Health Information

We have put some information about some of the common problems/ailments that children may suffer from at one time or another.  There is information about symptoms, causes and treatments for Headlice, Threadworm and Hand, Foot and Mouth from the NHS website in the subpages found at the bottom of this page.

We hope you find this helpful. If you would like to see other health information under here, please come and discuss this with Mrs Benson.

The following information was sent to schools from Public Health England:

Vulnerable children

Some medical conditions make children vulnerable to infections that would rarely be serious in most children, these include those being treated for leukaemia or other cancers, on high doses of steroids and with conditions that seriously reduce immunity.  Schools and nurseries and childminders will normally have been made aware of such children.  These children are particularly vulnerable to chickenpox, measles or parvovirus B19 and, if exposed to either of these, the parent/carer should be informed promptly and further medical advice sought.  It may be advisable for these children to have additional immunisations, for example pneumococcal and influenza.

Female staff – pregnancy

If a pregnant woman develops a rash or is in direct contact with someone with a potentially infectious rash, this should be investigated according to PHE guidelines by a doctor. The greatest risk to pregnant women from such infections comes from their own child/children, rather than the workplace. Some specific risks are:

• chickenpox can affect the pregnancy if a woman has not already had the infection. Report exposure to midwife and GP at any stage of exposure. The GP and antenatal carer will arrange a blood test to check for immunity. Shingles is caused by the same virus as chickenpox, so anyone who has not had chickenpox is potentially vulnerable to the infection if they have close contact with a case of shingles

• German measles (rubella). If a pregnant woman comes into contact with German measles she should inform her GP and antenatal carer immediately to ensure investigation. The infection may affect the developing baby if the woman is not immune and is exposed in early pregnancy

• slapped cheek disease (parvovirus B19) can occasionally affect an unborn child. If exposed early in pregnancy (before 20 weeks), inform whoever is giving antenatal care as this must be investigated promptly

• measles during pregnancy can result in early delivery or even loss of the baby. If a pregnant woman is exposed she should immediately inform whoever is giving antenatal care to ensure investigation

This advice also applies to pregnant students.