School!!

[Mummybear26]

Hi all, my son unfortunately has a lot of tonsillitis and he has so much time off school because of it myself and the school done a care plan where he can have the antibiotics in school. It was only 1 dose at midday, the first 3 days he got over dosed !! The last 2 days the school never bothered to give him the prescription antibiotics because they failed to stick with the plan I put in a complaint now we’re 4 days over and my son has had a relapse of tonsillitis where the antibiotics were not given correctly now his on two weeks worth and a doctors letter stating it’s important that they are followed up by instructions. Due to the school failing him last time should I keep him off and request work sent home?
Thank you

Can anyone advise?

How old is he?

How many times a day does he need meds?

How old? Can he have them before school, on pick up then before bed?

If you can afford the time to keep him off, could you not just go at midday and give him the dose yourself. That is what we had to do at our school anyhow.

Sorry everyone just seen these reply’s my baby’s been poorly, my eldest is 10 and the medication he is on has to be given 4 times a day 6 hours apart 1 hour before food or 2 hours after. I can’t pop down to school at lunch as I don’t drive and school is 20 minutes away by bus but medication has to stay in the fridge... I’m in a catch 22 situation :(

Speak to the doctor and ask to get a different antibiotic prescribed.

If a doctor knows the child is still going to school they will often prescribe an antibiotic that only has to be taken 3 times a day and that food does not matter with.

The other options are to keep them home, or to take the hit of going on the bus. You can keep the medicine in the school fridge, and just turn up to administer it, or take it in a cool bag with you. Amoxicillin for instance is stable for at least a few hours out of the fridge (or you would not be able to take it home from the pharmacy in the summer!)

Thanks for answers the school have said they want him in school and are sorry for not giving his last medication two weeks ago correctly and hold full responsibility for this issue. Doctors can’t prescribe anything else due to it being so bad they need him to stay on the 14 day course. I’ve suggested to school I will send him providing I can bring him home for medication and lunch. Medication that is required to be given an hour before lunch school they said they can give him the medicine but cant allow him to eat an hour later during lesson...

Can you suggest to the school a couple of things to help them remember to give medicines

1. parent calls and reminds at time medicibe should be given
2. a notification system on the office computer. We set up alarms that go off when its time to give a meducine and a message comes up with pupil name, class
3. have they got a proper form with the name, dose, date and time given that staff sign each time they give a dose. Its pretty poor to give too much - This form should stop 2 people giving the medicine or the wrong dose as they should have the form in front of them so woukd see someone had done it.

After a battle with the school all week requesting work to be sent home for my son so he doesn’t miss out they haven’t provided any work for him and have said they are open to suggest that I send my son at 8:50 collect him at 11:30 let him have Medication at home for 12 and get him back to school for 1:30 to leave school at 3 !! What a lot of f*cking about if you ask me. Because there is a ongoing complaint from myself about the neglect and duty of care the last time he was in school on antibiotics I feel there just being bloody awkward! Am I covered by the medical evidence if he has the full two weeks off?? x

I imagine it would be the same standard as work - ie if a doctor will "sign him off" then you can keep him off for the full two weeks.

That plan is nuts, why aren't you just administering the medication and then leaving at lunch time?

The medication he is on has to be given an hour before food at 12 and school are saying he is to eat in the lunch hall with everyone else which is at 12:30 when his year group goes into the hall. The doctor has wrote a letter to the school explaining the importance of the medication at the correct time etc if there not willing then to excuse him from school for the two week period?

I can’t give him the antibiotics in school at 12 as the whole office closes down for lunch at 11:45 till 1:15. I asked doctor if this medication could be changed or given at earlier intervals and it’s 6 hours apart and 1 hour before or 2 hours after food. The easiest way to do this is

6am medicine 7/8am breakfast
Midday medicine ,1pm lunch ,4pm dinner, 6pm medicine 7:30/8 snack and then I’m still up till 12am giving medicine I’m getting fed up with it myself as it’s coming into a 24 day course in total.... lack of sleep is draining

I would escalate to governors in this situation!

Can you speak to the doctor again or a pharmacist. What antibiotic is it? It may be the case that actually it needs to be taken 4 times a day, ideally 6 hours apart but as long as it's been 4 or more hours that should be ok. Also, a lot of medicines are ok with just a 30 minute break between food and the dose.

Both of mine were on antibiotics for scarlet fever for 2 weeks before Christmas. When they were back at school the Dr said it was absolutely fine to have one dose at 6am and the next at 11.30am (an hour before lunch) and the half hour wouldn’t cause any problems.

Find School Nurse number and get them involved, as an urgent matter? They are the best to liaise between parent/school/GP.

I’ve been back and forth all week between school gp and pharmacy it’s driving me bonkers Monday again tomorrow and it starts up again! Il get back onto the school tomorrow to try to get this resolved as his missing out on his education and there refusing to send work home,, last week he was on the following....
clarithromycin twice a day
Difflam spray 4 sprays every 1.5 / 3 hours
And he still has two bottles of Phenoxymethylpenicillin to get through yet! @m0therofdragons I will be taking it to them, can I get them involved whilst an on going complaint is still being investigated?

Is he really well enough to be at school? If you're tired faffing with getting up giving medicine at midnight, he must be shattered, poor thing!

I'm the first aider at school and whilst I would do everything to help you make sure his medicine was given properly, I think I'd be inclined to suggest he stays at home, until he's completely over this.

His suffered with tonsillitis since 5th January and it’s still on going, his eating and playing with his baby brother in short bursts but spends most of his days laying on the sofa with his blanket watching Cartoon Network! I’m just worrying in case the school don’t accept this medical evidence ?? The doctors have said if he doesn’t get better on this lot then he will have to go to hospital x

Have you asked the dr if he’s ok to just take his second dose half an hour early? 2 separate drs told me it was fine.

I would get them to give him the medication at 11.30 and lunch at 12.30. Seems to be the only way around it. Can't expect them to shift a whole lunch time setting. It'll be chaos anyway!!

If you're really worried about the half an hour could you give the initial dose half an hr earlier?

NHS website says it’s okay to give 30 minutes before a meal, I can work around it if school works with me but it also worry’s me as two weeks ago they completely messed the whole medication up giving 10ml instead of 5ml and then skipping doses on other days this is why I have put in a complaint regarding this issue now it feels like there just being awkward towards me because of this. Hopefully I can get him in for Tuesday and sort something out I can’t be back and forth on a bus every two hours I also have a one year old. This grumpy parent just needs a full night sleep lol

Why not give the medicine at 11.30?

I can go to the school to give the medicine at that time it’s not a issue as stated previously they want me to bring him home for the lunch! Is this because I’ve complained??