Current TCSC COVID-19 Policy
- Masks are optional for all students and staff within the school setting AND on school buses
- Stay home when sick: People with symptoms of infectious illness including COVID-19, influenza, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and GI illness should not attend school or work and must be fever-free for 24 hours without fever-reducing medication prior to returning.
- Contract tracing is no longer required and Tri-Creek schools are not collecting, monitoring, or tracking positive/negative test results
- Social distancing is no longer required
- Practice frequent washing of hands to promote good health
When Should I Send My Child To School If Sick?
How Sick Is Too Sick? (PDF) - guidance provided by the Indiana Department of Education with suggestions on when a student can be safely sent to school if sick
Communicable Diseases (Indiana Department of Health, 2022)
- Clinical Description: Conjunctivitis, or pink eye, is an acute condition characterized by redness of the eye(s). Other symptoms can include tearing, irritation and photophobia, purulent discharge and crusting of eyelids or lashes in the morning. Viral and bacterial infections, foreign bodies or allergies may cause the condition.
- Incubation Period: For bacterial conjunctivitis, the incubation period ranges from 24 to 72 hours, and for viral conjunctivitis, the incubation period is usually 12 hours to 3 days.
- Mode of Transmission: Transmission occurs by coming into contact with the virus or bacteria by
- Touching an object with germs and then touching your eyes prior to washing your hands
- Having a close personal contact with an infected person such as touching or shaking their hands
- Being exposed to the upper respiratory tract’s fluid belonging to an infected person through sneezing or coughing
- Period of Communicability: A person can spread conjunctivitis during the course of active infection. Depending upon the cause of the infection, communicability may be up to 14 days after onset.
- Exclusion From School: The American Academy of Pediatrics advises that children with purulent conjunctivitis (defined as pink or red conjunctiva with white or yellow discharge, often with matted eyelids after sleep and eye pain or redness of the eyelids or skin surrounding the eyes) be excluded until examined by a healthcare provider and approved for readmission. With bacterial conjunctivitis, healthcare providers usually recommend exclusion until 24 hours after starting topical antibiotic therapy.
- Prevention/Treatment:
- Use of hot or cold moist packs may relieve discomfort.
- Encourage frequent handwashing and prompt disposal of used tissues
- Encourage infected persons NOT to touch their face and to launder bed linens and towels.
- Clean contact lenses properly and regularly.
- Refer for medical evaluation.
- Use of hot or cold moist packs may relieve discomfort.
- Clinical Description: Pediculosis capitis is an infestation of live lice or nits (eggs) in the hair on the head. The head louse lives close to the scalp and is most visible behind the ears or at the base of the neckline. Lice depend upon human blood to live and can only survive up to two days away from the scalp. The main symptom of head lice infestation is itching.
- Incubation period: Optimally, eggs hatch in a week and the resultant lice are capable of multiplying in 8 to 10 days. The typical adult louse lives 20 to 30 days and lays 4 to 5 eggs a day; however, the eggs will only hatch if they are less than 1 week old and are near the scalp.
- Mode of Transmission: Transmission occurs by direct head-to-head contact with a person with a live infestation, or less frequently, direct contact with their personal belongings that are harboring lice, such as combs, hairbrushes, hats, towels and pillowcases.
- Period of Communicability: A person can spread lice as long as live lice remain on a contaminated person such as in the hair and are within ¼" from the scalp. Head lice are most common among children attending childcare or elementary school.
- Exclusion From School: If a student in the corporation is found to have live head lice, the student’s parent will be contacted to have the child treated and to pick him/her up immediately. After treatment and upon returning to school, the student will be examined by the school nurse or his/her designee. The corporation practices a policy of "no live lice" and less than fifteen (15) nits as the criterion for return to school.
- Prevention/Treatment:
- Instruct parents/guardians to use the OTC (over-the-counter) or prescription pediculicides (lice medicine) as directed in the package insert. Infested persons should not use a combination shampoo/conditioner or conditioner before using lice medicine and should not rewash their hair for 1 to 2 days after the lice medicine is removed.
- Detection of live lice more than 24 hours after treatment suggests treatment failure. Parents should be advised to call their healthcare provider before retreating as a different pediculicide may be necessary. Many OTC pediculicides have lost much of their effectiveness against resistant lice.
- To avoid potential toxic reactions in people, repetitive use of OTC head lice control products is not recommended.
- Once an effective treatment has been applied, retreatment with the same pediculicide according to package directions (usually 7 to 10 days after the first treatment) may be necessary to kill recently hatched lice and rid the child of infestation.
- Household contacts should be evaluated for lice or nits and, if infested, should be treated at the same time as the child. Parents are encouraged to comb out and completely remove all nits.
- Parents should be instructed in home control measures, including laundering items in hot soapy water or putting items in a hot dryer cycle for 30 minutes. Brushes and combs should be thoroughly cleaned or boiled.
- Insecticide treatment of the home and/or vehicles is not indicated.
- Presence of lice is not indicative of poor hygiene or an unhygienic environment.
- Head lice rarely cause direct harm; they are not known to transmit infectious agents from person-to-person.
- There is a lack of scientific evidence as to whether suffocation of lice with occlusive agents, such as petroleum jelly or olive oil, is effective in treatment.
- Clinical Description: Varicella (chickenpox) is a viral illness that is very contagious and is caused by the varicella zoster virus. Early symptoms can include fever and fatigue, which begin about 10 - 21 days after exposure. These symptoms are followed by the appearance of flat, red spots which progress to an itchy rash with fluid-filled vesicles that are characteristic of the disease. Lesions appear in crops over several days, and lesions will be present in several stages of development. As varicella vaccine coverage increases, most cases are now breakthrough cases, which are often less severe (less than 50 lesions and may not progress to the vesicular stage). Varicella can cause serious complications including pneumonia, encephalitis, secondary bacterial infections and even death.
- Incubation Period: The incubation period is usually 14 to 16 days but can be anywhere between 10 and 21 days.
- Mode of Transmission: Transmission occurs primarily through contact with infectious respiratory secretions and aerosolized lesion fluid. Direct contact with open vesicles can also transmit infection. Persons with shingles (herpes zoster), which is a reactivation of the varicella zoster virus, can spread the virus to non-immune persons through direct contact with lesions, which could cause primary varicella infection in these individuals (i.e chicken pox, not shingles).
- Period of Communicability: A person can spread the varicella zoster virus 1 to 2 days before the onset of the rash until all the lesions have crusted over or faded, typically 6 - 7 days.
- Exclusion From School: Infected persons are to be excluded from schools and daycare centers, public gatherings and contact with susceptible persons until vesicles crust over, or, in cases of mild “breakthrough” disease without vesicles, until no new lesions appear within a 24-hour period.
- Prevention/Care:
- Vaccinate with a single dose of live, attenuated varicella vaccine at 12 - 15 months of age and revaccinate with a second dose at 4 - 6 years of age. Indiana school immunization requirements in English and Spanish can be found at https://www.in.gov/health/immunization/
- Varicella vaccine can be administered within 5 days of an exposure to prevent or modify the severity of disease.
- Clinical Description: Ringworm is an infection caused by a fungus that can affect the skin on the body (Tinea corporis), scalp (Tinea capitis), groin area (Tinea cruris “jock itch”) or feet (Tinea pedis “athlete’s foot”). Ringworm usually begins as a small red bump or papule that spreads outward, so that each affected area takes on the appearance of a red, scaly outer ring with a clear central area. The lesions are frequently itchy and can become infected if scratched. Children with pets can also get ringworm. Ringworm has nothing to do with worms.
- Incubation Period: The incubation period for Tinea capitis, Tinea corporis, Tinea cruris and Tinea pedis is 1 - 3 weeks.
- Mode of Transmission: Transmission is usually by direct contact with a human or animal source. Tinea capitis can also be transmitted by inanimate infected objects such as the back of seats, combs, brushes or hats. Tinea cruris, corporis and pedis can be contracted from places such as shower stalls, benches, contaminated floors and articles used by an infected person.
- Period of Communicability: A person can spread ringworm as long as lesions are present and viable fungus persists on contaminated materials and surfaces.
- Exclusion From School: According to the 2009 American Academy of Pediatrics Red Book, students with a fungal infection of the skin should be referred to a medical provider for treatment; however, students who fail to receive treatment do not need to be excluded unless the nature of their contact with other students could potentiate spread.
- Prevention/Care:
- Students infected with tinea pedis should be excluded from swimming pools and from walking barefoot on locker room and shower floors until treatment has been initiated. All persons should be encouraged to wear waterproof shoes in public facilities.
- Over-the-counter medications are available. Consult a doctor for severe cases or cases that do not improve after two weeks of treatment. Avoid contact sports until lesions are gone.
- Students with tinea capitis should be instructed not to share combs, hats, hair accessories or hairbrushes.
- Clean and drain school shower areas frequently. Athletic mats and equipment should be frequently cleaned.
- Always wash hands after contact with animals.
