It is recommended that medication be given at home if possible. If a student must take medication at school, the medication will be administered by the nurse or a trained school staff member as designated by the principal.
The law (A.R.S 15-344) requires that medication must be delivered to the nurse in the prescription container, including inhalers and epinephrine auto-injectors, as prepared by the pharmacist. Please make sure the prescription label is clear and updated. The nurse must follow the directions on the prescription label. If you would like to change the dose or time, a new prescription bottle with updates is needed. If you would like to discontinue the medication, the nurse may ask you for a doctor’s order to discontinue.
For over-the-counter medications, they must be delivered to the nurse in the original, sealed container as packaged by the manufacturer and labeled with the student’s name. All directions, dosages, compound contents, and proportions must be clearly marked by the manufacturer. Dosage must be in keeping with the manufacturer’s recommendations as printed on the label.
The nurse will not give non-FDA approved medications and cannot administer expired medications.
Parents/guardians bring in medications and pick them up to take home. Medication should not be carried back and forth from home to school by the student. The parent/guardian will be asked to sign a consent to administer prescription medication and over-the-counter medication in order for the nurse or school administrator designee to administer the medication.
Certain emergency medications (inhalers and epinephrine auto-injectors) may be kept in the student’s backpack. A special consent form must be completed and signed for these self-carry medications. The student must be old enough to keep the medication safe and to keep it out of the hands of other students. It must be carried on the student every day and the medication packaging must be intact with a prescription label. Inhalers and epinephrine auto-injectors without a prescription label will not be allowed on campus.
Parents/guardians must retrieve medication at the end of the school year. All medication will be destroyed if not retrieved by the last day of school.
Occasionally, your child may unexpectedly need medication. The elementary health offices stock a limited supply of acetaminophen. The high school health offices stock a limited supply of acetaminophen and ibuprofen. Annual written parent/guardian permission on our acetaminophen and ibuprofen forms must be in place for the nurse to administer. Even with written permission, the nurse has the discretion on when to administer these medications.
Narcan, a safe and effective treatment for an opioid overdose, will be stocked in all district health offices and will be administered if there is a suspected overdose.
