Nurse's Corner
Nurse's Corner
Head Lice Policy Student Health
Immunizations: All students must have an updated immunization record or an exemption record on file in the Nurse’s office for the current school year. Parents/guardians are required to provide the school district with this information within 30 days of the start of school. Please contact your county Department of Health to check on this status for your child, schedule appointments, and receive immunizations. The ADH (Arkansas Department of Health) website provides the link for applying for exemptions. Please keep a copy of these records for yourself and provide a copy for the school district. If there are any questions regarding immunizations, exemptions or the process please don’t hesitate to call or email me at 870-499-7192 and/or makayla.rangel@norfork.k12.ar.us
Vision/Hearing/Growth/BMI/Scoliosis: These health screenings are state mandated at certain grades/ages to ensure the students physical ability is at its best while growing and learning. If you (parents/guardians) have completed any of these health screenings for your child, please provide the school district a copy, so we will not re-screen unnecessarily. There are different due dates for each health screening. If you do not wish for the school nurse to screen your child, you must provide a written notice to the school district explaining which screenings you are refusing and why. Verbal refusals are not allowed. Also, with all the changes due to COVID, please be aware the traditional methods of screening(s) throughout the school year may look different this year. I will keep everyone updated as much as possible.
Food Allergies: We are no longer able to take a verbal or written form of communication for food allergies &/or sensitivities from the parent. FDA/State Cafeteria guidelines now require a written note from your child's PCP (Primary Care Physician) stating exactly what not to allow that student to be fed.
Pre-existing Medical Conditions: Students with Anaphylactic reactions, Asthma, Diabetes, Seizures, and other conditions requiring medications or treatment plans must provide paperwork from the PCP or medical doctor. Parents/guardians must bring medications (prescribed and OTC), including returns and refills, into the school nurse for their child and complete required paperwork on all medication(s) administered, or possibly administered, while at school. If your child has a pre-existing or life-threatening health condition, an Action Plan for their diagnosis has to be provided by your child’s PCP (Primary Care Physician), in the event of that occurrence/emergency, stating exactly what to do. If your PCP does not know what this request is, Action Plan paperwork can be provided by the school district for your PCP to fill out. Please know I will help in any way I can to get paperwork completed and medications secured for the safety of your child when at school.
What to Know About Measles
Contact: Stacey.ferretti@arkansas.gov or Outbreak Response team at adh.orsnurses@arkansas.gov or 501-661-2381 if you have any questions.
Measles Updates
- Measles Cases and Outbreaks | Measles (Rubeola) | CDC ─ As of July 29, a total of 1,333 confirmed measles cases were reported to CDC by 40 jurisdictions. There have been 29 outbreaks reported in 2025, and 87% of confirmed cases (1,156 of 1,333) are outbreak-associated.
- Preparing and Responding to Measles: Checklist for K-12 Schools and Preparing and responding to Measles: Checklist for early care and education centers ─ CDC developed measles preparedness and response checklists tailored for K-12 schools and early care and education centers. These checklists are intended for staff working in these facilities and settings to use in collaboration with their state or local health department. The checklists focus on implementation, specifically how to prepare for measles and what to do in the first 10 minutes after a measles case is suspected.
- Both checklists are also included in the Be Ready for Measles Toolkit.
- Behind the Model: Interactive Measles Outbreak Simulator | CFA: Behind the Model | CDC ─ The Center for Forecasting and Outbreak Analytics (CFA), in collaboration with the CDC Measles Response, developed an interactive simulator for public health decision-makers to explore the potential impact of three key public health interventions—isolation, quarantine, and vaccination—on measles outbreaks. This webpage provides in-depth information about the underlying methodology.
- Since April 2025, CDC has hosted the National Measles Response Call to share updates about measles outbreaks, including epidemiologic data trends, case updates, and new resources. To streamline response-related communication, CDC has sunset this Wednesday 3 p.m. EDT call series. However, measles updates will continue to be shared during the biweekly CDC Response All-STLT Update calls, which require a one-time registration to receive future meeting invitations.