Going Back to School

Your child should be ready to return to school approximately three to four weeks after discharge from the hospital.  Hopefully, he has kept up with school work through a tutor and won’t be too far behind.

Plan to meet with the teacher ahead of time to discuss your child’s medical needs.  Items for discussion at this meeting include:

• Medication schedule
• Follow-up doctor appointments and biopsies
• Possible physical changes related to medications, i.e., weight gain, puffy face.

For Your Child

This may be a challenging time for a young child to handle.  During his absence, the imagination and rumors of his classmates may have embellished the truth.  Consider asking your child’s teacher, school nurse or psychologist to plan a group discussion with your child on his first day back to school.

Ask the Child Life specialist or nurse specialist to help answer questions about your child’s return to school.  Prepare your child for questions at school, such as:

What was it like in the hospital?

Was the surgery painful?  Was he frightened?

What was the hardest part?  Was he afraid?

Does he feel different now?

How is his life different now?  Can he do things he couldn’t do before?

Must he be more careful of germs?