As summer break comes to a close and children return to school, the Florida Department of Health (DOH) encourages parents to make sure preventative health measures are included on their child’s back-to-school checklist.
“Keeping students healthy and safe will give them the best chance to succeed in school,” said State Surgeon General Ana M. Viamonte Ros, M.D., M.P.H. “We want to make sure parents are taking their children to their primary care physician for their annual well-child check-up and to make sure all medical records are in order.”
The state of Florida offers KidCare, a health insurance program for children from birth through age 18. Children can be eligible even if one or both parents are working. Children covered by Florida KidCare are eligible for comprehensive health care, including sports physicals, doctor visits, check-ups, immunizations, surgery, prescriptions, vision and hearing screenings, mental health care, dental check-ups and hospital stays. Students with access to these and other preventative health care services are likely to be healthier and perform better in school.
“No child in Florida should have to be without health care,” said Joe Chiaro, M.D., Deputy Secretary for Children’s Medical Services. “Insurance improves children’s access to the medications and treatment they need to control childhood illnesses and decrease absences from school.”
The Department of Health also suggests parents prepare their children for these other back-to-school activities:
o Parents should speak with their children about safely traveling to and from school, which includes planning safe routes, reminding them to stay on the sidewalk or in the bicycle lane and cross the street only at designated crosswalks, and showing them how to properly wear a bicycle helmet if they are biking to school.
o Many of Florida’s students spend recess or physical education time outdoors. Parents should put sunscreen on their children in the morning, or send it to school with their child so they can apply it before playing outdoors so they can be protected from sun exposure. It is recommended to use a sunscreen that protects against both UVA and UVB rays and has a sun protection factor (SPF) of 15 or higher.
o Healthy eating, adequate physical activity and good sleep patterns are instrumental to student’s success in school.
