Medical actions in the classroom.

Your child gets sick at school

It can happen that your child gets a headache, an injury, or gets stung by an insect during school hours. Most schools make agreements with parents, recorded in a protocol. This states for example when the school contacts you, what happens if you are not (quickly) reachable and what the teacher is allowed to give on their own.

Your child takes medication during school hours

Some students need standard medication during school like asthma inhalers, antibiotics, suppositories or Ritalin. You can ask the school if the teacher wants to give these medicines. Both the school and the individual teacher do not have to do this. If the school and teacher agree, it is smart to write down the agreements. In a medicine instruction you can write which medicine is given, how often, when and how. It is also wise to agree on checking expiry dates, the time period of giving, refilling supplies and how to store and keep the medicines. Most schools have a protocol for this. This way there is no doubt about the responsibilities of school and parents.

Medical actions according to the law

Some giving of medicine or other care counts as a medical action. Think for example of tube feeding and giving an injection. Who can do medical actions is set in the law. A teacher is in principle not allowed to do these medical actions at school. A teacher can be allowed when a fully qualified doctor finds the teacher capable. The doctor then gives instructions and a signed paper. Keep in mind that the teacher can refuse to do medical actions he does not feel able to do. Even if the school made agreements with parents. By the way, the law does not apply in an emergency. Then every citizen must help as well as they can. There is also an exception for diabetes.

Liability

For all the above situations: the school is liable and responsible if a mistake is made. Even when you gave permission to give medicine. If a teacher gives the wrong dose or the wrong medicine, he can be held criminally liable for negligence.

Tips

• Ask for the protocol on giving medicine and medical actions. If there is none: ask the school participation council to talk with the school about this.
• Discuss your child’s personal situation with the teacher and the internal support coordinator and make clear, written agreements.
• If a school does not agree to do medical actions, check if there is space for others to do this with permission, like a nurse, doctor’s assistant or you as a parent.
• Discuss how the protocol applies with job sharers and substitutes.
• Use the expertise of the partner schools in the Partnership Tailored Education as a school participation council to check the protocol.
• Also the PO-raad, the VO-raad and many local Public Health Services have model protocols available.