To think that schools should not be pressurising parents to take their children to the doctor just because the child has been off for two days

[ReallyTired]

dd has flu. She has been sick, has a runny nose and a temperature. There is no way that she is fit for school. The school are telling me that I need to take to the doctor. I have refused to take her to the doctor because I think it would be a monumental waste of everyone's time. Dd just wants to hide under her duvet. I am pretty certain that dd just has a virus that needs to take its course and there is nothing that a GP can do to help dd. Dd horrible lurgly could be dangerous to vunerable groups like the elderly or pregnant women. I would hate for my poor GP to catch dd's germs.

I feel that schools should not be encouraging parents to waste GPs time. Adults are allowed to self certify for up to seven days. I think that parents should be allowed to certify that their children are too sick for school for seven days.

Its no wonder that people cannot get appointments for the doctor when they need a doctor. I want a doctor appointment to be available to dd if she is not better next week.

OP, are you in Scotland?

Just wondering, re the mention of 'every child matters'?

I just wrote to my school to ask them to confirm ds' absences this term.
I wrote at 5.30 last night and got an email back at 9.10 today to say give me the info and inform me they have 'shared it with the GP'.

My GP offered to do a letter, I said no I am fed up of this. I said school has the information von file I am not "playing their game" anymore. The GP referred us to a parent support worker and I am sure now the school and LA regret picking on me. They are having to box tick loads more now. It's like these control freaks think that families have no autonomy over their lives and school is all there is to life. They are seriously taking the piss or Gove was, either way they implement the nonsense rather than make a stand.

I commented on a similar thread last year.

It is school-imposed craziness and maybe someone at the relevant government Dept needs to issue a diktat stopping this regular farce.

(Grades going up after a long absence from school was my experience too..)

It should all be sorted in a quick conversation between Jeremy Hunt and Nicky Thingymajig.

Schools do realise that you can't get a GP's appointment at the drop of a hat don't they?

If I need an appointment I might, if I am very lucky, get one today. If I can't get one today, I have to try again tomorrow. Or I can book a "book ahead" appointment, which might only be a few days away, or up to 3 or 4 weeks. It might be possible to get an appointment with a nurse more easily but even they get booked up.

If a school tried this with me, I would simply tell them I wasn't going to do it. I'm not sure what they can do if you can't get an appointment for three weeks, by which time, your dc will have been better two weeks ago.

OldGreyCat
I am in England where "every child matters" was bumped off by Gove. I do like the ethos behing every child matters.

I hardly think that two days is long term absence. A six year old is not going to fail GCSEs becuase they had two days off with a horible lurgy

The gp surgery are entitled to charge for notes to schools for things like this as they're non-NHS services (ie private) unlike med3 notes for stat. Sick pay. So it could cost you £20-60 anyway. It's a waste of nhs resources, and the school should know better. And it stops that appointment being used by someone who needs the gp appt, and potentially spreads it around the waiting room where there could well be people with immune problems. Write to the school and ask them to confirm in writing that they will be liable for any fees at least.

Yanbu at all, I agree with most on here.

Our CLP has taken this issue on anyway, as I am outraged. We at least will fight this nonsense. I and dd are going to use her as an example that high attendance isn't always detrimental to grades. They wrote dd off in juniors school, she has always out performed their expectations and got there though no help from school.

OFFS. YANBU. They're BU! Most parents don't keep their DC off just for the hell of it.

Ridiculous. YANBU. I hate how schools have a tendency to infantilise parents, it is counter productive, unpleasant and possibly even detrimental to dc's health and development. Most parents are very well able to decide what is in the best interest of their dc but schools seem to have a bloody hard time respecting this.

On the other hand....... I also know that there are a lot of naice and 'respectable' parents who do take the micky wrt school. Parents wo lie about their dc being ill and go away for a long weekend, ignoring basic school rules in order to get an advantage for themselves and their most precious little ones. Because their little ones are just so much more precious and important than any of the other dc. Ideally adults would not lie to schools and schools would let parents make sensible choices.

Rant over.

They tell us keep them off 2 days after D and V, do they want a sick note then, too?

I would be heavily tempted to give the GP''s surgery phone number to the school and tell them that if they think they can get an appointment for your child to be seen for a non-urgent self-limiting illness today or tomorrow, they are very welcome to try. I would also tell them that I expect them to pay for a taxi to and from the surgery (no reason why you should have to pay for petrol and parking for such a pointless expedition) and they must also pay whatever the doctor charges for a sick note or letter.

If they don't want to do any of that, they should go away and look at the DfE's guidance which makes it perfectly clear that this sort of demand is utter nonsense.

YANBU. I was told by the school I had to take dd1 to the doctor after she was sent home with a faint rash (and I mean really faint - not even like heat rash). The doctor was basically , and sent us home but the school made it quite clear she had to go for a check up before returning to class.

Infuriating.

"Do you think that my GP would be angry if I asked him to write to the school to educate them."

In our surgery's case, it was the Practice Manager's idea to contact the school directly to ask them to stop. If you contact the receptionist at your surgery, they may be able to either pass on a message to the manager or give you their contact details.

Do you have the guidelines, gruntledone showing it's nonsense?

YANBU. And thank-you for using some common sense. I used to work I a paeds A&E and from about midday onwards about 50% of what came in had been 'told' by the school or nursery to attend. They'd all come in clutching their accident slips so that I could 'check out' their children's minor injuries (and by minor I mean there was no visible evidence of it having happened). Used to drive me nuts, not with the parents but with the disempowerment of parents being able to judge whether or not their children needed to see a doctor.

It's the one linked by ghostspirit, howto. Specifically this bit:

GPs are not contractually obliged to provide a sick note for children who are off sick from school (ref GPC website Jan 2010). In normal circumstances when a child has been absent from school, the parent should give the child a note to take into school when he/she returns explaining the
reason for absence.

Most minor illnesses are self-limiting and do not require contact with a general practitioner or a medical certificate. The GP’s role is to provide advice and treatment for childhood illnesses, when needed, to facilitate an early return to school.

In cases of prolonged illness (five days or earlier if there are parental concerns), parents should telephone their GP for medical advice and will be offered telephone advice and/or an appointment if clinically necessary. Medical certification for short term illness is not appropriate and should not be requested as standard school policy.

On the rare occasion medical evidence is deemed necessary by the school, due to recurrent absences related to illness, a request may be made in writing by a senior member of staff, with the parent’s informed and written consent, and a fee will be payable.

GPs can only give a private medical certificate when they have documentary evidence to confirm actual illness; i.e. from the date that the child has sought medical advice. This is a ‘private’ certificate and the GP is entitled to charge a fee for this service. Retrospective certificates are not valid and should not be issued. Doctors should exercise caution when asked to provide medical
certificates based on hearsay.

Yanbu, I think it would be a waste of everyone's time to take a child to the GP if they have just had a bad cold or flu for a couple of days. As you say, an adult could self-certify. I haven't heard of my son's school requesting GP visits but he has never been off for more than that.

I had a EWO try on the consent GP letter. I wouldn't sign it, I got my own reports and put them on school file.

They wanted you to sign a blank sheet so they could access my child's medical notes and ask anything they like to ensure the answer they want. Any child over twelve is Gillick competent at 16 they don't need quite parent and educators, should be respected as such. How dare a EWO or ACE, bully a parent to gain access, not always for good reasons either I could write a book. So intrusive and disrespectful.

My daughter has many years until she is Gillick competent. I can't see an EWO batting an eyelid that she has four days off this academic year. I would be quite amused if the school referred my daughter to an EWO because she has been off for two days with flu like symtoms.

ReallyTired

I am in Scotland where the phrase is: 'getting it right for every child' (except where I am maybe as my council has apparently not 'rolled it out' yet...). It is lip service to a phrase, sadly.

In case I wasn't clear, YANBUATALL.

Ginswithpetalsandiece says it all, really.

Hope your dd feels better soon and her school are utter numpties!

I was just thinking, no GP is going to look at up my daughter's arse to confirm she has a runny bottom. They would take my word for it and probaby say "too much detail Mrs Reallytired."

that's ludicrous. I have currently got the flu, why would I take up a doctor's appt when there's bugger all they can do about it. Same for sore throat, upset stomach, headache etc unless it gets much worse or doesn't go away within a few days.

Same with chicken pox etc - why do you need to see a doctor unless it turns nasty?