Health Office Updates
Marianella was born and raised in New York, where she attended St. John’s University and graduated with a degree in criminal justice, intending to pursue a career in investigations.
She then decided to go into nursing. Marianella received her Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing from Western Governors University and has been practicing in the field for sixteen years, specializing in pediatric critical care. For eight of those sixteen years, she worked in a level one trauma hospital in Orlando as a charge nurse, preceptor, and language resource educator. She then decided to transition into travel nursing, where she worked in the pediatric, cardiac, and neonatal intensive care units throughout the US.
While she loved the flexibility and sense of adventure that comes with travel nursing, she is now ready to take a step back. Being able to educate and advocate for the children she cares for has always been a passion of hers.
In her free time, Marianella enjoys hiking, yoga, and spending time with her French bulldog, Jet.
- Students diagnosed with asthma should provide the school with a rescue inhaler at the beginning of each school year. Inhalers are stored in the health office to be administered as needed by the school nurse or front office staff.
- An Asthma Action Plan must be completed by the student’s pediatrician and must be renewed before each school year.
- Students may self-carry their rescue inhaler in addition to the one that is stored in the health office. In order to self-carry, students must pass the self-carry assessment.
- Daily preventive inhalers should be administered at home prior to students arriving to school (Singulair, Flovent, Advair, Pulmicort, Symbicort and QVAR).
- Epipens
- Students who are prescribed an epipen for their allergic reaction should provide the school with two epipens at the beginning of each school year. One epipen will be stored in the health office, and the other in the student’s classroom (or middle school office if student is in 6th-8th grade).
- An Allergy Action Plan must be completed by the student’s pediatrician and must be renewed before each school year.
- School lunches (GG Fresh by Girard Gourmet)
- GG Fresh by Girard Gourmet does not accommodate food allergies.
- If you still would like your child to receive school lunches through GG Fresh by Girard Gourmet, please inform the school nurse and complete this SDFAS Allergen Policy Form.
- For COVID information and policies, please refer to the SDFAS COVID Webpage.
- Please schedule an appointment with the school nurse to review the student’s care plan.
- Fast-acting insulin must be provided to the school to be stored in the health office.
- A blood glucometer must be provided to the school even if the student uses a continuous glucose monitor.
- If the student uses an insulin pump, backup tubing and supplies must be provided to the school.
- School orders for insulin must be provided before the beginning of each school year.
- Lice are a common occurrence in a school setting. They are not dangerous nor do they spread disease.
- A Parent’s Guide to Lice
- Students with lice may return to school once an at home treatment has been completed.
The problem of head lice is ongoing and can be time consuming. Even though head lice are not a threat to health, they are a frustrating nuisance. Prompt treatment of student (s) with a positive diagnosis of head lice ensures minimal disruption of their educational program.
While the school will take specific actions outlined below, parents are responsible for checking their child for lice, informing the school if lice or nits are discovered, and managing treatment.
SDFAS will:
Communicate cases to the class as they are made aware.
Implement a thorough 7-day deep cleaning of the classroom following the last known case.
Provide educational resources to parents regarding lice prevention and treatment.
Enforce a non-stigmatizing environment in the classroom.
Additionally, following a case of lice, all parents of the affected classroom are responsible for:
Checking their child upon arrival home.
Checking their child again 3 days later.
Checking their child once more 7 days later.
Refraining from high transmission risk activities when possible.
To minimize the risk of re-infestation, parents should consider temporarily excluding their child from high-transmission-risk activities such as sleepovers, co-sleeping, sharing personal items, close contact sports (jiu-jitsu, judo, wrestling, etc), taking selfies, and reading from the same book as others.
- Students with active seizures should provide the school with a seizure reversal medication at the beginning of each school year. Preventative seizure medication should be given at home prior to student’s arrival to school.
- A Seizure Action Plan must be completed by the student’s pediatrician and must be renewed before each school year.
To be able to administer medication (prescription and OTC) at school or on SDFAS field trips, state and local laws require the following every school year:
- Physical medication to be administered with original packaging and pharmacy label.
- Physician Recommendation for Medication During the School Day (requires pediatrician and parent signatures).
- SDFAS is please to offer select OTC medications to students during the school day (acetaminophen, calcium carbonate, diphenhydramine, ibuprofen, bacitracin ointment).
- Parents must complete an OTC medication parental consent form at the beginning of each year to opt in.
- For fever: SDFAS requires that all students with a fever (<100.4F) must stay at home until they have been fever free for at least 24hrs without the use of fever reducing medications.
- SDFAS COVID website
- Students who are unable to participate in the school day in a meaningful way due to symptoms should go home to rest
- Students will be sent home if symptomatic.
- A Sunscreen/Topical Ointment Form must be completed prior to every school year.
- Parents/guardians must place the completed form and the desired sunscreen or OTC ointment in its original packaging in a ziplock bag labeled with the child’s full name, and communicate directly with teachers regarding the reapplication request.
