KARIS SCHOOL
First Aid Policy
This policy is part of a number of school policies aimed at safeguarding children in all circumstances.
Karis school has a licensed and practicing school nurse, as well as a well-equipped Healing Bay. The school nurse is available in the Healing Bay everyday to care for pupils and staff in need of first aid treatment. The school nurse is also ably assisted by trained first aiders.
As part of the induction process in Karis school, new pupils and staff are given detailed information on where to access help in a case of an accident or medical emergency.
First-aider
The main duties of first-aider is to give immediate first aid to pupils, staff or visitors when needed and to ensure that an ambulance or other professional medical help is called when necessary.
Aims of this Policy
- To ensure that the school has adequate, safe and effective first aid provision in order for every pupil, member of staff and visitor to be well looked after in the event of any illness, accident or injury, no matter how major or minor
- To ensure that all staff and pupils are aware of the procedures in the event of any illness, accident or injury
- To ensure that medicines are administered at the School only when express permission has been granted for this and in accordance with their approved usage
- To ensure that all medicines are appropriately stored
- To promote effective infection control
Nothing in this policy should affect the ability of any person to contact the emergency services in the event of a medical emergency.
To achieve the Policy Aims, the School will:
- Have suitably stocked first-aid boxes, with items all in date.
- Carry out a suitable and sufficient assessment of the risks posed to persons in the event that they suffer an accident, injury or ill health
- Appoint sufficient trained first-aiders to take charge of first aid
- Provide information to employees, pupils and parents on the arrangements for first aid
- Have a procedure for managing accidents, including immediate liaison with emergency services, medical staff and parents
- Review and monitor arrangements for first aid as appropriate on a regular basis (and at the very least on an annual basis)
First-aid boxes and first-aid travel bags
The first-aid boxes are located in strategic locations, including the Healing Bay of the school. It is adequately equipped with essential medical instruments and commonly used non-prescription medications required for administering first aid.
There is one mobile sports bag (Kept in the Healing Bay)
At least one first-aid kit should be taken on all off site activities along with individual pupil medication such as inhalers. Contact details, including medical information, should be taken on all school trips.
First-aid kits will be stocked with a minimum of:
- Waterproof Plasters
- Wrapped sterile adhesive dressings
- Individually wrapped triangular bandages
- Finger dressings
- Individually wrapped sterile wound dressings of various sizes
- Disposable gloves
- Burn relief dressings
- Moist cleansing wipes
- Scissors
- Iodine
- Cotton wool
- Micropore tape
- Tweezers
- Cool packs
Pupils with Particular Medical Conditions
Parents are required to inform the school of any medical conditions or allergies affecting their children and the teacher of the particular child is duly notified.
In the event of a school trip or sporting activity, the school nurse will include their medications, including their names with the first aid kit. Parents will be sent a reminder when a replacement is necessary.
Emergency Procedure in the event of an accident, illness or injury
If an accident, illness or injury occurs, the member of staff in charge will assess the situation and decide on the appropriate next course of action, which may involve calling immediately for an ambulance or calling for a first aider. If summoned, a first aider will assess the situation and take charge of first aid administration. First-aiders should be contacted according to availability, as in the ‘priority call rota’
If the first-aider does not consider that he/she can adequately deal with the presenting condition by the administration of first aid, he/she should arrange for the injured person to access appropriate medical treatment without delay. Any items used in first-aid should be reported to the School office so that they can be restocked. If a pupil or member of staff suffers from an illness, then the following guidelines must be followed:
- Anyone who suffers from severe flu, measles, chickenpox, cough, conjunctivitis, skin rash or any other contagious illness is required to stay absent from school until after their symptoms have gone.
- Anyone who suffers from vomiting and diarrhea is required to stay absent from school until at least 48 hours after their symptoms have gone.
Record-Keeping and Incidence
All accidents, administration of first aid and/or medicine will be recorded in the Accident Report Book and/or First Aid Book which is located in the Healing Bay. There are separate books for staff, students and trips.
The record shall include:
- The date, time and place of the incidence
- Personal details of those involved
- Brief description of the nature of the incidence or illness and any treatment or medication given
- A follow up on the individual’s health
- Whether parents were notified
- Name and signature of person providing treatment
Storage of Medication
Medicines are always securely stored in accordance with individual product instructions, except where individual pupils have been given responsibility for keeping such equipment with them.
All medicines shall be stored in the original container in which they were dispensed, together with the prescriber’s instructions for administration and properly labelled, showing the name of the patient, the date of prescription and the date of expiry of the medicine.
Where appropriate, individual pupils will be given responsibility for keeping equipment such as asthma inhalers, or equipment associated with diabetes management.
The first-aiders will have access to, and administer where necessary, an inhaler for all pupils deemed not to be sufficiently competent to carry this themselves.
In other cases, such equipment and medicines will be securely kept, suitably labeled, in the Healing Bay.
All medicines will be returned to the parent when no longer required to arrange for safe disposal.