9.3.6 Treatment and Administration of Medicine |
Contents
1. Context
The Children Act 1989 and the National Minimum Standards for Children's Homes, 2011 both have the overall aim of helping to safeguard children and young people's health when there is a need to administer medicines or first aid treatments.
2. Scope
The legislation gives clear direction about the administration and recording of all medication and minor* first aid treatment given to young people.
It is also important to acknowledge that all medicines are potentially dangerous. Children's Homes can be chaotic and busy places and therefore particular care must be taken to administer medication safely and to accurately record any medication and first aid that is given.
In some homes and for some young people it will be appropriate for them to administer their own medication. Where this is appropriate it is also important to develop safe practices with young people, for instance helping them to store their medication safely.
3. Procedure
| 1.0 | Each member of staff should have completed a recognised first aid course. If a new, or temporary member of staff, is on duty, which has yet to receive first aid training, they must not be allowed to administer medication or first aid treatment without supervision from a staff member who has the relevant first aid certificate. |
| 1.1 | A written record of all medication and minor first aid administered is kept by each home. This record must be available for inspection purposes. |
| 1.2 | Written permission, giving consent to the administration of non-prescription medication and first aid treatment must be obtained from the person with parental responsibility for the young person. This is the prime responsibility of the social worker; the consent for is within Looked After Children, Placement Information, within the young person’s Documentation. The Children’s Homes Manager must ensure that this has been obtained and the key worker must take responsibility for tracking this if consent has not been gained. |
| 1.3 | Each home is required to follow the advice from a qualified medic or nursing professional with respect to prescribed and ‘household’ medication. Staff should refer to: The Safe Custody & Supervision of Medication (To follow). All staff should be familiar with this and the procedure should be available for inspection purposes. |
| 1.4 | Each home must have a first aid box that is equipped with the permitted medical equipment. This must be kept well equipped and stored in a safe place. For further procedural guidance see Health and Safety Procedure: Circular 9: First Aid (To follow). This circular includes a list of items to be stored in the first aid box. |
| 1.5 | Each home should have a locked medicine cabinet, specifically designed for the storage of medication. |
| 1.6 | Each medicine cabinet should have a stock control list and a member of the staff team, delegated to carry out the task by the Children’s Homes Manager, should maintain this. |
| 1.7 | The medicine cabinet should be kept in a room that is not accessible to young people and that is locked at all times. The key to the cabinet should be kept in a safe place, which is also not accessible to young people. |
| 1.8 | Young people are given prescribed medication that is only prescribed to them and in strict accordance with the prescription or instructions from the pharmacy. No other person should be given the medication and it is not added to the general stock once the young person it was prescribed for has finished the course of treatment. |
| 1.9 | If a young person refuses their prescribed Medication this should be recorded appropriately. If the young person consistently refuses to take the prescribed medication, the medical practitioner should be informed and the young person should also be aware that this information is being passed on and the reasons why. |
| 1.10 | Before keeping and administering their own prescribed medication the young person should have been assessed to ensure that they are able to carry out the responsibility safely enough and that they are able to safely store their own medication. The assessment of the young person’s competency and willingness in this area should usually be carried out by the key worker for the young person and this should be recorded on the Placement Plan within the Daily Living File, under the section on Health Needs. It may also be informed by the risk assessment that is also located within the Daily Living File. If staff are unsure of assessing a young person’s competency in this area, advice should be sought from one of the following health professionals:
|
End