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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think school should have remembered

44 replies

fluffyheadband · 25/09/2025 22:30

My DS (5) is on antibiotics this week following a small emergency procedure at the weekend. He was back at school yesterday and needed to take his antibiotics at lunchtime. I signed the form to allow the teacher to administer this and informed them it’s to be kept in the fridge and then returned at home time as he needed to take it again after dinner.

i brought it back in this morning and confirmed same drill today and also reminded them I won’t be there at pick up as he’s collected by childminder on a Thursday.

He’s come home without the antibiotics and is sure he hasn’t had any since breakfast, I did ask him if he reminded the teacher and he said he didn’t. Of course he could be mistaken and has forgotten his lunch time dose but it still means he misses his evening one today.

I will be going in to school a couple of minutes early tomorrow to make sure he has it in the morning.

AIBU to think that school should not have forgotten about the medication, both administering at lunch and to pack it in his bag at home time. I did say I could pop in at lunch if necessary but they said there was no issues as long as the form had been filled in.

OP posts:
ScrimpAndShave · 25/09/2025 22:34

Why didn’t the childminder ask for it at pick up? Assuming they didn’t have 30 kids and 30 parents to deal with at that time…

They should have remembered to administer it at lunchtime though, especially if they told
you not to worry about going in to do it. Sounds like you should go in yourself next time.

RedLeggedPartridge · 25/09/2025 22:36

Child minders fault for not collecting it.These things happen. You’ve possibly forgotten things or made mistakes yourself in the past.

MumoftwoNC · 25/09/2025 22:37

If I were you I'd only send one dose into school and keep the rest at home, surely.

slightlyoverbaked · 25/09/2025 22:37

Find out the facts before you jump to conclusions about the school dose.

the child minder was 100% responsible for ensuring they came back with him after school

DontReinMeIn · 25/09/2025 22:38

The childminder is at fault.

to be honest I’d have kept him home until he was done with the antibiotics.

HisNameisDanBurn · 25/09/2025 22:38

Not helpful for you this time, but my GP now prescribes antibiotics that can be administered outside of the school day - ie fewer doses in larger amounts. You can ask for this. It makes life easier. I’m a teacher, and school should not have forgotten! But these things do happen. It’s annoying.

nomas · 25/09/2025 22:38

Wouldn’t it have been better to just give him the one pill in a little tupperware rather than the whole pack? Confused

Sinkingfeeling952 · 25/09/2025 22:40

nomas · 25/09/2025 22:38

Wouldn’t it have been better to just give him the one pill in a little tupperware rather than the whole pack? Confused

Edited

He’s 5 - it will be more likely the liquid kind not tablets

ramonaquimby · 25/09/2025 22:42

Sinkingfeeling952 · 25/09/2025 22:40

He’s 5 - it will be more likely the liquid kind not tablets

Show quote history

Also, the pill Could be anything. Schools only give meds during school day if they are accompanied by the president option label fr GP
It's a faff to give antibiotics to your students at school, esp 2 doses

ramonaquimby · 25/09/2025 22:42

Prescription label

Original poster
fluffyheadband · 25/09/2025 22:43

its a bit of miscommunication really with the childminder as the actual medicine box was still in his bag, they’d taken it out and put the bottle in the fridge which I was aware of, so my fault for not being clear enough with the childminder.

OP posts:
CopperWhite · 25/09/2025 22:44

Why are you expecting more of a teacher than the childminder you are paying. Schools should be handing medication directly to an adult anyway, not just packing it in a bag.

ShesTheAlbatross · 25/09/2025 22:46

Childminder sounds like a miscommunication but not the school’s fault. I’d expect to have to go into the office to specifically pick it up, not for it to be given to the teacher to give to me.

If your son is right that he wasn’t given it at lunch, then that is the school’s fault. They’ve agreed to give him prescription medication and should have processes in place to make sure it happens. If they don’t want to, they should ask that parents keep their children at home, but they won’t want that either, because of the attendance stats.

IneedtheeohIneedtheeeveryhourIneedthee · 25/09/2025 23:07

DontReinMeIn · 25/09/2025 22:38

The childminder is at fault.

to be honest I’d have kept him home until he was done with the antibiotics.

ridiculous advice. Why keep a child who is well enough for school at home. Would you stay off work for a 10 day course of antibiotics? No. Here it's up to the adults to make sure he gets his medicine as he is too young to remember.

WaffleParty · 25/09/2025 23:25

It’s on the childminder not the school.

Valeriekat · 25/09/2025 23:33

nomas · 25/09/2025 22:38

Wouldn’t it have been better to just give him the one pill in a little tupperware rather than the whole pack? Confused

Edited

School would not be allowed to administer drugs not in pharmacists pack.

TheBroonOneAndTheWhiteOne · 25/09/2025 23:36

Valeriekat · 25/09/2025 23:33

School would not be allowed to administer drugs not in pharmacists pack.

Show quote history

It was liquid medicine.

MaudlinGazebo · 25/09/2025 23:46

It doesn’t help you now but we always did the morning dose then did a dose immediately after school and then at dinner/bed time so the meds didn’t have to go in to school. Yes they should have remembered but there’s no natural prompt is there like a drugs round so it’s bound to get forgotten sometimes.
Alternatively decant at home and just send the two (or however many) lunch time doses in in the bottle and keep the rest at home.

Sblank · 25/09/2025 23:50

A small thing but you didn't fill in the form so 'the teacher' could administer it. In almost all schools, the teacher will be in no way involved.

VikaOlson · 25/09/2025 23:51

How many doses a day is he having? Could you not do it around school hours?

NotEnoughRoom · 25/09/2025 23:58

At my local schools unless it was needed to be taken at an exact time (rather than say 3 doses a day), they’d have refused to administer it and you’d have been told to give him a dose before/after school and the third at bedtime.
(not saying that’s the best solution, but one more and more schools are suggesting)

GermanShepherd74 · 26/09/2025 00:03

We used to do a dose before school, one straight after and one before bed.
Hope you get it sorted OP

howshouldibehave · 26/09/2025 08:18

. I signed the form to allow the teacher to administer this and informed them it’s to be kept in the fridge

It's highly unlikely any teacher would have anything to do with giving medication, please don't blame them. This sounds like a miscommunication between you and the childminder and possibly (you're not even sure if your child didn't have it) a cock up in the school office.

I presume you are going to ring/speak to the office today to dine out what actually happened?

DontReinMeIn · 26/09/2025 08:20

IneedtheeohIneedtheeeveryhourIneedthee · 25/09/2025 23:07

ridiculous advice. Why keep a child who is well enough for school at home. Would you stay off work for a 10 day course of antibiotics? No. Here it's up to the adults to make sure he gets his medicine as he is too young to remember.

Show quote history

He’s just had emergency surgery. I highly doubt he’s actually ready to be back at school. His immune system will already be working overtime, and he’s just going to end up more poorly being at school.

Mydoglovescheese · 26/09/2025 08:30

You’re lucky that the school agrees to administer any medication. My GD was on antibiotics for two weeks and had to have a lunchtime dose. My DD works too far away to get to the school and back in her lunch break, so every day I had to go to their house to collect the medicine, go to the school and administer it and then take it back to their house. It took about 2 hours each day!