Nurses’ Office

New York State Law requires that all students new to McQuaid and students in 7th and 10th grade submit an up-to-date physical exam at the start of school. Further, all new students, including foreign exchange students, must demonstrate proof of full immunization prior to the start of school. The following immunizations are required:

• DPT (Diphtheria-Pertussis-Tetanus) 3 doses
• Tdap (Tetanus-Diphtheria-Acellular Pertussis) 1 booster (upon entering grade 6)
• Polio (OPV or IPV) 3 – 5 doses
• MMR (Measles-Mumps-Rubella) 2 dosesMeasles, Mumps, Rubella
• Hepatitis B 3 doses
• Varicella (Chickenpox) 2 doses
• Meningococcal Vaccine 1 – 2 doses (1 for 7th grade, 2 for 12th grade)

Proper documentation of immunizations are closely monitored, as this is an important public health issue and concerns the well-being of all of our students and staff. It is imperative to comply with all immunizations that are required by law.

Further, New York State has revised some immunization regulations (effective 2015), and we will be evaluating all students for compliance with the new regulations. If your son is found to have a discrepancy, we ask that you respond in a timely manner to any additional medical requests.

Throughout the school year, the nurses conduct vision, hearing and scoliosis screening on students if it was not done at their physician offices. Notice will be sent home if further evaluation is warranted.

If your son becomes ill or injured during the school day, we will notify you in the event that he needs to go home or follow up is indicated. It is important to provide us with the proper contact information and telephone number. If you have any medical information that you would like to share with the nurses, please contact us at 585- 256-6126 or nurses@mcquaid.org. We are interested in your son’s total well-being – physical, social, and emotional.

If your son requires any medication during school hours (prescription and/or non-prescription), a doctor’s order must be sent to the Nurses’ Office. (effective 2015, medical permission is required for over the counter medications.)  Prescription medications must be provided in a properly labeled container. We stock Ibuprofen and Acetaminophen for student use, but do require a note from your son’s doctor to dispense these medications.

Administration of Prescription Medication in School

HIPAA and Health Certificate/Appraisal Form

Over the Counter Medications

Registration Health Form

Sports Triplicate Form

Completed Interval Health History forms (Sports Triplicate) and a current Physical Exam (within the last calendar year) must be turned in at the Nurses’ Office prior to sports tryouts. There are no physical exams offered at McQuaid.

The completed Interval Health History form must be signed by both parent and student. The form may be mailed, faxed, emailed, or hand delivered to the Nurses’ Office, but it must be submitted at least one week PRIOR to the tryout. A new form must be completed every time a sport is done.

A nurse will also be in the office for the first day of EACH tryout, approximately one half hour before that tryout begins. Please do not wait until the last minute for clearance, as your son may not be eligible for tryouts if the necessary paperwork is not in order.

*If you do not wish to come into the school for clearance, you may fill out the triplicate form and submit it by mail along with an up-to-date physical form (within the last year). If the athlete has any outstanding injuries, a clearance note from the doctor should accompany these forms. If all those requirements are met – the athlete will be cleared.

If your son has been seen by the doctor for any reason that requires him to be excused from PE or sports, please send a doctor’s note into the Nurse’s Office. We will copy the note and dispense to appropriate teachers and coaches. Please send in a follow up note from the physician when he is cleared to participate again.

Lastly, please send in a copy of any regular physical exams that have been done. Physical exams are required for students in grades 7 and 10, regardless of athletic participation.

The role of the nurse is to ensure student health and safety throughout the day. We request that parents and guardians communicate any health concerns. This includes physical issues as well as any emotional or psychological concerns that your son be experiencing. The nurse is an important part of the team that supports students and encourages continuity in the educational setting.

We do stock some over the counter medications, such as Advil, Tylenol and Tums. We do NOT have decongestants or antihistamines. If your son requires an over the counter medication during school hours, please fill out the over the counter form, sign it, HAVE YOUR PHYSICIAN SIGN IT, and return it to the Nurses’ Office for us to keep on file. This form will have to be renewed annually.

If your son requires a medication other than our stock meds, please send the medication into school in the original package labeled with your son’s name. We will dispense the medication to him as needed, with a doctor’s note.

Further, if your son is an asthmatic or has a history of asthma, please supply us with an inhaler (or let us know if he is carrying one).

Please send in an Epi-Pen if your son has a life threatening allergy. This also requires a physician note with detailed instructions for administration.

As a reminder, any controlled substances that are prescribed for your son must be brought into school by a parent or guardian with a note from the prescribing physician.

At the end of the school year, please pick up your son’s medications. Expired medications and medications left behind will be discarded.

It is essential that each morning prior to coming to school, your son completes the Daily Pass. This is a tool that will provide an assessment of COVID symptoms and exposure. If your son exhibits possible symptoms of COVID in the morning, please do not send him to school. The Daily Pass should show green in order for him to attend school.

During the school day, if a student does not feel well, he will be instructed to go to the Nurses Office where he will be assessed. If your son presents with ANY COVID-like symptoms as specified by the Monroe County Department of Public Health, he will be sent home. We will place the ill student in our isolation room, and ask that he be picked up within one half hour of being contacted by us.

If your son stays home from school with COVID-like symptoms or if he is sent home during the school day with symptoms, you must contact his health care provider.
If your son is sent home or has stayed home due to COVID-like symptoms, in order for him to return to school, the following is required:

• he must be symptom free for 24 hours
• he must provide a note from his doctor stating that he was evaluated and there is no evidence of COVID
• he must provide a lab-confirmed negative COVID-19 test result in addition to the note from the doctor

If COVID results are positive, the Monroe County Health Department will advise you. You may anticipate that your son will be placed in isolation for a minimum of 10 days. The Monroe County Health Department must issue the release from isolation before your son can return to school.

COVID-19 Symptoms include:

• temperature over 100
• nasal congestion
• fever, chills
• nausea, vomiting, diarrhea
• shortness of breath
• fatigue
• sore throat or cough
• muscle or body aches
• loss of taste or smell
• headache