Confused about what to do when your child is showing signs of illness? You are not alone! Here is a quick summary of the current Durham Public Schools protocols.

If your child has any of the following symptoms, they need to stay home! Symptoms include: fever or chills, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, fatigue, muscle or body aches, headache, new loss of taste or smell, sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea or vomiting, diarrhea. 

SYMPTOMATIC INDIVIDUALS PROTOCOL

• Symptomatic individuals should be tested for COVID prior to returning to school.
• All individuals need to be registered prior to COVID testing at school. Individual school registration links can be found at COVID-19 Testing Online STUDENT Registration.
• Symptomatic individuals who test positive must follow the DPS Isolation Protocols outlined below.
• Symptomatic individuals who test negative or receive an alternative diagnosis, can return when symptoms have improved and have been fever free for 24 hours without fever-reducing medication.

ISOLATION PROTOCOLS

• When an individual tests positive for COVID, they must stay home and isolate for 5 days.  The date of the positive test collection or the date symptoms started (whichever came first) is day 0.
• Individuals may return on Day 6 as long as symptoms are improving and the individual has been fever free for 24 hours without fever-reducing medication.
• Individuals must wear a mask 100% of the time around others until day 10 after coming out of isolation.
• Individuals who are considered close contacts of someone who has tested positive must wear a mask for 10 days regardless of vaccination status (no isolation is needed for close contacts unless the individual is showing symptoms).

When your child is absent for any reason, let us know! Send the teacher a message through Class Dojo or other preferred method of contact letting them know why your student missed school. Absences due to illness are considered excused, but you must send a note or email to your child's teacher or our data manager (maria_rodriguez@dpsnc.net) following any absence.

To electronically send any testing results, alternative diagnosis, or other medical information, please send to our school nurse at: rebecca_worlu@dpsnc.net.