Wichita school district's medication policy questioned

Oh good grief! I agree with Dr. Sanchez...
"
Another doctor, Jose Sanchez, wrote in a letter to the Wichita school board that the current policy "seems to be a loss of common sense."

"Through the years, I have had to fill out thousands of forms for children to be allowed to be given over-the-counter medications," Sanchez wrote. "I feel this policy is very restrictive, and I hope that this will change."


The schools are trying to act as if they have the best intentions towards the welfare of the children and what they are sytematically masking is that they are afraid of lawsuits plain and simple.

Common sense and good judgment are slowly being socialized out of us. No one can make a decision, they have to be told what to do by someone in authority; follow all the rules even if they make no sense! Does that scare anyone a little bit?

Though the policy doesn't name specific types of over-the-counter medication, health officials say the category includes common pain relievers and cold medicines as well as cough drops, antacids, antibiotic ointments and sunscreen.

One reason, officials say, is that even simple medications come with risks. Giving a child acetaminophen for a headache or Neosporin for a playground scrape may sound easy, said Kathy Hubka, Wichita's director of health services. But there can be "significant complications," including allergic reactions and potential overdosing.

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Read more: http://www.kansas.com/2010/09/05/1479212/wichita-school-districts-medication.html#ixzz0yptma6P3

How about the risks of significant complications for not medicating? Like, if the child gets sunburn because he fails to put on sunscreen because his family couldn't afford to go to the doctor who could authorize it and tell the school that people generally don't overdose sunscreen, rather they put too little of it. (What a waste of a doctor's time IMO. ) Could the parents sue the school district?

I think they should just educate the school staff about what to do if there is an allergic reaction because the children can get those from things other than medication, like food. Do they need a doctor's signed permission before they can eat lunch?

Interesting. I had to fill out an "over-the-counter medication form" for both of my kids for school but it was just something authorized by me...not a doctor. I have no problem telling them which medications, if any, the school could give my child (and, yes, cough drops have to be listed as well as Tylenol, Motrin, etc), but I would have a problem if it required a doctor's authorization. That's a bit over the top.

Wow. In our school district, nurses are not allowed to give OTC medication. If a child has a headache and wants a Tylenol, a parent must be called to come give it to the child. The parent can't just say "Give her a Tylenol;" the parent must come to the school to take the child home or give the Tylenol.

Prescription medicines are different, but the only thing the school nurse can do that is OTC is spray throat spray. Oh, she can apply Orajel, as well. No cough drops.

I always thought that was weird. My kid was on some pretty heavy duty blood pressure medication to control a wonky heartbeat, and the nurse could give those as needed, but if the same kid had a headache she couldn't get a Tylenol.

Our school implemented this policy about a year ago after previously allowing parents to sign permission for OTC meds. What a PITA!!!

Also, it is the most stupid storage issue ever. Now they make every parent send in their own bottle of whatever, unopened, so the school has to store a few hundred bottles of meds. Does this make sense to anyone?

Why can I walk into a gas station and buy medicine for an infant or child, but I can't sign permission for my child to take those same meds at school???

I agree it is a burden for poor parents. It's a burden for any parent! My doctor charges $5 PER FORM to fill them out unless it is during a routine checkup. Buying a whole separate bottle (and usually the little, more expensive per dose bottle) and having to either pay a co-pay or a fee to get the form filled out gets pricey.

It's the same idiocy as the people who won't email our school newsletter due to privacy and security issues, but they WILL email a reminder that it is on the school website...and add the password in case you forgot!:banghead:

When my girls hit puberty it was a real issue for us. They both have very painful periods, so 1/2 to 1 Midol really makes the difference between going to school or staying home immobilized due to pain. But the nurse can't give it to them, and if they bring it themselves they risk being suspended.

We finally went to the nurse practitioner and got a prescription for 800mg Ibuprofen, which seems to get them through the day when they take it right before school (Midol wears off much faster). It seems a little crazy: the ability to pop a Midol at lunch vs. having to take 800mg of Ibuprofen just to get through school without having to deal with stupid cramps.

ziggy said:

Oh good grief! I agree with Dr. Sanchez...
"
Another doctor, Jose Sanchez, wrote in a letter to the Wichita school board that the current policy "seems to be a loss of common sense."

"Through the years, I have had to fill out thousands of forms for children to be allowed to be given over-the-counter medications," Sanchez wrote. "I feel this policy is very restrictive, and I hope that this will change."


The schools are trying to act as if they have the best intentions towards the welfare of the children and what they are sytematically masking is that they are afraid of lawsuits plain and simple.

Common sense and good judgment are slowly being socialized out of us. No one can make a decision, they have to be told what to do by someone in authority; follow all the rules even if they make no sense! Does that scare anyone a little bit?

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I remember going to school being able to take the drugs I needed when the time came-- Midol, insulin, etc. ( I know Ziggy's nephew is going through the insulin problem now)

The schools are just worried about lawsuits now. It is a sad situation of the kids to be in.

Goz

Just for example...

If just one school has 800 students, where is a nurse supposed to store individual bottles (with names) of Tylenol, etc.?

*~Aimee~* said:

I find this interesting since I am a RN. The same kind of policy was at my children's school. What I did was when they got their school physical, I had our Dr write a standing order they could take either tyl or motrin for any pain, or fever PRN and sent the bottle of med with their name writen on it. Jess, Jamie and OJ would go to school nurse as needed to get their med. Jess and Jamie had braces that bothered her. OJ in sports would hurt at times or get headaches.

There is a reason you need this policy like this. I would not want someone giving my child something I didn't know about or a lay person giving medications.....needs to be a nurse.


http://www.kansas.com/2010/09/05/1479212/wichita-school-districts-medication.html

Wichita school district's medication policy questioned


Children in Wichita public schools can't take a pain reliever, suck on a cough drop or put on sunscreen without a doctor's written permission.

It's part of a long-held policy intended to protect students' health and safety and guard the district from liability.

But a group pushing to change the rule says the policy is outdated and unrealistic and that it particularly hurts children from poor and working-class families​

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I certainly agree with you that I don't want anyone to be handing random meds to my children, but I have the money available to purchase Otc meds, as you did, so that my kids can get relief when they need it. I know in the school that my friend teaches in, probably NONE of the parents could afford to do that, nor does that population have ready access to vehicles to be able to bring a Tylenol to school if their child needed one.

Also, I'd be worried about the safety of opened bottles of OTC meds all stored at school------that sounds like more of a potential liability to me than having a school nurse in charge of ONE bottle of Tylenol.....

I don't know the answser to these types of dilemmas but this policy does seem to be erring on the side of "one solution to fit all"

I was at my DD10's checkup today (and thank you for this thread - the ONLY reason I remembered to bring the form).

Even they think it is ridiculous and said the Catholic schools here are the only ones requiring this SO FAR.

I had to try to think up all the different stuff I might need to send in (Tums? Neosporin? Benadryl for a bug bite? Advil for a headache?) and ended up with 4 copies of the form because, YES, in the true efficiency known to schools, each med needs a separate piece of paper.

Can we say STOOOOPID???:banghead:

Mr. E said:

Wow. In our school district, nurses are not allowed to give OTC medication. If a child has a headache and wants a Tylenol, a parent must be called to come give it to the child. The parent can't just say "Give her a Tylenol;" the parent must come to the school to take the child home or give the Tylenol.

Prescription medicines are different, but the only thing the school nurse can do that is OTC is spray throat spray. Oh, she can apply Orajel, as well. No cough drops.

I always thought that was weird. My kid was on some pretty heavy duty blood pressure medication to control a wonky heartbeat, and the nurse could give those as needed, but if the same kid had a headache she couldn't get a Tylenol.

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Mr. E I like you - you sound like a great teacher and a really great Dad

I would not have made it through school with the painful periods I had without meds. There were times when I just had to stay home. My mother would make me hot Brandy which seemed to help. She'd be arrested for that today.

To Mr. E all the other posters you amaze me with your common sense. I don't know how you do it. You jump through the hoops of the school's stupidity even at your own expense of wasted time. You must be very patient and kind people. You are better than I am.

I can't wait to get my law degree. I would love to help put an end to this madness.

Parents should be able to authorize their kids to do WHATEVER at school as long as it is legal and not overly disruptive. Taking an OTC medication is neither. Overdose on sunscreen or even Tylenol? Preposterous. The nurse just wants to sound important.

I would fill out a form for every OTC that I could find on the shelf and in every brand and I'd make them wish they did not have one form for each. Then I'd pay all my friends to do the same thing....paid protestors. Then I would feed them a constant line about how all this new paperwork they've been buried in is really "for their own protection" "for their own good", you know it removes liability and so on. Then I would call on a weekly basis and make sure they had them on file because I think Little Suzie is coming down with something.

And then if ONE time they denied my child access to something, I'd sue their socks off.