P E teacher. Please help.

Absolutely no idea - deflection maybe?

The parent had made a complaint. The teacher didn't suspect it was about to happen as the parent was on the phone to them making the complaint so it was in progress as they were talking!

So why do you think this particular teacher brought it up when she was suspect that a parent was about to make a complaint about an unrelated issue?

What do you mean ‘what do you hope to achieve’?

You do realise that asthma is life-threatening? People die of asthma attacks even now, with all the modern medical interventions we have. You can’t mess around with it to teach someone a lesson.

OP will be wanting to ensure her child is not denied access to her life-saving medicine in future. This teacher sounds quite ignorant of asthma, and needs retraining sharpish.

The usual day to day niggles around pupils forgetting stuff they ought to remember is an issue of much lower priority than ensuring a pupil has medication for a serious medical condition.

OP - I would speak to the safeguarding lead at the school and outline your concerns. I would want assurances that there would be an emergency inhaler on hand or DD would be allowed to retrieve her inhaler if she forgets in future. DD also needs to have it drilled into her that she needs her inhaler with her at all times, in case she runs into others who are similarly ignorant as the PE teacher.

My youngest DD is asthmatic and after an incident in Yr 7 when she didn't take her inhaler from the changing rooms out onto the field for the 1500m in PE (which luckily ended fine after a friend was allowed to pop back and collect it for her), I bought her a pair of leggings with a pocket, so she can keep her inhaler in there. It's part of her PE routine now; change into PE kit, tape over earrings and put inhaler in her pocket. For the summer when they wear a skort I made a small hole in the plastic housing of the inhaler and threaded some string through it so she could wear it around her neck, under her PE top.

I would just leave it with the PE teacher now, and make sure your DD knows how important it is for her to remember her inhaler and to take responsibility for her own health.

They are checked frequently during the school year and during pupil progress meetings with the SLT. Moderation is about ensuring grading is accurate and is done from EYFS all the way up. Schools link with other schools in staff meeting time and moderate per subject. They also get moderation from external sources periodically such as in Y6 can get moderated from the LA to ensure teacher assessments are accurate. It is not based on complaints either. It is routine.

I honestly doubt that they are checked that closely unless there is a actual complaint

Grades are moderated both by other teachers in the school and by link schools. Someone internal and external will moderate the grades so that teacher has to evidence the grade. They cannot lower grades at will or raise them. They are held to account for grading.

Some of these responses have floored me.

I’m a lifetime asthmatic, well managed now, but have had severe attacks in the past. Asthma can kill, and quickly.

DD didn’t ask to go get inhaler “just in case”, she was struggling to breathe! And has had pneumonia recently.

PE teacher shouldn’t have refused even from a liability perspective, health & safety and morality aside.

I would escalate and put in a complaint but that’s just me. DD managed her breathlessness but what if she hadn’t been able to? I can totally see why you’re so upset.

As an aside, agree DD needs to be reminded to keep it with her at all times going forward. Not to pander to school staff, but because 10 mins is a long walk when you’re struggling to breathe.

She was letting you know that she has control over the grade your daughter gets….therefore if you complain she also has the power to lower your daughters grade….well that’s what I believe she was doing
Very hard to prove though

People really will defend teachers for anything on MN.This is entirely unacceptable and I understand people saying 'DD must take responsibility for her own medical needs' but she is a child, sometimes children forget. Asthma is deadly and not taken seriously by a lot of people, I would be livid in this situation and escalate.

I get it's annoying, teachers get children bunking off etc. but this is a serious medical condition that the teacher did not take seriously. They need training urgently as another child might not be so lucky next time.

If so she needs to carry it with her. Not leave it 10 minutes away.

Tbh I understand why the teacher thought it was an excuse to spend 20 minutes away from PE.
Your daughter learnt her lesson I suppose.

Teacher mentioned that changing rooms are 10 minutes away from hall and that dd has never brought her inhaler. I said maybe that could be mentioned that next time she brings it with her. She said that needs to be something I tell her as she has enough kids to deal with.
Why were you asking the teacher to tell your dd to bring her inhaler? Even if you didn't realise your dd has been leaving it elsewhere it's for you and your dd to sort out in future

I agree but that wasn’t apparently what happened here, according to OPs daughter she was told she wasn’t to get it and no alternative was offered. Anyway to answer your original question OP I don’t think that there is anything you can do about this situation now, it’s her word against your DD, the school will back the teacher and you will back your daughter. I would remind your daughter to remember and bring it to every lesson and put in writing that you have reminded your daughter of this but that she is never under any circumstances to be denied the use of her inhaler during any lessons.

Buy an extra inhaler. Can you have one attached to her gym shorts?
Sew extra pockets into your DD's clothing for her inhaler.

Keep telling your DD that it is her responsibility to have her inhaler with her. Go through her routine of where her inhaler is throughout the day. There might be specific times when she forgets it - maybe when she changes into her PE gear.
Write INHALER in black texta inside her gym shoes to help remind her.

Definitely not 10 mins for my DCs... it's 15 mins.

This is not uncommon. I've worked in schools where the fields are quite detached from the main core of the school or in some urban areas on public recs away from the school.

One school I taught PE at was at least 500m from the main school site which was fun the day we needed an ambulance, but at least when the first aider arrived, the casualty was already well bandaged up.

While I broadly agree with you about not denying medical treatment, someone else should go and get the inhaler. A person in respiratory distress should not be walking off alone to go and get their inhaler.

I think the OP is getting a pretty hard time here. Yes her daughter should have taken her inhaler to PE but teenagers can be unorganised and forgetful not sure how this comes as a shock to everyone. The consequence of forgetting an inhaler should absolutely not under any circumstances be that she then isn’t allowed to go get the inhaler if she needs it. Asthma and other lung conditions are often played down but can become deadly very quickly and an inhaler can be a life saving medicine. I have seen teenagers die from asthma attacks. If a child was having an anaphylaxis and had forgot their epi pen would a teacher then say oh well you’re not going to get the spare in the office, your fault you forgot it? Of course not that would be ridiculous. A teacher should never stop a child from accessing medicine that they need when they need it.

Agreed. I believe your daughter. My youngest was denied an inhaler by a PE teacher and then had to call an ambulance when DS collapsed on the sports field.

If she held it for 2 hours and the lesson was 2 hours then she needed it before the lesson began and should've gone before.

OP what is your purpose for posting here? You seemingly don’t want to hear other alternatives or opinions and just want to feel reassured of your own? Thats fine, but you have asked what to do now. It’s clear you have made numerous attempts to speak to and contact the school. You believe your daughter which again is fine but don’t want to listen to the teacher who in this situation is the responsible adult.

Its done. Let it go. You made your point (too many times) to the school. Your kid carries her inhaler and it doesn’t happen again.

Well, then it's inadequate. The asthma plan should be known by all of the teachers and actioned. What does the plan say about her inhaler?

So why did she not go before if she needed it?