Sunburned Kids At School Who's To Blame?

[MA-Caver]

"My biggest beef is that teachers are not able to make good decisions about kids safety," she said. "Fear of litigation is preventing us from living our lives and taking care of our kids."

That I think is the crux of the whole situation across this country.

It was raining when her children left for school on Tuesday, so Jesse Michener did not slather them in sunscreen, even though she knew they'd be outdoors for field day later that afternoon. But the sun came out around noon and, when the kids came home, two of them were so severely sunburned that they had to go to the hospital.

"We've never done a field day at the school before," Michener told Yahoo! Shine in an interview on Thursday. "They were outside for over five hours."

A freelance photographer, she posted pictures and described her daughter's sunburns on her blog. "Two of my three children experienced significant sunburns. Like, hurts-to-look-at burns," Michener wrote. "Violet is starting to blister on her face." Both Violet, 11, and her sister, Zoe, 9, "have headaches, chills and pain" and had to stay home from school the next day. (Her youngest daughter, 7-year-old Eleanor, was also sunburned, but not badly.) The girls did not stay overnight at the hospital, and Michener said they are being treated at home with cool baths and over-the-counter pain medications.
http://shine.yahoo.com/parenting/kids-come-home-school-bad-sunburns-responsible-172200498.html

Our society is becoming dumber by the headline it seems. This situation for the teachers is a "damned if you do and damned if you don't" kind of thing. In this instance the teachers hands were tied because of rules imposed upon them in not touching the children, so they couldn't apply the sunscreen which would've protected the kids from sunburn.
Mom, however should've at least had a contingency plan of giving her daughter(s) a bottle of sunscreen to carry with them (one would assume the kids have a small pack to bring for their lunch or whatever... or even small bottle with a belt clip) just in case the sun does decide to come out.

To make matters worse, Zoe, has a form of Albinism -- and teachers and staff at Point Defiance Elementary School were aware of her extreme sensitivity to the sun. She even has a written agreement -- a 504 plan -- with the school because of it. And yet, teachers refused to send the girls indoors or allow them to apply sunscreen themselves, according to her mom.

So a long sleeve shirt was out of the question?

Ah, the long arm of the law speaks again...

"Our policy follows the state law which allows district to establish the rules for how medications, both over-the-counter and prescription medication, is handled in the school," he said. "Our policy is that any of that medication requires a doctor's order for kids to take it at school. This is really to protect other students who could be exposed to various medications that they could be allergic to." The federal Food and Drug Administration considers sunscreen to be an over-the-counter medication.

Solutions were available but not utilized.

While Michener says that she takes full responsibility for not making them put on sunscreen before bringing them to school that day -- none of her kids have ever come home from school with sunburns before, she notes. She also points out that teachers had other options besides breaking the law: They could have sent the girls indoors when they noticed the burns getting bad, or called Michener and asked her to come to school and put sunscreen on them herself. (The FDA suggests that sunscreen be reapplied every two hours.)

But even the simplest solutions are stonewalled by rules.

"Something as simple as a sun hat might seem to bypass the prescription issue to some extent," she wrote. "Alas, hats are not allowed at school, even on field day."

Closing the barn door syndrome.

Michener is asking the school district to consider crafting a more "parent-friendly" policy on sunscreens, one that would allow parents to sign a waiver giving teachers permission to apply sunscreen while at school, or one that would allow teachers to act in their students' best interests. Voelpel told Yahoo! Shine that there currently is not a procedure in place for parents who have trouble getting a doctor's note, but "We periodically review our policies as situations change," he said. "I can't say whether this one will be revised based on this case."

All of this and two kids having a bad memory of what was probably a fun field day at school because people are scared of being sued, having their innocuous actions misconstrued and being wrongfully accused and their hands tied because of rules designed to protect both student and teachers.

When is it going to end?

 

[Big Don]

I blame Helios and Apollo.

 

[granfire]

Massive insanity....
it will end when the last lawyer swims with the fishies...

Like really?
Mom knows the kids are intensely sensitive to sun screen and does not give them some to carry along?
or the long sleeved shirt and you know, I'd tell the school to KMA and give my child a hat!

(now I really like my kid's school a little better! They have at least some common sense and require, well, strongly sugest, the kids in band wear hats for band camp AND sunscreen!

 

[rickster]

1.) This is poor parenting. Whenever my wife and mother of my children know that the sun is going to peak in the Summer months, she always applies sunscreen. She even calls the school and informs them to make sure our kids, esp one who is sensitive, to go indoors.

2.) This is poor child safety. Simply, if a school or its teachers have certain rules, the rule of "common sense" applies to bringing in kids from blistering.

If the kids were out in a play yard and a gas pipe bursts, surely a teacher will get the kids indoor or to safety.



There is no excuse for poor child health and improper safety from either parents or school officials

 

[Haakon]

1.) This is poor parenting. Whenever my wife and mother of my children know that the sun is going to peak in the Summer months, she always applies sunscreen. She even calls the school and informs them to make sure our kids, esp one who is sensitive, to go indoors.

This was in Tacoma WA, "peak Summer" doesn't start until late July, it rains more than suns in June in this area, and the sun on that afternoon was a fluke. Take a look at this site for the weather here this month: http://www.beautifulseattle.com/mthsum.asp

I'm sure no student anywhere in western Washington went to school with sunscreen that day or just about any other day around here.

The teachers probably couldn't put sunscreen on any of the kids without being fired, but they should have been able to see a burn starting and get the kids out of the sun, that's a no brainer.

 

[sfs982000]

The lack of common sense just kills me. My boys are pretty pale and if me and my wife know that they're going to be outside for even a short period of time they get lathered up with sunscreen. Both the school and daycare treat applying sunscreen like medication and require a signed release form on file for them to apply it, which I have no problem with. Now I also have to put some of the blame on the kids as well at 9 my boys know how to apply sunscreen on themselves and depending on what kind of shirt they're wearing they made need a little assistance with putting it on their back. So again if the kids are sensitive to the sun and burn easily the parents should have ensured that the kids knew how to apply sunscreen on themselves and given them little bottles to carry with them.

 

[oftheherd1]

I've mentioned before that even though I don't like a lot of teacher's actions (or inactions), we don't give them all the tools they used to have when I was in school. We live in a society where it seems it is high sport to sue anyone who does something we disagree with. Teachers have decided they need protection, and in some things they do.

But from the OP, this is simple redirection and obsfucation:

Our policy follows the state law which allows district to establish the rules for how medications, both over-the-counter and prescription medication, is handled in the school," he said. "Our policy is that any of that medication requires a doctor's order for kids to take it at school. This is really to protect other students who could be exposed to various medications that they could be allergic to." The federal Food and Drug Administration considers sunscreen to be an over-the-counter medication.

They follow the state law, which implies cover as they are being ordered to do something by the state. Then the district is invoked. More cover. So it is implied both the state and the district are controlling and rule making entities. After all that they tell you what the school policy is. But due to involving the state and district, they imply they are just following rules, instead of making them, even though they are making those rules.

But again, what is their alternative? And as is pointed out by the mother and other posters here, there is blame enough to go around.

 

[rickster]

My wife is a educator.
She said that there is pressure from the state to have kids go out and play more.
The latest obese-exercise crazed from the First Lady has also put preesure
She also told me that some teachers have the kids play in the sun (while the teacher is in the shade) just to wear-down, or let extra energy released, in other words; "tire the kids out"

 

[punisher73]

Notice how the article NEVER talks about where the fieldtrip was and if shade/indoors was available as an option. Notice it doesn't say how many kids were there or what the activities were for the fieldtrip. Also, notice how it doesn't say if the kids noticed that THEY were getting burned and asked to go inside etc.

Kids get sunburned all the time when they are at home under their parents care. It was the mother's fault for not taking responsibility for her kids and looking at the weather and seeing what kind of day it was. Also, talking with the school and finding out what the specific plans were and make sure they were prepared.

Also, the shoulder burn did not look that bad, but the face one looked a little "color enhanced".

 

[Thesemindz]

As a ginger I have a massive sun sensitivity. Like, if I even think about going outside during the summer my flesh starts to blister and burn. The second I hit the light, I don't get a gentle warming sensation. I feel like a vampire at high noon. When I was a kid, my mom specifically told my preschool not to even let me go outside during recess. Not only did they let me go outside, they forgot about me and left me outside all afternoon, and I ended up with severe burns all over my exposed skin. This has happened to me on several occasions, including canoe trips and swimming pool excursions, and I've learned to just avoid the light as much as possible and wear a shirt when I go outside. At the end of the day, you are responsible for your own self defense, and this is no different. The kids that had the sun sensitivity should have been taught by their parents what to do in situations like this. Even if it means breaking the rules. Detention is preferable to third degree burns.

All that being said, the school was ridiculous. Sunscreen is not medication. It's not a drug, no one is going to overdose on it. This is baloney. I've heard similar stories of kids getting suspended for using ibuprofen at school or teenage girls taking their birth control at school. It's ridiculous. This is what "one size fits all" policies lead to. People getting hurt. Stupid.

Even the kids who aren't sun sensitive shouldn't be out, in the hot summer sun, for five hours. That's just irresponsible. Were they given drink breaks? Were they allowed to rest in the shade? Where was the common sense here? You don't stick kids in direct sunlight and run them around for five hours without taking proper precautions. It's a ridiculous story, about a bunch of adults NONE OF WHOM did even the simplest, most basic things to protect the children in their care. And who gets burned? The kids. As usual.


-Rob

 

[granfire]

My wife is a educator.
She said that there is pressure from the state to have kids go out and play more.
The latest obese-exercise crazed from the First Lady has also put preesure
She also told me that some teachers have the kids play in the sun (while the teacher is in the shade) just to wear-down, or let extra energy released, in other words; "tire the kids out"

well, in all fairness, the kids need the exercise.

But yeah, sunscreen and water breaks are a must when it's hot!