Doctors don't understand how difficult it is for me to see them.

[YourSparklyLimeTraybake]

I work in leadership in a school. My direct boss is off sick long term and I am acting up. The next person in the line of succession is also not well and in and out sporadically. There isn't anyone else that can step in to cover, even if it's just for a short period of time. My school is very challenging.

I am incredibly stressed, working 7am til 7pm most days just to keep afloat. They don't take online bookings unless you're a Uni student, I am on duty at break and lunchtime, so can't call during the day.

I need a blood test and it's overdue. They now won't prescribe one of my medications until I get tested and then a separate appointment to be reviewed. I've tried to arrange both three times, and each time something has happened so I can't go, which means the second review appointment gets cancelled too, then I have to try to figure out how to find time to make the appointments again.

I don't know what else I can do and now I've run out of medication.

This attitude only perpetuates the situation faced by the OP.
schools can’t operate in th current environment.

Maybe having to close the school
for a day is the drastic action needed to highlight the issue. For as long as people continue to sacrifice their own wellbeing for “the system”, the system will continue to take advantage

The OP has already explained that they work through break and lunch. They have also said they don’t have another school nearby… I imagine that this is a primary school in a small town or village ( or there would be a larger leadership team). Not everywhere has a private GP on every corner - the nearest one to me is a 50 minute drive.

This really highlights the challenges of being in a leadership role in a school run with skeleton staffing. The governors need to work out their contingency plans as, like others have mentioned upthread, this is completely unsustainable and you need to prioritise your health.

A child disclosing a safeguarding issue when no-one else onsite is trained for that or they've chosen you and that moment to disclose, can't wait.

Yes they can.

They can sit quietly with a trusted adult and wait for whoever needs to be there to be there.

It is likely to be an hour tops.

The adults involved up to this point can make a written report of everything they said and did.

The DSL could equally be in a CP case conference or on the phone to social segoces. The child can wait for a short period of time until that adult is available.

Indeed something would happen were she to perish. However, the consequences of my demise might be a late report or an overdraft (or whatever not significant in the grand scheme scheme of things most jobs consist in) but the solution for there being no SLT member being available in a school with lets of vulnerable children could have long term impacts on said children, no? Presuming, like it sounds like, this is a standard quarterly rollover, or whatever, then there is nothing magic about 90 days and if so why could not an extension be issued? Obvs this would be different were it chromic short term medication or whatever that might have serious negative consequences of take for 91 days, or 119 days, rather than 19?

This is exactly right. Were there to be a time sensitive safeguarding issue such as a person trying to remove a child from the premises without permission, then any adult on site would call the police as they would in any emergency situation.

So what do you expect them to do?

Agreed. What a waste of NHS resources

And then there would be an investigation as to why there was no DSL on site and the OP would be risking her career.

Options to see what services are available for blood tests before/after the school day are helpful. Online consults, exploring private options and ways to get the meds to tide her over until the holidays are helpful.

Suggesting she leaves the school site during the working day is not. (Long term suggestions for training additional DSLs yes, but not for this immediate situation).

That is not the point that was being responded to. The point that was being responded to was the suggestion that a child making a disclosure was something that must be dealt with immediately and cannot be delayed by anytime whatsoever. The legal requirements re a DSL have already been covered on this thread and it is ludicrous that this hasn't already been put on place by the HT. A DDSL can be trained extremely quickly and this should have been done within a matter of days when the staffing situation emerged as it currently is.

Why can’t you call during the day? Presumably you get some sort of break?

You cannot continue with the level of stress forced on you.
It's easier said than done, however no job is worth your health.

The role and risk can be covered by one of the Governors whilst the OP is at her doctors appointment.

Ours is currently running at a 4 week waiting list

As my mum used to say "graveyards are full of indispensable people". If your boss is off sick long term, the school has to make alternative arrangements, it can't just rely on people deputising on an ad hoc basis.

Presumably no child would disclose a safeguarding issue before 8:30 or after 3:30?

Why are you doing break and lunch duty every day?

Most people work during the hours the doctors surgery is open. What are you expecting them to do if you keep cancelling? Give you the medication anyway despite it not being best medical practice because your oh so busy and super important? Get a bloody grip. Your no busier than anyone else with a full time job. Stop being a martyr, make an appointment and go.

We do get it but we also recognise ops health is the priority here not the school. If she died tomorrow they wouldn't close the school down until a new head was appointed would they.

I have the same problem. I live 5 miles from the doctors. I can’t drive because of health problems. I’ve had cancer twice this year including a recent diagnosis of leukaemia. So when my doctor blithely asks me to come down so she can examine me, I’m frantically trying to get transport to the surgery ( taxi costs £25 which I can’t afford) no family to help. No one understands how hard it is!

Yes. They'd have to. They cannot have children on site without a DSL.

No they wouldn't. They'd magically find someone to cover.

I have no experience with governors who do not work a full-time job themselves.

Even if there was a governor available, would they be a DSL?

You know all these threads about teacher retention crisis we've had over the last few years? There is noone!

In a MAT, yes, they'd get someone in. But if it is LA maintained, there is no-one.

I work in school too.

Stop playing the martyr. You take the time you need. If you're added to the long term sick list, somehow the school will continue. They'll manage for an afternoon too.