 Newly diagnosed Hepatitis C case; information, reports
N.J.S.A. 26:4 6 Prohibiting attendance of teachers or pupils
N.J.S.A. 26:4 15 Reporting of communicable diseases by physicians
N.J.S.A. 26:5C-1 et seq. AIDS Assistance Act
N.J.A.C. 6A:16-1.1 et seq. Programs to Support Student Development
See particularly:
N.J.A.C. 6A:16-1.3,
-2.1 et seq.
N.J.A.C. 8:57-1.1 et seq. Reportable Communicable Diseases
See particularly:
N.J.A.C. 8:57 1.3, -1.7, -2
N.J.A.C. 8:61 1.1 Attendance at school by pupils or adults infected by Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)

Plainfield Board of Education v. Cooperman, 105 NJ 587 (1987)

Possible
Cross References: *1410 Local units
*4112.4/4212.4 Employee health
*4131/4131.1 Staff development; inservice education/visitations/conferences
*5113 Attendance, absences and excuses
*5125 Pupil records
*5131.6 Drugs, alcohol, tobacco (substance abuse)
*5141 Health
*5141.1 Accidents
*5141.4 Child abuse and neglect
*5141.8 Sports related concussion and head injury
*5200 Nonpublic school pupils
*6142.13 HIV prevention education

*Indicates policy is included in the Critical Policy Reference Manual.