To angry with the way school handling his accidents

[JamforBrains]

DS4 is 7 (yr2). He fell while running in the playground and cut his head open above his eyebrow. I get a call from the school saying he may need hospital treatment and would I come and collect him. When I get there he is sitting outside reception, unaccompanied. His head is completely bandaged as is one eye. His white shirt is red with blood. I go over to him before going to the desk and talk to him for about 30 seconds to a minute before a receptionist asks if she can help. DS is disoriented and ask her to call an ambulance. "I don't think there is any need for that!" She says "it would be quicker if you take him yourself" I ask again for an ambulance explaining that his altered mental state concerns me and if he deteriorates in the back of the car while driving to the hospital I am helpless. She begrudgingly calls one. DS need 9 stitches to close the wound and was kept in overnight for observation. I have 2 AIBUs.

1. AIBU to think someone should have called an ambulance before calling me? He had a cut the length of his eyebrow and gaping. He wasnt behaving normally.
2. As no ambulance was called. Shouldn't someone have been sat with him in reception? Obviously the receptionists weren't keeping an eye on him or they would have noticed me sooner.

Fortunately DS is OK and back home but I can't help thinking it could have been worse. I will go in on Monday and find out why no one called an ambulance but I just want to know if IABU before going in all guns blazing.

YANBU
He most defo shouldn’t have been unattended. At my DS school even if they are somewhat ill they always have someone with them. 7 is defo a bit young to be unattended whilst injured. And when you asked her to call the ambulance she should have done it no questions asked.

Similar happened to my son but he wasn't disorientated and pe teacher drove him to hospital and I met them there. A TA was with son for the journey. Teacher and TA left as soon as I arrived. I got a call from Head later that night to check how he was. I think your school dealt with it badly but I hope he is OK.

You don't know how he presented before you arrived, he may have been as coherent as ever until 1 minute before your arrival. That is why he shouldn't have been left unattended, you can deteriorate quickly after a head injury.

You cant not call an ambulance just because if staffing issues.

There should he a plan for this.

That's why there are multiple contacts on the forms.

Shove the care taker or or teacher in the ambulance with them. Or even am.older sibling in yr 6

Pe teacher

YANBU even if they made the call the call that an ambulance wasn't needed (which they obviously considered to even mention it) here is no way he should have been unattended.

Ask to see the accident report

Ask to see their policy and procedure documents for accidents and emergencies.

If you really want to ask to see their risk assessment for the activity he was doing at the time. Ie if it was break time (sorry you did say I just can't remember) ask to see their break time risk assessment. That should have some detail over how to handle situations too.

I'd complain about him being unattended and about the receptionist refusing to call you an ambulance (I wonder if there is more paperwork involved for the school) and I'd want to know why they decided an ambulance wasn't needed.

You have every right to be angry.

But please don't go in all guns blazing as they'll put up a wall.

A very blunt email stating their failure to safeguard child effectively and promote their wellbeing as a priority - as well as failure to provide first aid as trained will do it.

Straight to HT with governors cc in. Make it clear it's a formal complaint and you want an apology and emergency review of their policy for first aid - including head injury. Retraining for first aiders etc.

One thing that's important to mention is eyes should not be covered with bandages to head unless necessary due to injury. They should have managed a cut above the eye around the head and above the eye. Sounds like the first aided needs serious retraining.

I'm appalled that he was left in reception on his own covered in blood with a gash to his head! Is there no school nurse? At our school a DC in that state would've been in the nurse's office with medical attention until the parent arrived. YANBU, the school was negligent IMO.

I'm generally of the opinion that schools should be given the benefit of the doubt but in this instance they're so Unreasonable it makes me cringe reading your OP. They should be hauled over the coals for this and they need to make serious changes to their first aid situation and ensure it's never allowed to happen again. I'm a first aider at my school (I teach reception) and I'd be shamed to death if I'd handled a situation like this.

{shock] your poor little DS! That's awful!

To me the worst is him sitting all alone with a bloody shirt and a big cut! I'd be absolutely livid.

Who saw to him? That's key....who administered first aid and put the bandage on.

THEY are to blame though the office person isn't completely innocent either!

The thought of a small child left alone in that situation is quite upsetting.

Yabu for wanting an ambulance when you could have taken him yourself. No wonder the NHS is stretched.

YANBU

A First Aider would have sat with him at our school. We would therefore have picked up on his altered consciousness. We would have called an ambulance. Your school needs to take a look at its procedures

Hope your DS is better soon

jess

Of it was just the cut that needed stitching of course she could and would have taken him herself.

But if he had concussion or a brain bleed and three up or started siezing on the back of the car can you not see how dangerous that could be. Our hospital can take forever just to find a parking spot.

I think not realising they should have called an ambulance is maybe an understandable error.
However, they should absolutely have a policy for managing head injuries and not leaving the child unattended is a basic requirement. I would focus on the lack of supervision which meant his altered mental state was not noticed.
Does this need to be reported to Ofsted? As a childminder I would report any accident in my care that resulted in hospital treatment - not sure if it is the same for schools.

Why was he left on his own. Terrible. yanbu. Im on the fence re the ambulance but as he had become disorientated and you his mother requested one how dare they argue. Full blazes on monday. Hope son is better soon x

Id also take this further..ofstead maybe. See what school says but dont let them fob you off

How did you manage to get into the building without speaking to the receptionist/office first?

Do lots of primary schools have their own school nurse? I’ve never come across this, it’s usually just someone who has attended a 1st aid course that lasts 2 days and is renewed every (I think) 3 years.

The couple of times I've been called into school because of head injuries there's always been someone sitting with them. It's totally inappropriate to leave them on their own with such a serious injury.

Definitely complain.

YANBU. I believe that the school has been negligent and imo you should make a complaint. I hope your little boy is feeling better.

i'll declare now I work in a school doing the first aid.

What a distressing incident for you and your child - I hope you are all ok. The absolute worst bit of my job is when a child gets a head injury. When they are safely gone with their parents I always cry. So goodness knows how a parent feels.

I wouldn't expect a child to be left alone - I would expect someone to be applying pressure to the wound and keeping a close eye on them.

I understand really understand why they said 'may' as when I phone, it is always with the child sat right next to me and I don't want to freak the child out. I also don't want the parent to drive panicked.

The ambulances triage and a conscious patient, talking and responding, where the bleeding is under control is quite low down the list - generally well over an hour from experience - but without seeing it and how disorientated he was I couldn't tell whether I would have called one.

It is concerning that the teacher didn't come and pick up on his altered state / confusion. (a receptionist probably wouldn't know your child well enough to realise they were any different) but we always get someone that knows them to come and have a chat for a big knock to the head.

Surrey Health produce a great head injury leaflet that has a green, amber, red scale - google it - it might help you schools decision making.

I think it sounds like the school could review what they do especially the leaving alone.

That's why there are multiple contacts on the forms.

You wouldn’t believe the number of parents and emergency contacts who change their mobile number and don’t let school know. We send a print-out of the child’s details every year for parents to update, but we also remind them on a regular basis to keep their details updated.

I’ve also had parents say they don’t listen to voice messages because they have to pay to retrieve them.

Lol-ing at school nurse on the premises though.

You do not muck about with head injuries (as a horse rider with a nurse for a mother, this has been drummer into me. It's even survived all the times I've landed on my head!). You just don't. That needs to be impressed upon the school hard.

I'm not particularly a fusser about minor bumps, but this really isn't acceptable. They are lucky that your son is ok, because they certainly wouldn't have known if he wasn't, would they?

Ask to see their First Aid policy. If this were my school he'd have been either taken to A&E by two colleagues or an ambulance called. It's not up to some untrained person to decide whether or not an ambulance was required.A head injury should always be treated with an eye to the worst case scenario

I'm a teacher and am unimpressed with your son's treatment at school. Twice this academic year, I've been asked to go to the first aid room at lunchtime to help assess children in my class - lunchtime staff have felt they're not quite themselves and wanted to confirm with me, as I spend 30 hours a week with them, my impressions.
On one of those occasions an ambulance was called as the child, who is Polish but is normally able to respond very quickly in English, was unable to respond to questions in a way that made sense. The lunchtime staff wanted to confirm what he was normally able to do.

To be honest, I would question the judgement of a child being left without direct supervision if an injury had been sustained which they felt justified calling you to school for.

Totally unacceptable of them.