Son comes back from school trip with fracture

[debsadoos123]

Hi, first time poster, please be kind. I picked my 14 year old DS up from school at 4pm today after he'd been away for a week skiing. When I got to him he had a makeshift bandage on his wrist and the teacher explained that someone had fallen into him yesterday morning and that my DS complained of extreme pain in his wrist. The said teacher went on to explain that they didn't seek medical attention because if it was broken then my DS wouldn't be able to fly home. They had taken him to a chemist and purchased a bandage and applied it.
By the time we had got home (10 min drive) my son was crying in pain so we went straight to A&E... Long story short, he has fractured a bone in his wrist. He is now in plaster and we have to return in 10 days for a bone scan.
Would I be unreasonable to make a complaint to school about their lack of action and failing to provide a duty of care?

the school should have rung you.
they have a point wrt to not able to fly with a fresh cast, but they should have discussed this with you. and then gone through the travel insurance for other options, like medevac home or taking alternative travel home (on the train for example).

@mypoorfurbaby Why is it rubbish? These restrictions are imposed by airlines. Way up thread I posted links to airlines that clearly state this.
They should have rung the OP. But they are likely being truthful about the flying. And OP would probably have had to fly out to look after him.

They should have called you then you could make the decision and also give permission for some pain relief

the OP cannot sue unless the delay in getting treatment has caused damage to her son.

Fortunately, it doesn’t sound like it has - for a scaphoid fracture, delaying getting a cast on it by 24 hours isn’t going to make any difference.

The pain and suffering caused by a completely avoidable delay in getting treatment in themselves constitute damage for which compensation could be payable. If this is the only damage, obviously it is highly unlikely to be worth suing, but it is extraordinary how often this sort of myth gets repeated on MN.

Also, of course, none of us knows the details of the injury - obviously it still isn't clear if OP's son has to go back for a bone scan. If the delay in setting the bone has caused further damage that is potentially a very serious matter.

Medevac is incredibly expensive. I would be surprised if insurers would pay for that. What they would say is wait until the airline will fly him out, and book a seat for then. And OP would have to fly out, so the teacher can fly home.

The supervising teacher appears to have made a grave error of judgement and you will naturally want a thorough investigation to take place. You will need to meet with the Head as soon as possible.

I'm appalled however by one or two of the nakedly money grabbing posts advising legal action as an immediate response.

Yanbu
I cannot believe these people have responsibility over children when they are so incompetent.
They should have contacted you at the time they went to a pharmacist. The pharmacist may have seen the child's arm or may not and therefore provided a reasonable medical reason why a sling was acceptable.
They should have also looked into the medical reason why people should not fly with these reasons.
Pain is inevitable after an injury and at the very least they should have been providing your son with regular pain relief.
"This is done to prevent swelling and reduce the risk of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and compartment syndrome, a potentially serious condition caused by swelling"
From the NHS website.

I would have a solicitor write it up in a letter (in case there are operations and expenses to come of this) and send to the principal, governors, council and OFSTED - with a required response date.

Do you have travel insurance? You may also need to notify them that an accident has occurred which may generate costs.

Appalling, willful lapse of care. 💐

I'm appalled however by one or two of the nakedly money grabbing posts advising legal action as an immediate response.

Rather than compensation, there may actually be significant reparative costs to come of this, particularly due to the delay in seeking medical attention (e.g. where nerves are damaged and/or the injury begins to set in the wrong postion). The school's negligence could result in significant ongoing costs to the OP, her family and her son.

A lot of posters are writing as if the school knew the wrist was fractured and made decisions based on this knowledge. All they knew was his wrist was sore.
I wouldn't have made the same decision the teachers on this trip made, but then I wouldn't take an overnight trip for love nor money (or which we get neither) as too much can go wrong.

The school's negligence could result in significant ongoing costs to the OP, her family and her son.

At this point there is no hint of that at all.

It is incredibly unlikely that a simple fracture to the wrist would have any issues from a days delay in being treated.

Right. But all this needs to be documented now, otherwise issues which arise later will be legally argued - to good effect - as preexisting conditions. It's not about suing now. It's documenting properly now in case an insurance claim is required later.

OP: I agree the school should have sought medical advice, and I would see the Head and ask whether what happened was in line with the risk assessment and other policies for the trip.

Beyond that it sounds from your OP as if the break was satisfactorily set, they didn’t recommend a plate, screw, K wire or any other surgery needed for a complicated break, and they have asked you back for a check up and x ray in 10 days, which seems routine for a straightforward break.

I hope he recovers quickly and without complications.

Get a Limbo (or similar) cast cover for the shower, that will make like much easier.

But do ask the school to review what happened against their policy. It would be better for teachers to get the right training than for schools to stop these trips for fear of being sued et.

I am surprised that nobody ( including your child ) thought to contact you if they believed it was fractured. Has your child mentioned why he didn't contact you ? was he led to believe that he might have to stay behind if he did ? which whilst possibly true, should have been a decision you were party to.

Janemaster
It does not matter what Dr's say, a lot of airlines have blanket regulations about this

SOME airlines.
And the ones who make their money in the ski season are happy with a certificate from the fracture clinic and the correct kind of cast / splint.

Not seeking medical attention and then flying regardless is what could have put the child at risk.

It's quite possible to ensure that matters are properly documented without running to a solicitor before even speaking with the school. I made it clear that my issues were with posters who not only advised suing as an immediate action but implied that it was a money making opportunity.

A lot of posters are writing as if the school knew the wrist was fractured and made decisions based on this knowledge. All they knew was his wrist was sore.

The teacher specifically explained that they suspected the wrist was broken and didn't seek medical attention as that might mean the child couldn't fly home. That was categorically the wrong decision to take.

It is incredibly unlikely that a simple fracture to the wrist would have any issues from a days delay in being treated.

But neither we nor the school know whether this was a simple fracture.

I took a trip of 14 year olds abroad. One girl walked into a lamppost and knocked herself out for a few seconds. We took her to hospital straight away. I would never risk it. But the responses on here are why I would never take a school trip abroad again. It's not worth it - whatever decision was made would be wrong.

It doesn't matter whether the airline would or wouldn't have allowed the child to fly with a break or fracture. That is a decision for the airline to make and should include the medical opinion. If they refused there are options - wait an extra day/few days. Ferry. Train. It doesn't matter what parents would or wouldn't have done if they were there. They weren't. The school had a duty of care that is different to the expectations of a parent. What matters is a child was left in pain without adequate medical assessment and regardless of what the consequences actually are (hopefully nothing too serious OP) the education professionals (I.e. teachers!) are not in a position to assess that is the job of the medical professionals. So, in short OP if this was my child I would be complaining to anybody and everybody that would listen. That includes the Head and the Chair of Governors, that includes Ofsted, that includes Children Social Care because the needs of the child have not been prioritised as per Children Act 1989 and that is neglect. I would want to see the school insurance documents, risk assessments and contingency plans for accidents such as this and I would want to see the accident form. I would expect the school to be making more than reasonable adjustments for how this fracture may affect my child - work he can do at home for the time he misses at hospital appointments, if his writing wrist what they will offer to support him to maintain studies. I would also want to be kept informed of the full investigation, outcome and action plan to ensure this doesn't happen again. Kids have accidents. That's not an issue. Skiing is a risk activity. That's not an issue. The deliberate omission of medical attention after those two facts collided to leave your child with an untreated fracture IS a huge issue!

It’s a difficult one isn’t it , you don’t want them having to stay there but then it was an emergency and they didn’t tell you till he was home . I’d complain about how it was dealt with for sure.
My ds broke his wrist playing football at school and they didn’t send him home , they made him finish the day and I got a half arsed phonecall saying I probably should get it checked as they ‘think’ it could be broken.
Yeah , cheers for that

OP does not say the teacher suspected the wrist was broken.
But I agree it was the wrong decision.
Had it gone the other way, we would have a thread with a parent annoyed at having to drop everything and fly to France (or wherever) to collect their child with a bruise on their wrist.

I'd be making a formal complaint. If the teacher had a strong suspicion that the issue wouldn't be resolved in time to catch the scheduled flight and couldn't be arsed to stay and deal with the insurance. Do you have any witnesses to the teacher effectively admitting negligence? They have effectively decided to risk your DS's health by deciding that if they don't know then they can't be prevented from flying.

Imagine, it was their colleague suffering from heart pains. I can't imagine they would risk flying without seeking medical attention because they'd rather risk a heart attack on the plane rather than be delayed.

Had it gone the other way, we would have a thread with a parent annoyed at having to drop everything and fly to France (or wherever) to collect their child with a bruise on their wrist.
Surely a member of staff would have stayed behind with the child so they would both have flown home on another flight, in that instance.