Parents are advised to give medication at home on a schedule other than school hours. Medication given at school will be dispensed by trained Health Office staff, or administration. Teachers will only administer medication during field trips or in emergency situations. When it becomes necessary for medication to be administered at school, the following procedures must be followed:
- The school must receive written permission from both a parent/guardian and a licensed physician in order to administer any medication (prescription or non-prescription) at school. Please ask office personnel for the proper form to complete this request or download the Medication Authorization Form from the Health Office webpage (see link below).
- All non-prescription medication must be transported to the school by an adult in the original container in which it was purchased, and the container must be labeled with the student’s name. All prescription medication must be transported to the school by an adult in the correct pharmacy-labeled container that includes the student’s name, medication name and dose, and physician’s name printed on the label, unless a physician’s written order recommends otherwise. Upon request, most pharmacies will divide the medication in two bottles – one for home and one for school.
- Parents must provide a copy of all relevant information included with the medication. Parents must notify the Health Office when a medication is discontinued or the dosage and time has changed. A new physician’s order, guardian signature, and permission will be required at that time.
- All medication must be kept in the Health Office and managed by Health Office staff. Medication and all forms of drugs, including herbals, supplements, essential oils, and traditional medicine, are not allowed in a student’s cubby, locker, desk, backpack, etc., unless it has been pre-approved by The School.
- Self-Carry Policy: As a general rule, medications approved for self-carry applies to emergency medications only, including, but not limited to, rescue inhalers, epinephrine, etc. In addition, The School recommends that only students in 5th grade or higher, who show the necessary responsibility and maturity, carry their own emergency medications. This is in order to keep our younger students safe and to prevent accidental access to medication. If parents would like permission for their child to self-carry their medication, it will require a Medication Authorization Form properly filled out and on file. The appropriate boxes on the form must be checked by a physician and parent with both signatures allowing the student to self-carry. Each year, according to state law, the school nurse will also evaluate the knowledge and skill of each student to assess their ability to appropriately self-administer their medication. The School reserves the right to intervene if a student is found mismanaging their self-carry medication and/or putting others at risk.
Medications will not be administered by Health Office staff or other office staff members unless the school has authorization from a physician.