While it is not our policy at Ladybird Pre-School Nursery to care for sick children, who should be at home until they are well enough to return to the Nursery, we will agree to administer medication as part of maintaining their health and well-being or when they are recovering from an illness.
In many cases, it is possible for children’s GP’s to prescribe medicine that can be taken at home in the morning and evening. As far as possible, administering medicines will only be done where it would be detrimental to the child’s health if not given at the Nursery. If a child has not had a medication before it is advised that the parent keeps the child at home for the first 48 hours to ensure there is no adverse effect as well as to give time for the medication to take effect.
These procedures are written in line with current guidance in the ‘Early Years Foundation Stage’ (2021); the Nursery Manager is responsible for ensuring all staff understand and follow these procedures.
The Key Person is responsible for the correct administration of medication to children for whom they are the Key Person. This includes ensuring that parent/carer consent forms have been completed, that medicines are stored correctly and that records are kept according to procedures. In the absence of the Key Person, the Manager or Lead Practitioner is responsible for the overseeing of administering medication.
Procedures
- Children taking prescribed medication must be well enough to attend the Nursery.
- Only medication prescribed by a GP (or other medically qualified person) will be administered. It must be in-date and prescribed for the current condition.
- Children’s prescribed medicines must be stored in their original containers, clearly labelled and inaccessible to the children.
- Parents/Carers must give prior written permission for the administration of medication. The staff receiving the medication must ask the Parent/Carer to sign a consent form stating the following information. No medication may be given without these details being provided:
- full name of child and date of birth.
- name of medication.
- who prescribed it.
- dosage to be given in the Nursery.
- time dose is to be administered.
- how the medication should be stored and expiry date.
- signature, printed name of Parent/Carer and date.
Child’s medication and permission form is received by the child’s Key Person, or in their absence the Manager or Lead Practitioner, who is then responsible for any administration required.
- The administration must be recorded accurately each time it is given and signed by the staff member who administered it, and a witness. Parents/Carers sign the form to acknowledge the administration of a medicine.
Storage of medicines
- All medication is stored safely in the kitchen on the shelf or, if required, kept in the refrigerator. They are kept in a lidded marked plastic box with a photo of the child and the child’s name clearly marked.
- The child’s Key Person, or in their absence the Lead Practitioner, is responsible for ensuring medicine is handed back at the end of the day to the Parent/Carer.
- For some conditions, medication may be kept in the Nursery. The manager is responsible for checking that any medication held to administer, either on an as and when required basis or on a regular basis, is in date and returns any out-of-date medication back to the Parent/Carer.
- If the administration of prescribed medication requires medical knowledge, individual training is provided for the relevant member of staff by a health professional.
- Another member of staff must be present when medicine is administered and must co-sign the form.
- No child may self-administer. Where children are capable of understanding when they need medication, for example with asthma, they should be encouraged to tell their Key Person what they need. However, this does not replace staff vigilance in knowing and responding when a child requires medication.
Children who have long term medical conditions and who may require on ongoing medication
- A risk assessment is carried out for each child with long term medical conditions that require ongoing medication. This is the responsibility of the Manager alongside the Key Person. Other medical or social care personnel may need to be involved in the risk assessment.
- Parents/Carers will also contribute to a risk assessment by pointing out anything which they think may be a risk factor for their child.
- For some medical conditions key staff will need to have training in a basic understanding of the condition as well as how the medication is to be administered correctly. The training needs for staff is part of the risk assessment.
- The risk assessment includes vigorous activities and any other Nursery activity that may give cause for concern regarding an individual child’s health needs.
- The risk assessment includes arrangements for taking medicines on outings and the child’s GP’s advice is sought, if necessary, where there are concerns.
- The Manager is responsible for completing a health care plan.
- A health care plan for the child is drawn up with the Parent/Carer; outlining the Key Person’s role and what information must be shared with other staff who care for the child.
- The health care plan should include the measures to be taken in an emergency.
- Parents/Carers receive a copy of the health care plan and each contributor, including the Parent/Carer, signs it.
Managing medicines on trips and outings
- If children are going on outings, staff accompanying the children must where possible include the Key Person for the child with a risk assessment, or in their absence another member of staff who is fully informed about the child’s needs and/or medication.
- Medication for a child is taken in a sealed plastic box clearly labelled with the child’s name, name of the medication, inside the box is a copy of the consent form and a card to record when it has been given, with the details as given above.
- On returning to the Nursery the card is stapled to the medicine consent form and the Parent/Carer signs it.
If a child on medication has to be taken to hospital, the child’s medication is taken in a sealed plastic box clearly labelled with the child’s name, name of the medication. Inside the box is a copy of the consent form signed by the Parent/Carer.
