These are the forms you’ll complete and return to your child’s school or child care facility. Please review the HIPPA policy before completing the registration form.

• Consent Form in English and Spanish
• Registration Form in English and Spanish
• HIPPA policy in English and Spanish

A blood screening is the only way to accurately test children for lead poisoning. Marion County’s older housing stock puts the children in our area at risk for exposure to lead, which can be found in paint and dust in homes built before 1978. Lead can cause learning and behavior problems, slow growth and development, and make it difficult for children to pay attention and learn. Testing children for exposure to lead helps us protect and care for young people and help prevent future exposure.

Most children with elevated lead exposure have no symptoms. That’s why a blood lead test is so important. Even low levels of lead poisoning can cause developmental delays as well as learning and behavior problems. Higher levels of lead poisoning can cause headaches, stomachaches, and organ damage.

Lead poisoning is caused by swallowing or breathing lead. Lead exposure can also come from drinking water that runs through lead pipes.

In Marion County, lead testing is free to children in first grade or younger. With your permission, testing will be coordinated through your child’s school or child care center. Before your child is tested, you’ll receive a couple of forms to complete and sign and information about a test date. A lead test involves collecting a small amount of blood from your child’s finger through a skin prick.

On the morning of the test, please make sure your child has plenty of liquids and a good breakfast.

A screener from the Marion County Public Health Department will perform the testing while a school staff member is present. Our screeners are trained pediatric phlebotomists with an average of 11 years of experience testing children in school settings. Phlebotomists collect blood for testing so it can be analyzed in a clinical laboratory. We conduct lead screenings safely and in accordance with requirements for blood-borne pathogens.

Your child’s lead screening will take place in a room reserved for testing at the school that day. Forms including your child’s teacher’s name and classroom number will be ready. At least one member of the school staff will be present along with the screener. Here’s a step-by-step overview of the process:

First, your child will wash his or her hands.

Next, the screener will:

1. Clean your child’s finger with an alcohol swab.
2. Poke your child’s finger with a tiny needle, or lancet.
3. Massage your child’s finger, collecting drops of blood in a small tube.
4. Clean your child’s finger with clean gauze.
5. Apply a cartoon Band-Aid to your child’s finger.

There may still be time to have your child tested. Contact your child’s school and return the forms before the school’s scheduled testing day.

According to Indiana law,* the laboratory that analyzes the blood reports sends the test results and all demographic information to the Indiana State Department of Health. If the screening indicates that your child’s blood level is elevated, a representative from the Marion County Lead Poison Prevention Program will contact you directly to schedule a confirmatory test.

For the confirmatory test, a blood sample will be taken from a vein in your child’s arm to confirm the lead level. Children with elevated lead levels can receive assistance from the Marion County Public Health Department. For more information, call the Marion County Public Health Department Lead Poisoning Prevention Program at 317-221-2155.

* Code 16-41-39.4-3

If an elevated level of lead is confirmed, the Marion County Public Health Department will provide an assessment, which includes a visit to your home to identify possible sources of lead in the environment. We’ll also examine your child’s history and note behaviors that may increase lead exposure and absorption. You’ll receive support, which includes nutrition and developmental screening and education and guidance on reducing lead exposure. We’ll provide referrals for nutritional and developmental interventions, and we’ll monitor your child’s blood lead levels to ensure the level is decreasing.

Read this flier, download the Mission Unleaded app and visit the Resources page of this website.

Mission Unleaded app on iTunes and Google Play.

Contact Us

Lead Poisoning Prevention Program
3901 Meadows Drive Indianapolis, IN 46205
317 / 221-2155 | FAX 317 / 221-2296
leadct@marionhealth.org