Health Checks at School

balletshoes

surreysaver wrote: »

Trouble is, people not taking these things seriously is what leads to abuse.

from a nurse or health visitor weighing and measuring your child, on school premises, with a group of their peers? Perspective please people.

CruisingSaver

balletshoes wrote: »

from a nurse or health visitor weighing and measuring your child, on school premises, with a group of their peers? Perspective please people.

I couldn't agree more. After reading some of the hysteria on this thread I had to double check it wasn't 1st April!

theoretica

Weighing and measuring someone is good for tracking change over time, but does it tell the nurse anything more about his or her current size than looking would?

IrishRose12

Ermm how can it be assault if the nurse doesn't even touch the child??
I have been in the room with my own children and with other children in my class to supervise them and the nurse doesn't touch the child. They are asked to step on the scale, they are asked to put the patch on their eyes themselves, they stand against the height chart by their self and they are asked to put the headphones on their self.
This hasn't changed in the 10 years I have supervised or been at my own children's checks.

By the way, When your child starts school it is required that they are given a health check by the school nurse, and has been for as long as I can remember, so parents should expect it at some stage during their child's 1st year at school. However I am uncomfortable that a lot of schools in England don't send out forms regarding it! The NHS send our forms to the school which in turn we send home to the parents. The forms have to be returned to the school, which in turn are collected by the school nurse. The class teacher is also asked if they have any concerns about any child, regarding speech/hearing problems etc.
If there are any visible bumps, scrapes, bruises on the child the parent is asked about it or the teacher is asked did she notice it. This is for Child Protection reasons and signs that the nurse has to look out for.

As for reporting the School nurse to the police because you didn't bother reading any notes from school, didn't bother keeping in touch or informing the school when your child started that you didn't want them to be checked out or some other stupid reason. Wise up to yourself for God's sake. They're only doing their job, and they have to check on the children to make sure they are being treated right!
Look at those poor children over in England who have died due to the authorities - including School nurses who have not done their jobs! All because of abuse and neglect..... And the uproar there was because of it! I'd rather know those people were doing their job than worrying about reporting them to the police for doing it!!!

IrishRose12

surreysaver wrote: »

Trouble is, people not taking these things seriously is what leads to abuse.

The same could be said for parents who don't allow their children to have their health checks. Can lead to people thinking they are trying to hide abuse/neglect etc.

Person_one

theoretica wrote: »

Weighing and measuring someone is good for tracking change over time, but does it tell the nurse anything more about his or her current size than looking would?

More accurate is always better.

If the child turns up malnourished or grossly obese at age 8, its not going to be particularly helpful if the records from age 4 state 'looks more or less fine'.

FBaby

There are likely more instances of parents abusing their children by over-feeding their children to the point of affecting their health, than a school nurse asking a child to stand on a scale.

mrcow

IrishRose12 wrote: »

The same could be said for parents who don't allow their children to have their health checks. Can lead to people thinking they are trying to hide abuse/neglect etc.

Who's being paranoid now?

IrishRose12

mrcow wrote: »

Who's being paranoid now?

That's not being not being paranoid at all.
This can flash up concerns to a school. Esp if the same parents don't sign homeworks, turn up to meetings, answer phone calls when child is sick, child has too many days off. Child's uniform is clearly not washed, hair isn't done. The list goes on. Which what concerns me and makes me angry when I see on the news about young children dying because of neglect by parents, I always want to know what kind of school that child went to for the teacher etc not to notice things like that!

I'd rather be paranoid and know I was looking out for the children than sit back on my !!!! and do nothing like certain schools and child services seem to have done!!

mrcow

IrishRose12 wrote: »

That's not being not being paranoid at all.
This can flash up concerns to a school. Esp if the same parents don't sign homeworks, turn up to meetings, answer phone calls when child is sick, child has too many days off. Child's uniform is clearly not washed, hair isn't done. The list goes on. Which what concerns me and makes me angry when I see on the news about young children dying because of neglect by parents, I always want to know what kind of school that child went to for the teacher etc not to notice things like that!

I'd rather be paranoid and know I was looking out for the children than sit back on my !!!! and do nothing like certain schools and child services seem to have done!!

That's not what I said.

Not wanting your child weighed by a school nurse should not raise eyebrows. It is my right to refuse it if I choose. My reasons are nobody else's business. Someone automatically thinking that I am therefore trying to hide evidence of abuse is quite frankly laughable.

If one of children's teachers were to think that, all that would tell me is how little they actually know my child in the first place.