To think school being a bit over zealous

[Rollergirl1]

DD has had a bit of an upset tummy for the past week or so. It hasn't been bothering her other than she has had very watery poos and sometimes needs to go to the toilet very quickly. I took her to the doctors after about 3 days and they said nothing to worry about, it will pass etc. Anyway on Friday she was sent home from school because she had an "upset tummy". When I picked her up she was absolutely fine and it seemed more that it was school that wanted her to go home rather than DD feeling unwell. I managed to get her a doctors appointment that afternoon and they re-iterated that they didn't think it was anything serious. They asked me to get a stool sample if I could, which I did. They then said that she would be well enough to go to school on Monday and just to try to give her bland food over the weekend. Which we did.

DD went to school yesterday without consequence. Although I heard that a friend of DD's went home ill. When I spoke to the Mum she said she was fine, just had a bit of trapped wind.

So school call me at 2.45 this afternoon to inform me that DD has an upset tummy and is saying that her tummy hurts. I was at work and over an hour away. They asked me if I would be picking her up. I said no and that my childminder was probably en-route to pick her up as we were speaking (school finishes at 3pm). The woman on the phone then got very sniffy with me and asked if I was sure DD should be going to the childminders if she was unwell. I told her that she had already been seen by the GP twice who said that there was no reason for her not to go to school, and anyway I was too far away to pick up. I called CM to warn her.

The upshot is that they were also a bit sniffy with CM upon pick-up. Said that they were trying to cut down cross-contamination and that she should be doing the same. The chances are is that if she rushes to the loo again tomorrow that they will send her home again. My question is what am I meant to do? Am i meant to keep an otherwise well child out of school for this? And if so for how long? She has been seen by two doctors who both said she was well enough for school.

[MaureenMLove]

Damned if you do and damned if you don't, if you are a school firstaider....

[belledechocchipcookie]

Keep her off until she's better. It could be something infectious (like ecoli) and it's going to be embarassing for her. She's not fit to be in school at the moment.

[BelleEnd]

I wouldn't send my child in with the shits, and wouldn't expect others to.

[BullieMama]

Personally I think the school is taking the right approach, bugs like this spread like wildfire in a nursery environment, I appreciate that the doctors have said she is ok to be in in school but my doctor said there was not a problem with my DD being in school with chicken pox .

If the bug spreads and the school has 30 children with upset tummies they will have to deal with a lot of mess.

[troisgarcons]

it only takes one with a particularly nasty bug to wipe out a whole school. the novo virus wiped out my sons school last winter; they were down to 8-10 in a class of 30.

I thought it was standard school policy to request keeping a child home for 24 hours after the last attack of the runs to ensure the bacteria/virus had gone.

Whereas you may think you child is fine, schools (and indeed any public area such as hospitals) are filthy bacteria laiden places. People dont wash their hands after using the loo and touch communal things such as bannisters or doorss. Come to think of it, even if you do wash your hands you leave your germs on taps. so even if you personally have a good functioning immune system, you could transport something home that might upset a young sibling or indeed an older grandparent who lives with you.

So school call me at 2.45 this afternoon to inform me that DD has an upset tummy and is saying that her tummy hurts

Lets hypothesise if you hadnt been called and her appendix erupted? the thread would be entirely different with a negligence stance.

[BullieMama]

I forgot to add that as a parent I would be tamping if another parent sent a child to school with 'upset tummy' and my child became ill as a result.

[Flisspaps]

HPA guidelines recommend that children should be kept away from school and childcare settings for 48 hours after the last bout of sickness or diarrhoea. Just because the GP said it was nothing serious, doesn't mean it's not contagious or that it won't have a nastier effect on others who may catch it from your DD.

As a CM I wouldn't be happy to care for a child who had diarrhoea and if you phoned me to warn me then I'd have politely told you that you would need to make alternative arrangements for her collection as per my policy.

[CurrySpice]

YABU

I agree with the school's stance.

[mymummyisasquarehead]

The school is being responsible.

The doctor, who apparently told you that your child would be okay to go to school on the Monday, was being utterly irrepsonsible.

They have a responsibility to the other children and this will be clearly stated in the literature of the school. It is standard practice for any such organisation.

She should be 48 hours clear until you send her back. If she isn't you keep her off. I'm amazed your childminder accepted her.

Without samples and results, a doctor CANNOT say it is not infectious to others.

I feel for you, but the school acted correctly!

[AuntiePickleBottom]

i would keep her off until the results of the stool sample was back.

[seeker]

OK. Most schools have a 48 hours off after last episode of D or V. I bet your does- look on the website.

And what on earth are you doing taking a child to the doctor twice with a tummy upset?

[Rollergirl1]

Okay, I hear you. Any idea how long stool samples take to come back? I submitted them on friday?

[Rollergirl1]

seeker: what's your point? That I shouldn't have? That I should have taken her to A&E instead? That I shouldn't have atall? Not a particularly helpful post.

[WaftedHereFromParadise]

I would certainly appreciate the schools approach if my dc was one of your dd's classmates.

They are reacting to her symptoms and complaint of a tummy upset/ needing the toilet a lot. That flags up a potential stomach upset to them and they're playing safe in the interests of everyone else.

I think you need to be sure she's ok to get through the school day unaffected before you send her in or the school will inevitably keep being forced to make that call going by her symptoms.

I would also keep her off until I had the test results.

[itisnearlysummer]

I think it is agreed, YABU!

[noonar]

i think this is the kind of situation that is really hard for working parents. deep down you probably know that she should be off school. but ...she seems fairly well within herself and the implications of her being off are probably logistically tricky for you... so you send her in... and hope for the best.

the school were in the right. she shouldnt be at school.

i am a teacher and my poor job share partner had to clean up 2 very nasty episodes of diarr last term. above and beyond her job description, i think!

i have to admit i have dosed up my own dds with calpol and sent them in with a bad cold when i wouldve kept them off, had i not been working. D and v is another matter, though.

[Springyknickersohnovicars]

As per all of the above.

[worraliberty]

I think you have to look at it like this.

If you weren't working and had nothing else to do, would you have kept her off until her diarrhea cleared up completely?

If the answer is yes, then surely you can see how the school are looking at it?

[Springyknickersohnovicars]

With the addition don't be surprised if the childminder refuses to have her too as it will spread to the other children she cares for and cost the childminder potentially her earnings.

[slavetofilofax]

You are being very selfish and irresponsible.

You didn't need to take her to the doctor just for a tummy upset, but you should have kept her off school for the benefit of others.

Did the doctor really say that it was ok to send her to school when s/he knew she had a tummy upset? Or did he just say that she would be fine? There is a big difference, and I find it very hard to believe that a doctor would advise a parent to send a child with the runs into school.

If a doctor really did say that, it can't be a doctor that's very good at the job.

[Rollergirl1]

How could my CM not accept her? She was on the way to pick her up from school when the school called me? She could hardly refuse to take her. Idf she had then DD would have had to wait over an hour for me to return from London to collect her.

I guess there has been an element of me working having an impact. But I wasn't working on friday or yesterday. Both days I thought that she seemed perfectly well enough to go to school. This thing has been very up and down and has definitely not been a constant.

[mybootsaremuddy]

..........What everyone else ^ is saying!

[IwishIwasmoreorganised]

It's not a nice situation to be in as a working parent, but for the sakes of the other children both at school and at the CM's and the teachers and parents of those children I think that your dd should stay off school until the sample results are known.

YABU to send her into school while still symptomatic until you know that she is not infectious.

[worraliberty]

She could hardly refuse to take her. Idf she had then DD would have had to wait over an hour for me to return from London to collect her

Well yes of course she could refuse to take her and I don't mean this to sound as rude as it quite possibly does but...if you had to struggle back from London in over an hour to collect her, it might make you think twice about sending a sick child to school IYSWIM?

Even as adults we tend to want to just 'crash and relax' when we're ill.

It must be absolutely awful for a little one not to be able to recouperate after an illness.