ShawneeDispatch.com

If a new Board of Education policy discussed Monday is adopted, Shawnee Mission USD 512 students will be allowed to dispense their own anaphylaxis and asthma medications at school.

Board members on Monday discussed the policy at its first reading. The policy on student self-administration of medication for asthma and potentially life-threatening allergic reactions aligns with a new state statute, said Superintendent Marjorie Kaplan.

Curt Tideman, the district's legal counselor, said the statute made adoption of a policy mandatory.

Sixth-graders through high school seniors must be allowed to self-administer the medications with parent approval. Districts may choose to allow younger students to do so, too, with written arrangements by parents and physicians.

The Shawnee Mission Board policy discussed Monday would allow all ages to self-administer the medications with parent permission. Parents would be required to annually submit a written statement from a health care provider stating the following:

• the name and purpose of the medication
• the prescribed dosage
• conditions under which the medication is to be self-administered
• other special circumstances
• the length of time the medication is prescribed

The policy also includes a waiver of liability for the district.

Board member Susan Metsker said she was worried about young children's capability to keep track of and administer their own medications.

Superintendent Marjorie Kaplan said she guessed no parent would authorize a child to do so unless they thought the child was knowledgeable and responsible enough.

Tideman agreed.

"The parents are essentially making the decision before the school district does," he said. "That's not a decision that the district is going to be making for those young kids."

Students not recommended to dispense their own medications would stick with the status quo -- going to the school nurse's office, where medications are stored and the nurse regulates their use.