Asthma & safety

[Jodiemacdonald31]

I would just like other people's opinions. How would you react?

My 8 year old (autistic) has asthma.
His puffer has always been kept in the class room, b4 school holidays I met with new teacher, discussed PE, swimming, social skills and all the rest. He said he'd just transfer his puffer from old class room to new 1.
Son went swimming today with school, I had filled a medical form in for this b4 summer holidays, asthma all wrote on.
As he came out of school today a TA came and said to me, he'll need his inhaler next swimming. I asked had they not taken it?? No she said... I was fuming, she didn't even think she had sone anything wrong. I went to see the head. But once I got home son told me, b4 he got in the pool TA told him "you need to bring it next time" so she was fully aware he had asthma and didn't have an inhaler.
I'm just getting more angry by the second.
The school & every school policy I thought, was to take inhaler where the child goes, he was away from school & his puffer for 2 hours

Am overreacting to want heads to roll??

We've been through similar with my son (also ASD).
I think schools are generally ignorant when it comes to asthma.
I don't think you're overreacting, but I would arrange a meeting with the teacher, take in a new inhaler and spacer along with a clear instruction sheet stating that the inhaler must be taken whenever your son leaves school grounds (ie. swimming, school trips).

If you still don't feel that they're taking you seriously, ask his asthma nurse to go in and speak to his teachers.

Does he have a care plan? If not I would get the school nurse to do one. DS has one which makes it clear during school time his inhaler goes wherever he does on or off the premises.

They should be taking all the inhalers with them.

He already has a puffer with spacer and instructions in class room
Last year I had no problems at all, I thought kids medication was part of risk assesment

And id already spoken to his class teacher i can't actually believe it's happened

Head teacher and dept said they will investigate and get back to me b4 end of this week

At our school, if an inhaler is provided for a child, that inhaler goes with the child. Kept in classroom cupboard but e.g. Sports day (held a short walk from school premises) each class teacher had a bag of inhalers. Likewise for swimming lessons, the bag of inhalers goes too. It is one of the items on the risk assessment checklist.

Yes that's what has always happened b4, surely they've failed in there duty of care?

My DD has asthma (she has a ventolin, ipatropium bromide and clenil inhale. She also takes montelukast - to say its bad is an understatement). School has known about jt since before she started (she is now in year 1). She has all of the above medications at school - with the exception of the Monte - which she takes in the morning). The only time I have ever had a problem was when one of the inhalers went out of date during half term and I hadn't received a replacement. I would certainly bring it up with them as it is just wrong. Could you imagine the furore if it was a child with an allergy and they "forgot" the epi pen. I don't think people realise that a lot of people die from asthma. It kind of gets laughed off. X good luck x

That's what I said about the epi pen, my son is also bad, a week in hospital at Xmas n steroids at lot of the time, they knew all this