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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

School refusing to give antibiotics

539 replies

Slayerofmyth · 21/04/2021 18:14

My daughter has warts on her arm that have become infected. She has been prescribed antibiotics four times a day in liquid form that have to be kept in fridge. She has one dose upon wakening but needs 2 more doses throughout school day. I work so can't get to school to give it, theres no one else. School are refusing to give it, I've said I'll keep her off then so I can administer ( taking time off work,), they say I'll get a fine for absence. What the heck am I supposed to do? Please advise.

OP posts:
CouldBeOuting · 21/04/2021 21:24

Our school certainly wouldn't agree to pre-filled syringes of medicine - no matter where they were stored. Any medication has to be in the original packaging, with the prescription label clearly visible so that the name and dosage could be checked.

Same here. My schools issue in this case would be the need for the medication to be refrigerated. All medication on site (apart from inhalers) must be in a locked cupboard. We have one fridge, it does not have a lock and is full of our milk and lunches. Also with current Covid restrictions there is the “bubble” complication. I have had to be “bubbled” with the class which has our one diabetic child as I deal with his insulin and I have to have someone else from that bubble to witness and countersign everything I do. If I and the only other trained member of staff aren’t in (we both work part time due to budget constraints) then the parents would need to make other arrangements as it is voluntary and training had to be done in our own time. Fortunately neither of us have had time off sick in all the time the child has been with us.

greeneyedlulu · 21/04/2021 21:24

Seeing as you work in a pharmacy, can't you ask the pharmacist for advice on this regarding the timings of administrating medicine? Surely they can advise you far better than we can.

Walkaround · 21/04/2021 21:24

And@Slayerofmyth, I agree school should give your child a dose of antibiotic. No law says an after school club is obliged to do this.

Original poster
Slayerofmyth · 21/04/2021 21:24

21:23Walkaround

"@Slayerofmyth - you are confusing the school building with school. After school club is not “school.”"

Sigh......the doses would be in school time......🙄

OP posts:
IsItSafeToBeOptimisticYet · 21/04/2021 21:26

Ours will for four times a day but won't for three times a day. I'd be looking on their website for their rules in relation to this.

Original poster
Slayerofmyth · 21/04/2021 21:26

21:23AccidentallyOnPurpose

"Will the school agree to one dose?

Then you can do 8 am, school at 2 pm, you at 8 pm and wake her up in the night at 2 am.

Or ask to finish early/do half days for a few days.

Then do 8 am 3pm(1 hour extra there) 9 pm 3 am 8 am "

The school won't give ANY doses. .

OP posts:
Whinge · 21/04/2021 21:28

What I was expecting was me to give first dose at 7.00am, drop off to breakfast club at 8.00am, then another dose at 11.am, an hour before lunch, them another at 3.00pm before after-school club where they have snacks about an hour later. You say that, but many other posters on here do give medication in school.

A dose at 11am would be difficult for many schools to schedule. However, giving a dose at 3pm at the very end of the day, with 2 staff members present and then doing the paper work required alongside the usual chaos at the end of the school day just wouldn't be possible for the vast majority of schools.

DarlingWithoutYou · 21/04/2021 21:28

Wow this sounds infuriating (and also about her changing with boys, too). Ask to speak to the head of governors and ask them what you're meant to do.

Walkaround · 21/04/2021 21:31

@Slayerofmyth - and a sigh for you, too... Evenly spaced doses given four times a day should be every six hours if you’re being fussy about spacing - every four hours so you can try and get school to do two doses leaves a very big gap from the last evening dose to the morning dose...

Original poster
Slayerofmyth · 21/04/2021 21:35

21:28DarlingWithoutYou

"Wow this sounds infuriating (and also about her changing with boys, too). Ask to speak to the head of governors and ask them what you're meant to do."

It really is, all I want is some assistance in helping my daughter take her medicine because she needs it. I'd love to be able to take a week off work so I could go to the school four times a day (including drop off and pick up) but alas I can't. I'm definitely complaining, it's just not acceptable, nor the having to get changed in front of boys.....oh and there's no sanitary bins in the girls toilets and my DD is on the verge of starting her periods.

OP posts:
Whataroyalannoyance · 21/04/2021 21:39

[quote Walkaround]@Whataroyalannoyance - you don’t have to let a parent into school if they stand outside the reception window, their child goes out to them for their antibiotic, then the child is let back into school again...[/quote]
I suppose the issue is not knowing each schools set up. Mine doesn't have a receipton window to outside. You'd have to be in the building, but our reception also has a fridge etc for medicines and there are always 2 members of staff there, who at the moment are a bubble to themselves and don't leave their area. They also do t provide any first aid as all the tas are trained.

Walkaround · 21/04/2021 21:44

@Whataroyalannoyance - yes, you do have to know and understand a school’s set up. I give antibiotics at the school I work at and find it odd the school would outright refuse in all circumstances to give one dose of a commonly prescribed antibiotic, but would not be happy to be asked to give 2 doses in school time when that spacing is not really in accordance with the requirement to give 4 evenly spaced doses every 24 hours.

year5teacher · 21/04/2021 21:46

Hmm, we’ve always given antibiotics. Our rule is that if it’s prescribed we can, as long as the prescription is given to us, but non prescribed medication has to be given by the parent.

year5teacher · 21/04/2021 21:48

Also why the fuck is she changing with the boys?!??? Mine change separately and I would kick up a fuss if they were expected to change together!

Christmasfairy2020 · 21/04/2021 21:49

At 10 she can give it her self. I have a y6 dd aged 11

Walkaround · 21/04/2021 21:49

@year5teacher - presumably you would only administer it in accordance with the prescription, however and not, eg, squeeze the doses too close together?

Christmasfairy2020 · 21/04/2021 21:49

Ask.gp for tablets xx

AccidentallyOnPurpose · 21/04/2021 21:58

@year5teacher

Hmm, we’ve always given antibiotics. Our rule is that if it’s prescribed we can, as long as the prescription is given to us, but non prescribed medication has to be given by the parent.
We used to , but we stopped due to Covid because we can't risk having certain staff(or their whole bubble burst) off . I know they could get Covid anyways, but atm it's part of the risk assessment.
Luckymummytoone · 21/04/2021 21:59

The school sounds terrible!
I’ve not read all the replies but have you checked on their website for their policy?
Ours are online - I would have thought they’d have to be accessible to parents. I hope you get something sorted x

Blindstupid · 21/04/2021 22:00

chrustmas 🙄 .... no a 10:year old can’t administer their own medication in school. They may have the capacity to do so, however legally they’re not allowed.

Those saying to wake her in the night ... really? Seriously? Who the bloody hell wakes their sleeping children (or themselves as adults) to give them routine medication? Bonkers.

OP I hope you get sorted with school ... their stance is ridiculous. As is lots of the advice on here.

AccidentallyOnPurpose · 21/04/2021 22:01

@Blindstupid

chrustmas 🙄 .... no a 10:year old can’t administer their own medication in school. They may have the capacity to do so, however legally they’re not allowed.

Those saying to wake her in the night ... really? Seriously? Who the bloody hell wakes their sleeping children (or themselves as adults) to give them routine medication? Bonkers.

OP I hope you get sorted with school ... their stance is ridiculous. As is lots of the advice on here.

My mum always did that. It's pretty common in other countries actually to space antibiotics evenly rather than whenever it suits during the day.
Blindstupid · 21/04/2021 22:05

In my over 50 years I have never ever met any person who sets alarms during the night to take routine antibiotics. Never. I imagine the majority of the population take them during normal waking daylight hours, just as doctors tell you.

Original poster
Slayerofmyth · 21/04/2021 22:05

22:00Blindstupid

"chrustmas 🙄 .... no a 10:year old can’t administer their own medication in school. They may have the capacity to do so, however legally they’re not allowed.

Those saying to wake her in the night ... really? Seriously? Who the bloody hell wakes their sleeping children (or themselves as adults) to give them routine medication? Bonkers.

OP I hope you get sorted with school ... their stance is ridiculous. As is lots of the advice on here."

Thanks. The, 'get tablets and let her do it herself' are particularly unhelpful. I'm off to bed, had a long day and another one tomorrow. I'll ring GP in morning and I am most definitely going to be making a complaint.

OP posts:
Walkaround · 21/04/2021 22:05

Prescribing antibiotics for children that need to be taken four times a day is ludicrous in any event if there is any alternative (which there is). It’s just asking for the patient to fail to comply properly with the regime, what with it being impossible to comply without the child having a lot of late nights, early mornings and abnormal mealtimes to enable compliance.

CouldBeOuting · 21/04/2021 22:07

..oh and there's no sanitary bins in the girls toilets and my DD is on the verge of starting her periods.

In our school the girls who need those facilities use the staff toilets (this itself means that a staff member has to check they are empty and then prevent any adults from going in while the child is in there).

We can’t have sanitary bins in the children’s toilets for various reasons, not least of which is the cost of the disposal service.