 Does your school nurse's office have a CLIA certificate?
The federal Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS) regulates laboratory testing through the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA) certification program. The objective of CLIA is to ensure the accuracy, reliability and timeliness of patient test results through laboratory standards.
Any person or facility that performs laboratory tests on human specimens for the purpose of diagnosis and/or treatment is required by federal law to have a CLIA certificate. This also includes CLIA-waived tests (simple tests with a low risk for an incorrect result, such as finger-stick blood sugars and urine dipstick tests for glucose or ketones).
Different types of CLIA certificates are available, depending on what type of testing is performed at the facility. Most school nurse offices will fall under a CLIA waiver certificate.
In Kentucky, the certificate of waiver has a multiple location exemption that saves the local board of education the cost of applying for individual CLIA certificates. The school district applies for the certificate using the board of education as the home address. It also must list each school that the school nurse services (schools qualify as a temporary testing site). The school district can list up to 200 schools per waiver for the district.
Certificates are $180 each and last for two years. District health coordinators are encouraged to keep a copy of the CLIA certificate on file at each school nurse's office. Visit CMS' website for an application for a CLIA certificate.
If you are unsure whether your district has a current CLIA certificate or if you need more information, email Truman Taylor or call him at (859) 285-4457.
Medication administration training materials updated to include midazolam, Baqsimi
The Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) has updated the new medication administration training program for unlicensed school personnel to include the drugs midazolam and Baqsimi.
Both medications have recently been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (midazolam for treatment of seizures in children ages 12 and over and Baqsimi for treatment of hypoglycemia resulting in unconsciousness). A new training manual was emailed to all districts that previously requested the new training program that was released in the spring.
The training manual and PowerPoints are also posted on KDE student health services' medication administration training program webpage. If your district already has added information to the training program to include these two new medications, you may continue to use that training material.
 Tracking influenza-like
illnesses in schools
Cases of influenza already have been documented in Kentucky this fall. Because flu activity has stared earlier than usual, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is recommending a heightened effort to promote flu prevention. Flu vaccine clinics and reporting flu like activity are encouraged to promote this effort.
The Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) and the Kentucky Department of Public Health (KDPH) are partnering to track students with flu-like illnesses in the school setting. When a teacher, school nurse or attendance clerk is notified that a child is absent due to flu-like symptoms, attendance clerks or other school staff members should code the absence with one of the following codes:
- ILE – Influenza-like excused
- ILP – Influenza-like parent note
- ILD – Influenza-like doctor note
- ILU – Influenza-like unexcused
Flu-like illnesses should be tracked closely by administrators, school nurses and district health coordinators to determine if the district flu plan should be activated. Extra cleaning by custodial staff should be performed during the day, including the cleaning of frequently used items such as water fountains, computer keyboards, et cetera. The use of shared items such as crayons and scissors should be limited as well. Students also should be taught to cover coughs and to use good hand washing practices.
School districts should always notify their local health department of any outbreaks or closings as they work with state epidemiologists as well as the CDC for data reporting.
Visit CDC's website for free resources, including information on how to avoid contracting the flu.
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