Again this year, the Guy-Perkins School District has partnered with the Arkansas Department of Health (ADH) to offer "on-site" BinaxNOW COVID-19 testing services through the school nurse. The agreement with ADH requires the district to conduct COVID-19 screenings using the following guidelines:
- Any student not feeling well and/or symptomatic WILL NOT be able to be BinaxNOW tested by the school nurse in order to diagnose COVID-19. Parents will need to have their children tested at a physician's office; an Urgent Care Center; the Arkansas Department of Health office, etc. Students testing positive for COVID-19 will need to contact the school nurse at 501-402-4377 and remain quarantined for no less than 10 days after showing symptoms prior to returning to school. NOTE: Athletes are strongly encouraged to receive medical clearance from a physician prior to resuming practices at school.
- Any student that has NOT tested positive for COVID-19, but has been in close contact with someone testing positive and been sent home to quarantine, may be administered a BinaxNOW test on the 7th day of quarantine. If the BinaxNOW test results are negative, the student may return to school on the 8th day of quarantine, as long as the student is feeling well and NOT symptomatic. Parents may also choose to have this testing completed outside of school, but will need to provide the school nurse with the results. NOTE: If a student quarantines at home for the entire 10-day period, he/she will NOT be required to provide COVID-19 testing results to the school nurse.
- All district employees and substitute teachers may request to be BinaxNOW tested at any time. Typically, these tests are administered by the school nurse prior to the beginning of school so that staffing adjustments can be made for the day.
The Guy-Perkins School District plans to continue BinaxNOW screenings "on site" until the COVID-19 numbers significantly decrease. If you have any additional questions, please contact the school nurse at 501-402-4377.