Phones at School

[Tom1982]

Does anybody else use a mobile phone to communicate with teachers regarding various diabetic issues that crop up throughout the day?
We liaise with our daughter’s teacher regarding corrections and any issues they might have. The school now want to stop this due to some policy they are bringing in.
Any ideas?

 

[dannybgoode]

Interesting - of course mobile phone use in schools is very much under the spotlight however this is a health/safeguarding issue so school will have to come up with an alternative, as effective and safe, method of such communications.

I would ask for a meeting with any or all of the head, SEN team and safeguarding...

 

[indio02]

I don't think the issue is phones per se it's Smart phones that are the problem. A dumb phone is the answer.

 

[Inka]

What’s the policy @Tom1982 ? And is the liaising you do by phone call or by text? We do occasionally liaise on medical issues, but prefer instructions in writing. Could that be anything to do with it? What alternative have they offered? How often do you/they need to make contact?

 

[Tom1982]

I had a brief meeting with the SEN teacher this afternoon and it seems more a case of the traceability of any conversation that happen. It seems their concern is if a mistake should occur we would hold all the cards and could potentially make things very difficult for them? That’s not there words, just my take on what was being said.
Typically the teaching assistant (who is brilliant) would ask us if she was unsure about something or needed advice on a low treatment. This would be via text message and all seems to work really well. It’s quite a regular occurrence to receive between 5 & 10 messages a day, but communication is key and this latest layer of bureaucracy is yet another hindrance to have to work around.

 

[Inka]

That’s like I thought @Tom1982 - concerns about ‘doing the wrong thing’ or being held liable in some way. Could you ask your team how other parents do things?

 

[SimonP]

It seems their concern is if a mistake should occur we would hold all the cards and could potentially make things very difficult for them? That’s not there words, just my take on what was being said.
Typically the teaching assistant (who is brilliant) would ask us if she was unsure about something or needed advice on a low treatment. This would be via text message and all seems to work really well. It’s quite a regular occurrence to receive between 5 & 10 messages a day, but communication is key and this latest layer of bureaucracy is yet another hindrance to have to work around.

Surely you can point to the fact that the TA's phone will also have a record of the conversation, so no-one holds any more cards than anyone else? With SMS there's no taking a message back or deleting it remotely as one could potentially do with e.g, WhatsApp (though that also says when a message has been deleted afaicr).

Seems like a strange decision.

 

[paultrose]

So its got nothing to do with the safety and wellbeing of the child.......scared they will get sued at some point

Typical

 

[Inka]

So its got nothing to do with the safety and wellbeing of the child.......scared they will get sued at some point

Typical

I think that’s a bit unfair. What if someone got hold of the parent’s phone and sent a reply with the wrong amount of correction dose? Texts aren’t necessarily secure information. I imagine the safety of any child is also a consideration.

 

[Tom1982]

Surely you can point to the fact that the TA's phone will also have a record of the conversation, so no-one holds any more cards than anyone else? With SMS there's no taking a message back or deleting it remotely as one could potentially do with e.g, WhatsApp (though that also says when a message has been deleted afaicr).

Seems like a strange decision.

Should have clarified the messages are going via her CGM phone. But it’s still a proper strange decision and not something I’ll be letting slide.

 

[Thebearcametoo]

5-10 messages a day seems extreme to me. Have you had a chat with the school liaison on your diabetes team about how these things are usually handled? I would expect to only be contacted in an emergency.