QUESTION: What are your recommendations for parents about working with their children's schools?

DR. SZIGETHY: Again I think if there was one word it would be "proactive," and "preemptive" would be the second word. Because it's inevitable, especially for children and adolescents who get the illness sort of early in their school course, that there's likely going to be school absences for doctors' appointments, for treatments, and for hospitalizations, in the case of disease flares. Also I think it's helpful- again this is depending on the grade and the school system- for the parents to have a very good idea- and again for older children to empower them to do this- but to really know what homework schedules are, to know what exam schedules are, and to have a plan in place so that in case they have to miss school, that's not the time that everybody has to scramble to try to keep the child on track. Because then that's the ultimate goal, is helping kids, even if they have to miss school time, or actually extracurricular time, feel that they can reintegrate as quickly and as painlessly as possible.