Medication at School

Procedures and appropriate use of prescription and non-prescription medicine

See Washington state law RCW 28A.210.260

Parent/guardian responsibilities

Schools rely on the partnership and cooperation of parents/guardians to ensure medications are administered safely, accurately, and in accordance with Washington State Law and school policies during the school day.

Parents/guardians are responsible for:

Providing all medications needed by their student.
Transporting medication to and from school
Completing the appropriate medication authorization form if their student requires prescription or nonprescription medication during school hours. A separate form must be completed for each medication.

Depending on the student's needs, one of the following authorization forms may be required:

Timely submission of required forms and medications helps ensure that students receive the support they need while at school.

Requirements for all medications: prescription, over-the-counter and homeopathic

To ensure the safe administration of medications at school, the following requirements apply to all medications:

A completed medication administration authorization form is required for each medication. The form must be signed by both the parent/guardian and the healthcare provider. Medication cannot be administered without a completed and signed authorization form.
Parents/guardians must deliver all medications directly to the school office. Students may not transport medication to school unless they have been approved to self-carry.
All medications must be provided in the original prescription bottle, container, or manufacturer’s packaging.
All over-the-counter medications must be clearly labeled with the student’s name.
The healthcare provider’s order on the authorization form must exactly match the medication provided, including the medication type, dosage, strength, and form (for example, liquid versus tablet).

Important: If a healthcare provider prescribes a half-tablet dose, parents/guardians should request the pharmacy dispense the medication in the prescribed dosage whenever possible. If that is not available, the tablet must be split before it is brought to school.

Additional Information:

Under normal circumstances, all student medications, including prescription and over-the-counter medications, should be administered before and/or after school hours under the supervision of the student’s parent/guardian. However, the District recognizes that in certain circumstances, in-school administration of medication is necessary to meet student health needs.
Medications prescribed to be administered three times daily should generally be given at home before school, after school and at bedtime.
Homeopathic medications will only be accepted when the medication administration authorization form has been completed and signed by a healthcare provider.

Self-carry medications (Such as inhalers & epinephrine)

Students may be approved to carry and self-administer certain medications, such as inhalers or epinephrine auto-injectors, when appropriate.

A completed medication administration authorization form is required, with "self-carry" indicated on the form.
The decision to allow self-carry should be made collaboratively by the student, parent/guardian, and healthcare provider, with final approval from the School Nurse.
Parents/guardians are responsible for ensuring their student brings the self-carry medication to school each day and that the medication is current and not expired.

End-of-school-year medication pickup

All medications must be picked up by a parent/guardian at the end of the last day of school. For safety reasons, any medication remaining after the last day of school will be properly disposed of. Medications cannot be stored in school buildings over the summer months.