Health Services
"Healthy Children Learn Better, School Nurses Make it Happen!"
School nursing, a specialized practice of nursing, protects and promotes student health, facilitates optimal development, and advances academic success. School nurses, grounded in ethical and evidence-based practice, are the leaders who bridge health care and education, provide care coordination, advocate for quality student-centered care, and collaborate to design systems that allow individuals and communities to develop their full potentials.
Approved by the NASN Board of Directors Feb 2017.
NBISD Nurses
New Braunfels ISD Health Services
- Community Resources
- Registration: Student Health
- Vaccine Requirements for Students Grade K-12
- Students Entering 7th Grade Immunization Requirements
Community Resources
- New Braunfels and Comal County Community Resources
- (How to Access Community Resources)
- City of New Braunfels: Local Resources
- Find Help.org: Find food assistance, help paying bills and other free or reduced cost programs, including new programs for the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Ask Aunt Bertha: Find free or reduced cost services like medical care, food, job training and more.
Registration: Student Health
Registration: Quick Link to Health Services Forms
Additional documents can be located on the NBISD Health Services Health Resources page under individual topics. Feel free to download and print off and fax or email to the Campus Nurse. Thank you!
Vaccine Requirements for Students Grade K-12
Visit the Texas Minimum State Vaccine Requirements for Students Grade K-12.
A student shall show acceptable evidence of vaccination prior to entry, attendance, or transfer to a child-care facility or public or private elementary or secondary school in Texas.
Please provide your shot record to the School nurse if your child has received these vaccines. Your student will not be able to receive a schedule or attend school until the shots are received and written record is provided.
View the Texas Minimum State Vaccine Requirements for Students Grades K-12 PDF.
Students Entering 7th Grade Immunization Requirements
In addition to a current immunization record, we must have a record that shows the following vaccines have been received:
- 1 dose of Meningococcal Vaccine (meningitis) Meningococcal vaccinesprotect against infection with a type of bacteria that causes meningitis and blood infection (sepsis). Adolescents are at increased risk of getting this infection. This is a rare, but extremely serious disease that kills up to 10 percent of those who get it. Up to 20 percent of survivors will have serious long-term or permanent complications such as brain damage, kidney damage, deafness, or amputations. Please note that adolescents need a booster vaccine at age 16. Parents should also ask about a second type of meningococcal vaccine (meningococcal B) that may be appropriate for their child between ages 16-18 years.
- 1 dose of Tdap Vaccine (tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis) Tdap vaccine includes protection against pertussis (whooping cough), which has been on the rise in the US especially among children 10-19 years old and babies under five years old. Vaccination is important even if your child was vaccinated as an infant, because the protection from those vaccines may not last into the teen years.
Please provide your shot record to the School nurse if your child has received these vaccines. Your student will not be able to receive a schedule or attend school until the shots are received and written record is provided.
- Human Papillomavirius vaccine (HPV) HPV vaccine protects against a cancer-causing infection. The HPV vaccine is recommended and is a two dose series for boys and girls age 9-14. After the age of 15 a three-dose series over a six-month period is needed to protect both females and males. Teens or young adults who have not gotten any or all of the recommended doses should make an appointment to be vaccinated. Younger adolescents have higher antibody levels to vaccination compared to older adolescents and young adults. This may result in longer lasting immunity for those vaccinated earlier in adolescence.
Health Information
Bacterial Meningitis
WHAT IS MENINGITIS?
Meningitis is an inflammation of the covering of the brain and spinal cord. It can be caused by viruses, parasites, fungi, and bacteria. Viral meningitis is most common and the least serious. Meningitis caused by bacteria is the most likely form of the disease to cause serious, long-term complications. It is an uncommon disease but requires urgent treatment with antibiotics to prevent permanent damage or death.
Bacterial meningitis can be caused by multiple organisms. Two common types are Streptococcus pneumoniae, with over 80 serogroups that can cause illness, and Neisseria meningitidis, with 5 serogroups that most commonly cause meningitis.
WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS?
Someone with bacterial meningitis will become very ill. The illness may develop over one or two days, but it can also rapidly progress in a matter of hours. Not everyone with meningitis will have the same symptoms.
Children (over 1 year old) and adults with meningitis may have a severe headache, high temperature, vomiting, sensitivity to bright lights, neck stiffness, and drowsiness or confusion. In both children and adults, there may be a rash of tiny, red-purple spots. These can occur anywhere on the body.
The diagnosis of bacterial meningitis is based on a combination of symptoms and laboratory results.
HOW SERIOUS IS BACTERIAL MENINGITIS?
If it is diagnosed early and treated promptly, most people make a complete recovery. If left untreated or treatment is delayed, bacterial meningitis can be fatal, or a person may be left with permanent disability.
HOW CAN BACTERIAL MENINGITIS BE PREVENTED?
Bacterial meningitis cased by Streptococcus pneumoniae and Neisseria meningitidis may be prevented through vaccination. Vaccination with available meningococcal vaccines offers longer-term protection and is routinely recommended for adolescents and others at increased risk.
The vaccine which protects against Streptococcus pneumoniae is called pneumococcal conjugate vaccine or PCV. There are two types of vaccinations for meningococcal disease available in the US. Meningococcal conjugate vaccines (Menactra® and Menveo®) available in the US provide protection against 4 of the 5 most common serogroups of N. meningitidis (serogroups A, C, W, and Y). Serogroup B vaccines (Trumenba® and Bexsero®) provides protection for the other most common serogroup, serogroup B. Meningococcal vaccinations are generally recommended for those beginning at 11-12 years of age with a booster between 16-18 years of age; however, for those persons at an increased risk for meningococcal disease the age recommended is different.
Depending on the brand and your age you may receive different number of doses. Approximately 2 weeks are required following vaccination for the development of protective antibody levels.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Your school nurse, family doctor, and the staff at your local or regional health department office are excellent sources for information on all infectious diseases. You may call your family doctor or local health department office to ask about meningococcal vaccine. Additional information may also be found at the web sites for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): https://www.cdc.gov/meningitis/index.html and the Texas Department of State Health Services(DSHS): https://www.dshs.texas.gov/immunize/PreteenVaccines.aspx or
https://dshs.texas.gov/IDCU/disease/meningitis/Meningitis.aspx
SOURCE:
COVID-19
Flu
Visit the Flu Vaccination Information from the Texas Department of State Health Services
The single best way to prevent seasonal flu is to get vaccinated each year, but good health habits like covering your cough and washing your hands often can help stop the spread of germs and prevent respiratory illnesses like the flu. There also are flu antiviral drugs that can be used to treat and prevent flu.
Go Blue and Kick the Flu! Influenza Vaccination is the most effective method for preventing illness and reducing absenteeism. New Braunfels ISD is partnering to provide flu vaccines for our staff and students at schools. You may also consult your physician, local pharmacy or Health Department to get vaccinated!
1. Avoid close contact.
Avoid close contact with people who are sick. When you are sick, keep your distance from others to protect them from getting sick too.
2. Stay home when you are sick.
If possible, stay home from work, school, and errands when you are sick. This will help prevent spreading your illness to others. Students and staff must be fever free (less than 100.0) for 24 hours without the use of fever reducing medication before returning to school.
3. Cover your mouth and nose.
Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing or sneezing. It may prevent those around you from getting sick.
4. Clean your hands.
Washing your hands often will help protect you from germs. If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand rub.
5. Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth.
Germs are often spread when a person touches something that is contaminated with germs and then touches his or her eyes, nose, or mouth.
6. Practice other good health habits.
Clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces at home, work or school, especially when someone is ill. Get plenty of sleep, be physically active, manage your stress, drink plenty of fluids, and eat nutritious food.
For more information visit the CDC.gov website or download the related CDC flyers:
HPV Update
DSHS Immunization Branch Advisory No. 27 - CDC Recommends Two HPV Shots for Younger Adolescents
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC’s) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) has updated its recommendation regarding the three injection series of HPV vaccination in adolescents, beginning at age 11-12 years. CDC now routinely recommends two doses of HPV vaccine for 11 or 12 year old's to prevent HPV cancers.
Why does my child need HPV vaccine?
HPV vaccine is important because it protects against cancers caused by human papillomavirus (HPV) infection. HPV is a very common virus; nearly 80 million people—about one in four—are currently infected in the United States. About 14 million people, including teens, become infected with HPV each year.
Most people with HPV never develop symptoms or health problems. Most HPV infections (9 out of 10) go away by themselves within two years. But, sometimes, HPV infections will last longer, and can cause certain cancers and other diseases. HPV infection can cause:
- cancers of the cervix, vagina, and vulva in women;
- cancers of the penis in men; and
- cancers of the anus and back of the throat, including the base of the tongue and tonsils (oropharynx), in both women and men.
Every year in the United States, HPV causes 30,700 cancers in men and women. HPV vaccination can prevent most of the cancers (about 28,000) from occurring
iHealth
Measles
Measles (rubeola) is a highly contagious acute viral respiratory illness. It is characterized by a prodrome of fever (as high as 105°F) and malaise, cough, coryza, and conjunctivitis – the three “C”s, Koplik spots followed by a maculopapular rash. The rash usually appears about 14 days after a person is exposed, however, the incubation ranges from 7 – 21 days. The rash characteristically spreads from the head to the trunk to the lower extremities. Patients are considered to be contagious from 4 days before to 4 days after the rash appears. Please note that immunocompromised patients may not develop the rash. Complications can include otitis media, diarrhea, bronchitis, pneumonia, encephalitis, seizures and death.
While it is rare that vaccinated individuals develop measles, it does happen. Vaccinated individuals may have an atypical clinical presentation—typically shorter rash duration or atypical rash presentation, and possible lack of fever, cough, coryza or conjunctivitis. People at high risk for severe illness and complications from measles include: infants and children <5 years, adults aged >20 years, pregnant women, and those with compromised immune systems.
Department of State Health Services Infectious Disease Control
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Zika Virus
As summer arrives, so do mosquitoes! Mosquito activity increases with warmer weather, and so does the threat of illness. Pregnant women are particularly at risk of Zika; the virus can cause birth defects in unborn infants. The Zika virus spreads through the bite of certain types of mosquitoes. While it can cause fever, rash, joint pain, and red or pink eyes, about 80 percent of people with Zika do not become ill or have symptoms. Zika can also spread through blood transfusions and sexual contact. . Prevent mosquito breeding and protect yourself from mosquito bites. You can learn more about Zika in Texas here.
Listed below are some steps to help prevent mosquito-borne illnesses.
- Apply EPA-approved insect repellent.
- Wear pants and long-sleeve shirts
- Remove standing water in and around your home
- Cover trash cans or containers where water can collect
- Talk to your doctor if you have concerns
For additional information on Zika in Comal County visit Zika in Central Texas.
View the Zika Virus Protection and Prevention Info Sheet from TEA
The Zika informational poster from the Texas Department of Health and Human services can be found at: https://www.texaszika.org/materials/ZikaPoster11x17English.pdf