Case Study:
A child presents to his second grade teacher with a fever, nausea and a severe sore throat. He said that he has been feeling sick for 2-3 days but today was the worse he felt. The teacher calls the administrative office and has the child picked up from school by his mother. After taking the child to his community pediatrician, a call comes in later in the day that the rapid Streptococcus A test has returned positive and the child is to start on oral antibiotics immediately. The mother notifies the school. The administrative policy on contacting parents of all children within the classroom is initiated. After the child’s parents took him to his local pediatrician, they got a call later that day saying that the rapid Streptococcus A test came back positive, so the child will start taking antibiotics by mouth right away. The mother tells the school about it. The policy is put into place to contact the parents of all the kids in the classroom. The child stays home from school for 3 days and then returns to the classroom on day four.
Based on the above case study, answer the following students:
What are the classic symptoms of Streptococcus A (i.e., strep) throat?
What are the common antibiotics given to treat this condition?
Why is there a protocol for notifying parents of the child’s fellow classmates?
What are the guidelines that must be taught to the parents about oral antibiotic therapy for Streptococcus A?
What is the rationale for the guidelines that will be taught to the parents?
