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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Really annoyed - school trip & medication

30 replies

Carrie37 · 02/02/2013 22:04

Ds 10 was going on school trip 2 nights (3 days). Accompanied by principal and one other teacher. Before I signed the form to let him go I spoke to principal as Ds is on Beta blockers. He needs to take them night and morning. Principal said no problem write it on the form and send them in box clearly marked.

Ds came home yesterday having only taking two of the twelve tablets as for the first day or do he couldn't find them and rest of the time he just forgot. No teacher at any stage asked if he had brought them or if he was taking them.

DH then gave out to DS for not being responsible and taking his medication. In my opinion - He is a ten year old child he should not be responsible for medication!

DH does not think I should complain to school as he is in last year and no more school trips and no harm came to DS. Beta blocker box and leaflet clearly state do not stop taking suddenly.

I think school very irresponsible and lucky to get away with this.

DS takes the Beta Blockers for migraine prevention.

Am I making mountain out of molehill??

OP posts:
HoHoHoNoYouDont · 02/02/2013 22:06

No YANBU, the teachers should have been paying more attention IMO.

CloudsAndTrees · 02/02/2013 22:08

The schools I know always ask for medication to be handed over to staff on the day of the trip, and they would all be very pissed off with parents who let young children hold on to their own medication. You can't even give them a sachet of calpol to keep with them.

Are you 100% sure that you weren't supposed to give the medication to one of the teachers rather than just leaving it with your child?

ratbagcatbag · 02/02/2013 22:08

Annoyed with school definately. I look after athletics teams and even for a day have to be fully aware of medical needs. I have two 14 yo olds in my squad that are insulin dependant diabetics, they're very mature but I still hunt them down and force blood sugar tests frequently. Much to their horror as they know when they feel off, they eye roll alot but do it. I have to because I'm in charge and I don't care what they feel like, I need to be shown with figures that they are fine.

HollyBerryBush · 02/02/2013 22:11

DH then gave out to DS for not being responsible and taking his medication. In my opinion - He is a ten year old child he should not be responsible for medication!

I think you husband is partially right. Your son knows he has to take them, he should have asked. He is 10, he knows he has to have them

Rainbowinthesky · 02/02/2013 22:12

Who did box get given to? Did you put it in writing and show prescription? I agree your ds is also partially responsible. Dd is 9 and on twice daily medication. I would expect her to remember.

AuntieStella · 02/02/2013 22:12

Prescription medicines should be handed to a member of staff with full (signed) instructions about how they should be taken.

This sounds like a pretty major failure in medicines policy to me, and I would be asking for a copy of their policy and an account of what actually happened.

When my DCs were that age, the only thing I've known a pupil to be allowed to keep was Optrex, and the only medicine a child was given the responsibility for when to take was OTC hay fever tablets that were required only if symptoms began to emerge.

MyCannyBairn · 02/02/2013 22:12

I would have spoken to a teacher at drop-off, and given them the medication, with written instructions.

Original poster
Carrie37 · 02/02/2013 22:13

He did tell me to "send" it in. Maybe he did mean to hand it over to the teacher but it was clearly listed on the medical form. I appreciate teachers taking time out to go on trips and think it was a beneficial trip.

However I am a bit aghast at possible consequences.

OP posts:
ItsAllGoingToBeFine · 02/02/2013 22:13

YANBU. The teacher should have been holding the medication for your Sony and made sure he takes it as prescribed. You and they should really have signed a form specifying how many tablets you gave him, and then he and teacher should have signed whenever taken, and then finally signature from you and teachers to confirm correct number of tablets returned.

This is important because it means your son gets his meds, he can't sell his meds (more of an issue with eg ritalin), and other kids can't take them for a joke and spike someone.

The only medication DCs should hold themselves is inhalers and sometimes epipens.

BackforGood · 02/02/2013 22:15

Why on earth did you not hand them over to the teacher / responsible adult when you took him to the school in the first place ?
You'd be right to be extremely angry with the school if they hadn't given medication they had, but if you didn't give it to them, then they can't be held responsible IMO.

HollyBerryBush · 02/02/2013 22:16

Sorry OP - but YOU should have handed the bag of medication over at the begining of the trip - never have I heard where its all down to the child to hand it over.

YOU, OP are at fault for not putting prescription drugs in an adults charge, and are guilty of letting them float round camp where anyone could have got hold of them.

Original poster
Carrie37 · 02/02/2013 22:18

With hindsight I should have given them to the teacher. DS is (usually) very sensible but I expected the teacher to ask him for them.

OP posts:
Rainbowinthesky · 02/02/2013 22:18

I still don't understand what happened with the tablets. Surely you would have handed them to an adult at the very start of the trip. As someone says what if another child got hold of them??

SDTGisAnEvilWolefGenius · 02/02/2013 22:19

It does sound as if the school wasn't very clear in their communications with you. When ds1 went on school journey at that age, we were told that we had to hand all medications to a particular member of staff - even ds1's travel sickness tablets. If the school had said this to you, I am sure you would have done so.

It is probably a bit unfair of your dh to expect your ds to remember his pills, in amongst the fun and business of a residential school trip - it is easy to forget things when you are out of your normal routine.

Rainbowinthesky · 02/02/2013 22:20

I agree the teacher should have been on it as you had put instructions etc in writing. However, not excusing them, they had a million other things to remember and you should have ensured they were handed to an adult. I would tell them what happened so they can review their policy for future trips.

CloudsAndTrees · 02/02/2013 22:20

If you were told to 'send it in', then the instruction wasn't very clear. But I think you as the parent have the responsibility to make sure that your son is going to be taking his medication more than the school has the responsibility to go over the forms again before the trip.

By allowing your son to have the medication in his bag, you were actually very irresponsible. Not just to your son, but to any other children that might have been stupid enough to think it would be fun to take the medication themselves.

This one is down to you I'm afraid. Not the school, not your son, you.

shesariver · 02/02/2013 22:21

I wouldnt trust my 10 year to take medication so I would definitely give any to a teacher. Plus I would think letting any child have prescription medication of any description could lead to other children having access to it, which is wrong.

landofsoapandglory · 02/02/2013 22:26

IMO which ever parent dropped him off for the trip is in the wrong. The medication should have been handed in to a teacher and then they would have given them to your DS.

Complain to the school if you want, but I don't think you've got a leg to stand on!

Sirzy · 02/02/2013 22:32

If you want the teacher to Supervise medication you have to give that to the teacher. Safety says anything other than things like Reliever inhalers is given in anyway at that age.

NatashaBee · 02/02/2013 22:32

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Floggingmolly · 02/02/2013 22:34

I would have interpreted "send it in" as give to one of the teachers...
And as to he's a 10 year old boy, he shouldn't have to be responsible for medication! - why not? He's 10, not 2, and if the consequences of not taking the pills are as dire as you fear you should have drummed it into him not to forget.

Groovee · 02/02/2013 22:34

When ours go on residentials you hand over any medications in a zip lock bag with a Medical health form. Then the teachers hand the bags back as they get off the bus to meet the parents.

CloudsAndTrees · 02/02/2013 22:38

Floggingmolly - why not? Because even if OPs son was able to be responsible for taking his own medication (which he wasn't) then he can't be expected to be responsible for other 10 year olds too. What if someone else had taken them, either because they wanted to try them, or because they wanted to play a practical joke and hide them, or they wanted to be mean and throw them away?

You just can't trust children with medication, no matter how responsible your own child is.

apostropheuse · 02/02/2013 22:45

I actually think you or your husband are at fault for not ensuring the medication was given to the teacher directly. It was your responsibility to do that. I'm sure the teacher would then have ensured that your child took the medication when necessary.

alistron1 · 02/02/2013 22:45

I know how you feel - DS1 recently went on a ski trip that involved a 24 hour coach journey. He gets VERY travel sick without medication - I outlined that in all the forms etc. before his outward journey I was able to make sure he'd taken his tablets.

On the return - despite the staff having his medicine he had nothing until it was too late. The return journey + choppy ferry trip resulted in him vomiting non stop across Europe.

He's 13, but not competent enough to organise the planning involved in taking his travel sickness meds. That's what I assumed the adults on the trip would do - seeing as they were holding the bloody stuff!!

After 24 hours of sickness DS1 had to miss a day off school, and it's taken nearly a week for his tummy to get back to normal.