Crayke Church of England Primary School

ADMINISTERING OF MEDICINES POLICY

DATE: SPRING 2014

REVIEW: SPRING 2017 Crayke Church of England Primary School

ADMINISTERING OF MEDICINES IN RESPONSE TO DfES GUIDANCE

Guidelines for Parents

Introduction

A clear policy understood and accepted by staff, governors, parents and children provides a sound basis for ensuring that children with medical needs receive proper care and support. This framework should safeguard entirely, other children and the staff of the school.

Definition

Medicines will only be administered by staff of the school when it is essential; that is where it would be detrimental to a child’s health if the medicine were not administered during the school ‘day’. The school will only accept medicines that have been prescribed by a doctor, dentist, nurse prescriber, or pharmacist prescriber.

Under no circumstances will the school accept medicines that have been taken out of the container as originally dispensed or make changes to dosages on parental instructions.

It is helpful, where clinically appropriate, if medicines are prescribed in dose frequencies that enable it to be taken outside of school hours. Medicines that need to be taken three times a day for example, could be taken in the morning, after school and at bedtime.

It is the policy of the school not to administer non-prescribed medicine or to allow children to take responsibility for their own medicine. This specifically includes medication such as Calpol, unless it has been specifically prescribed. Medicated sweets and lozenges such as Strepsils, Lockets, Tunes etc. must not be brought to school.

The only exception to these circumstances is travel sickness medication which must be handed to the teacher on the day of the visit in a named envelope, which stipulates times of medication and signed by a parent. Parents must state also that, to their knowledge, their child has no side effects to the medicine.

Roles and Responsibilities

Headteacher  will ensure that the procedures are in place to cover the needs of this policy.  will oversee staff training in dealing with medical needs.

Staff  will ensure that the parental agreement has been completed and signed before accepting medication from a parent. Staff will not administer medicines that require specific training until this has been undertaken.

Any member of staff giving medicines to a child will check:  The child’s name  Prescribed dose  Expiry date  Written instructions provided by the prescriber on the label or container

If in doubt about any procedure, or the circumstances of a particular child, staff should not administer medicine before checking with the parents or the appropriate health professional.

Staff will complete a written record when medicine has been administered. If a child refuses to take medicine, they will not be forced to do so. The member of staff concerned will contact parents immediately. If refusal to take medicine results in an emergency, the school’s emergency procedures will be followed as set out in the First Aid Policy.

Parents Are requested to:  Complete a Parental Agreement form before leaving medicine at school.  Provide prescribed medicine in the original container as dispensed by the pharmacist and include the prescriber’s instructions for administration.  Provide details of any changes to the prescription or support required.  Inform the school of any possible side effects and confirm arrangements for contact in the event of unforeseen circumstances.  Collect medicine from school at the end of the course.

Visits and Extra Curricular Provision

The school will always consider reasonable adjustments they might make to enable children with medical needs to participate fully and safely in extra curricular and enrichment activities. This may require additional safety measures, which may result in a parent/volunteer accompanying the visit. Staff supervising the excursion will always be aware of any medical needs, and relevant emergency procedures. All adults should be aware of issues of privacy and dignity for children with particular needs.

Storage of Medicines

Preventative medicine such as inhalers should be kept in the desk drawer of the class teacher and be readily available to the child concerned. Adrenaline pens will also be readily available and not locked away.

Medicines will be kept in a secure cupboard in the school office unless it requires refrigeration, in which case it will be held in the staff room.

Conclusion

It must be noted that administering medicines does not fall within the conditions of employment for staff in schools. Accepting responsibility to carry out this role lies with the individual. Consequently the ongoing implementation of this policy is reliant upon the availability of staff who have accepted this responsibility and have the necessary training where appropriate. The Headteacher, on behalf of the Governing Body, reserves the right to refuse the administration of medicine.

The Governing Body Spring 2014

This Policy is informed by DfE Guidance, 2005: Managing Medicines in Schools and Early Years Settings