Managing Medicines in School

We would like to remind parents of the procedures/protocol regarding medicines in school.
  • Medicines should only be taken to school when essential; that is where it would be detrimental to a child’s health if the medicine were not administered during the school day.
  • We can only accept medicines that have been prescribed by a doctor, dentist or nurse prescriber.
  • Medicines should always be provided in the original container as dispensed by a pharmacist and include the prescriber’s instructions for administration and dosage.
  • We cannot accept medicines that have been taken out of the container as originally dispensed nor make changes to dosages on parental instructions.
  • All medicine should be handed to a member of staff for appropriate storage. Medicine should not be left in school bags.
  • It is helpful, where clinically appropriate, if medicines are prescribed in dose frequencies which enable it to be taken outside school hours. Parents are encouraged to ask the prescriber about this.
  • Medication which is to be administered three times a day should not need to be sent into school as it can be given at breakfast time, after school and at bedtime.

Short-Term Medical Needs
  • If your child needs to take medication during the school day you must complete the Medication Administration Form available from the school office and available to download here.

Long-Term Medical Needs
  • It is important that we have sufficient information about the medical condition of any child with long-term medical needs and will work with parents to develop a written health care plan. Care plans are reviewed on an annual basis and parents are asked to ensure school is kept up to date should anything change.
  • A letter from your doctor may be required for medication on a long term prescription.

Asthma
  • Children with Ventolin inhalers in school must have a spacer device available to use with their inhaler.

Sickness and Diarrhoea
  • A child who has sickness or diarrhoea should remain absent from school for 48 hours following the last bout of sickness or diarrhoea. This 48 hour rule is essential in order to protect other children or staff from contracting a bug. Unfortunately, this may mean that a child misses a school event.
 
If you suspect your child is unwell, please do not send him/her to school until they are well enough to cope with a normal school day, which includes outdoor play.
 
Thank you for your co-operation.

​Medication Administration Form