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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

AIBU or is this head teacher

77 replies

fairyofallthings · 07/10/2017 08:26

I spoke to the head teacher at my DC's school the other day, the school don't keep a spare inhaler in case of emergencies as the children are expected to give a spare to the office. So far, so good - I accept that is a good idea.

However, I spoke to her about the school keeping a spare inhaler in the office just in case an inhaler doesn't work for some reason and she said she didn't think that it was an important issue and that there were more important things to worry about. I don't think she's taking asthma seriously and she really needs to. I am considering a letter to the governors but AIBU to do that?

OP posts:

kimlo · 07/10/2017 09:28

It's considered good practice now for a school to have their own inhalers. Dd1's school does, but O had to sign a form saying that she had her own perscription for one and she is expected to carry her own at all times.

HughGrantsHair · 07/10/2017 09:31

Fibbertgibbet - I didn't read the OP as saying they thought a spare inhaler should be kept for children who haven't been diagnosed with asthma. Just that there should be a spare inhaler in school in case a child's own inhaler doesn't work.

Which the school are allowed to do now. As per the link above.

MsJolly · 07/10/2017 09:33

DS school insists on two being in school and I think that's enough. Our GP is not that impressed and prescribing four at a time as it is (2 for school/2 for home) so you would be requesting 6? Bit wasteful unless your child is going through them at a rate of knots.

Bluntness100 · 07/10/2017 09:35

So basically you want the being used inhaler, a spare inhaler and then a third spare inhaler? And if there isn’t a third, you feel she’s not taking is seriously and you wish to complain to the governors?

I’m not sure this is necessary to be honest. Surely if you feel your child needs three you could send them in with three?

Hulder · 07/10/2017 09:36

Am struggling to see how a spare, therefore unused, inhaler would fail to work.

Does this seriously happen?

I'm asthmatic and have had inhalers of a variety of types and the main issue I've had is not noticing mine is empty. You don't need a spare of a spare.

One inhaler on the child and a back up in an accessible place.

capercaillie · 07/10/2017 09:37

It's easy for schools to have a spare inhaler. I'm about to order one for a spare on Outdoor trips. I'm surprised the school doesn't have one

confusedlittleone · 07/10/2017 10:07

I'm confused are you wanting a spare for the spare, or is she not interested in having a spare at all?

Winebottle · 07/10/2017 10:12

I agree with the head.

Its a school not a pharmacist's so they shouldn't be providing any inhalers. It also seems like overkill for it to be policy that parents provide two.

If you are that worried about it, just ask if you can put 2 in the office instead of 1 but that is something to talk to a receptionist about not bothering the head with.

The current system is fine. If a child was in serious danger because their inhalator failed, I'm sure they wouldn't be worrying to much about whose spare was whose. It sounds like their are enough inhalers floating around anyway.

JonSnowsWife · 07/10/2017 10:17

Primary or secondary school OP?

If it's secondary school the pupil is expected to have it on them at all times. DDs asthma can be very bad and has resulted in an ambulance being called upon pickup, but that was in primary.

If your DC has an asthma nurse get them to pay a visit to the school. It took doing this with DDs old primary school to drill it in to them how serious it can be.

JonSnowsWife · 07/10/2017 10:20

Its a school not a pharmacist's so they shouldn't be providing any inhalers. It also seems like overkill for it to be policy that parents provide two.

Isn't that a bit like saying Asda shouldn't keep defibrillators because they're not a pharmacy. Both are extremely serious conditions that need immediate medical attention.

RebelRogue · 07/10/2017 10:20

There's a few kids at school that have a spacer but no inhaler. Despite repeated letters,email and face to face conversations,kids still have no inhaler,much less a spare.

thatdearoctopus · 07/10/2017 10:32

Lots of mis-reading of the OP here. Children in this school have their own inhalers, PLUS a spare each in the office.
The OP thinks the school should have generic third ones available in case the first two don't work.
The Head thinks this is unreasonable. I agree with her.
No one is underestimating the seriousness of asthma (and I speak as the mother of an anaphylactic).

Winebottle · 07/10/2017 10:45

Isn't that a bit like saying Asda shouldn't keep defibrillators because they're not a pharmacy. Both are extremely serious conditions that need immediate medical attention.

That is different because, as far as I know, people don't carry their own defibrillators. If people have known conditions and their own medication for it, they shouldn't expect Asda to provide it. They should provide their own medication. Asda can provide medication if they want and the school can if they want but they can also turn down requests.

Its a policy decision for the school and they need to balance risk with cost. It is possible for almost anything to happen and people will say, it would be so bad if it did, we must do everything we can to stop it but you have to draw the line somewhere. Should a primary school have defibrillators? Should they have a full range of medicines on site and a full time doctor to prescribe them? Should each primary school have an onsite ITU? Its not just about how serious the condition is, they must also consider the likelihood of it happening and the cost of reducing the risk.

The school has probably never seen a serious asthma attack, the kids have two inhalers each, inhalers rarely fail, the kid could borrow another kid's, an ambulance could get out in time. The chance of a perfect storm is so small that even relatively cheap measures aren't justified.

kali110 · 07/10/2017 10:52

Yabu, you dont need a spare incase the spare doesn't work.

Original poster

fairyofallthings · 07/10/2017 10:54

Schools are allowed to buy inhalers so they can keep an emergency spare in the office for diagnosed asthmatics. The head said they had other more important things to be concerned about and it wasn't an issue.

OP posts:

thatdearoctopus · 07/10/2017 10:58

Yes, because the likelihood of such an emergency spare being required was too low to worry about, when there are other things that need addressing more urgently.

ChaChaChaCh4nges · 07/10/2017 10:58

I'm with the head teacher.

user789653241 · 07/10/2017 11:02

School maybe able to buy those. But with a cost. (which we all know school are struggling with budget cuts.)
Parents can get them for free for their child.
And do you really want your child to use shared inhaler?
In worst case scenario that your inhaler fails, there must be other kids who have them in school anyway, if you don't mind using inhaler used by someone else, in case of emergency. I wouldn't mind my ds's was used by someone else in that case.

echt · 07/10/2017 11:02

I'm speaking from Victoria, Australia, where there is not only a requirement for schools to have not a policy on allergies, etc. but the only acceptable one for the Victorian State.

Teachers are trained every year on how to deal with this, i.e. shown a video. We are trained on how to deal with people in shock and have to get a certificate. Or do it again until we get it right. We are personally responsible for what happens to pupils we deal with. We have to know every child in our class who might need attention even if it is a cover lesson.

The rules change every year.

Do I know what to do in an emergency? No, I don't. Not to the letter of the law, which is what I will be held to.

I'm fucked.

kali110 · 07/10/2017 11:03

They do have more important things than worrying about a spare spare inhaler though.
They will have 2 inhalers at the school, how many do you take out with you?

echt · 07/10/2017 11:07

I should clarify.

While we were never given the full info, what as clearly happened in VIC, Au is the death of a child because of allergies. I mean the death of child with parents who have clout.

Every death is a loss, but the responsibility handed down to teachers here is fucking ridiculous.

frogsoup · 07/10/2017 11:09

I remember speaking to a doctor who was incensed that schools might not give the nearest ventolin inhaler available to a child suffering an asthma attack. I'm equally agog at the poster above saying 'schools job is to teach'. Seriously, wtf?! I think you'll find it is helpful to schools to have their pupils alive in order to teach them. I suspect that kind of comment is symptomatic of the same ignorance the headmaster is displaying. Asthma can and does kill. If school let a child die because of quibbling over inhaler ownership, they might find that a court took a pretty dim view of their interpretation of duty of care.

frogsoup · 07/10/2017 11:14

Though tbf I agree that the chances of two inhalers failing is fairly slim. I think the danger is more not locating the right one in time in an emergency, which could be the case if they are having to ferret the correct one in a whole cupboard of the things. An 'grab right now in case of extreme emergency' inhaler seems a good idea to me. Or even, god forbid, a nebuliser... There are defibrillators in public places, and asthma for a child population is probably a similar kind of risk to heart attacks in adults.

lazarusb · 07/10/2017 11:14

When I was a TA the child had a spare inhaler and I had one in my locked draw which the teacher also had access to. As one of us was always in the classroom, in an emergency we could get it to the child really quickly. Going up to the office would have taken a good 10-15 minutes.

Danceswithwarthogs · 07/10/2017 11:18

I must say, if you are organised with your child's medication and there are 2 inhalers at school, a spare-spare sounds a bit silly... However, not all parents might be as vigilant as you... Might the school want to stock an emergency inhaler and epipen of their own for such an eventuality...? It could save a life while they wait for an ambulance.

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