Is it legal for a KY school teacher to tell me that my son needs medication?
103487
Hi Nightcanon. It is not illegal for her to have her own opinion but you should definitely be aware that it is illegal if the school recommends or coerces you to medicate your child, especially as a condition for attending school. This is covered in the Prohibition on Mandatory Medication Amendment of The Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEA) of 2004. For more information, please visit http://www.ablechild.org and http://groups.msn.com/psychbusters\n\nThe term "ADHD" is simply a label used to categorise a list of psychosocial traits that Psychiatry considers to be improper or abnormal in society. Psychiatry defines these traits as a "mental illness", and promotes it as a "disease" that requires "treatment".\n\nIt is not a "disease", despite claims or implications made by certain psychiatric or pharmaceutical organisations. There is NO credible scientific evidence that shows the existence of what constitutes "ADHD" as a biological/neurological disorder, brain abnormality or "chemical imbalance".\n\n"For a disease to exist there must be a tangible, objective physical abnormality that can be determined by a test such as, but not limited to, blood or urine test, X-Ray, brain scan or biopsy. All reputable doctors would agree: No physical abnormality, no disease. In psychiatry, no test or brain scan exists to prove that a 'mental disorder' is a physical disease. Disingenuous comparisons between physical and mental illness and medicine are simply part of psychiatry's orchestrated but fraudulent public relations and marketing campaign." Fred Baughman, MD., Neurologist & Pediatric Neurologist.\n\n"Chemical imbalance…it’s a shorthand term really, it’s probably drug industry derived… We don’t have tests because to do it, you’d probably have to take a chunk of brain out of someone - not a good idea." Dr. Mark Graff, Chair of the Committee of Public Affairs for the American Psychiatric Association. July, 2005.\n\nSuch behavioural characteristics that Psychiatry created this unscientific "disease" from are, and always have been, generally considered "normal". Now, it seems, inattention or "hyperactivity" (Hyperactivity means 'excessively active'* -- what is excessive? On whose authority?? It's ridiculous!!) is abnormal, a "mental illness".\n\nFor a rundown of the exact diagnostic criteria of "attention deficit disorder" visit: http://groups.msn.com/psychbusters/diagnosticcriteria.msnw\n\nFor information on the junkscience behind psychiatric "testing" for "ADHD" visit: http://adhdtesting.org/\n\nFor a list of what inattention COULD be attributed to (rather than some fraudulent "mental illness") visit: http://adhdparentssupportgroup.homestead.com/50conditionsmimicingADHD.html\n\nFor more information, see;\n\nhttp://groups.msn.com/psychbusters/addadhd.msnw\nhttp://groups.msn.com/psychbusters/adhdfacts.msnw\nhttp://www.adhdfraud.org/\nhttp://www.ritalindeath.com/\nhttp://cchr.org/files/7515/child_drug_EN.pdf\nhttp://www.ablechild.org/\n\n"We are not "overdrugging" or misdiagnosing" ADHD. ADHD is a total, 100 percent fraud. The many millions of schoolchildren around the world who are being drugged have no disease." Fred Baughman, Jr., M.D. Child Neurologist and a Fellow of the American Academy of Neurology.\n\n"Parents are seldom told that Ritalin is ‘speed’—that it is pharmacologically classified with amphetamines, has the same effects, side effects, and risks. Yet this is well-known in the profession...." Dr. Peter R. Breggin & Ginger Ross Breggin, The War Against Children, P. 84.\n\n"...But because ADD is so vaguely defined, even for a psychiatric disorder, it is tailor-made for bogus claims. There are, as the American Psychiatric Association’s latest diagnostic manual
996677
My son was diagnosed as attention deficit and mildy autistic by our public education system in Texas. We were told he would never hold a job, graduate from H.S., and would be institutionalized as an adult. We fought the system continuously, forced them to place him in mainstream classes and to accommodate his learning disabilities, much to the dismay of educators. He graduated last month from college, has had a job for six years and drives a new car he purchased himself. \nIf you are willing to completely dedicate yourself to helping your child , they can overcome this disability, it will not be easy. The public education system would rather label your child and place them in special education. Without a voucher system there is no help available from private specialized programs.
40565
Treat your child with a decent over the counter medication. \n\nIf more action is needed for this really rather mild concern, then contact the school's bosses (district HQ or school board, for example) and/or the county public health department.\n\nIf you are still unsatisfied, try a local news station or newspaper. \n\nI am unsure how big of a response you can expect from this however, so you may need to modify your expectations.
266839
I took my son's adderal and welbutrin.....and as a result I took my son off of it..       It messed  me   up...and I decided right then and there I didn't want my Child taking that  stuff....   Plus it caused him to have Heart Palpitations" and "anxiety" attacks..    He wasn't ADD  he was just High spirited and needed extra supervision........    that was when he was 5 now he is 13 and is still a handful   but    he is a good kid  with good morals. and I  am so glad I got him off his meds.   He doesn't even remember half his child hood.  You know I hope that the schools get more money for every kid they have that is diagnosed with Adhd or ADD.   Think about it and think about your Kid.
787178
If he is special needs then there should be some consideration of mental competency.  Special needs doesn't always mean that a child doesn't know right from wrong.  If this child knew that the trafficing of drugs was wrong then why did he follow "orders", why didn't he seek help?  If the child was not capable of understanding that his actions were wrong then his lawyer should be caplable of picking up on that fact and have his client declared unfit for trail by reason of mental incompetency.  No matter how much you care for this child you need to let him be accountable for his actions if he is accountable, if not you should have never given him back.
645029
Yep, and add to this that the schools cannot give a student with a headache an aspirin or tylenol without explicit parental approval.  A child can bring a toy gun to school and they will treat that as if a real one.  If bringing a prescription medicine but not in the pharmacist-issued and labeled bottle, the child can be expelled for violating drug policies.\n\nSomething Jesus said seems to fit here, "blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel" (Matthew 23:24).
60110
Every doctor has his/her own opinion.  Generally tylenol and advil (or the generic equilvalents are fine.)  If you have a medication you aren't sure about, call your pediatrician and ask.
851458
If you have a special needs child you should talk with the Education Service District in your area about options for alternative school. Their job is to identify children with different needs and they are required by Oregon law (to the best of my knowledge) to provide educational oppertunities that your daughter can succeed at.\n\nI do not believe the school can require that your child be given any drug, but they can decide that she can't go to school there if her behavior problems are such that neither she nor the other students can learn. I am strongly opposed to Ritalin (did you know that if she has ever taken it she can never even consider a career in the military? Even if she never wants to go into the military, taking a drug in school should not preclude her from any oppertunity in the future). But I am also not in favor of having students in a situation where they are extremely disruptive and where they are not learning. I encourage you to keep looking for alternatives and to find something that works for your daughter. Use the laws that are there to protect your child to do just that - protect her.
879573
Not legally, at least in the United States.  Mind you, there are places that will either sell it to you illegally (a bit rare, being a felony and all) or have a doctor on staff look over a questionnaire you fill out and then prescribe the drug (much more common).  he FDA is currently looking into requiring any doctor writing a prescription to have a face-to-face consultation with/evaluation of the patient.
780727
I live in Utah and can tell you what the rules are here. You are in another state, and any other answer you get here is somebody's guess.\n\nContact the Indiana State Board of Pharmacy and they can give you the rules and requirements.\n\nI would bet the guys in the Pharmacy know the rules already. If they are 'acting stupid'  or otherwise discouraging you, then I would suspect they are not so keen on having a student. I can't blame them really. Students are more trouble than they are worth, UNLESS they are going to stay with the company.
228777
I have a 16 yr.old son who has add and he is in behaverhol special ed. He causes commotions in his classes (as do other students) and I am sure the learning process is disturbed. I feel that alot of times the teachers in public school are not equipped to handle these children. I get calls from these teachers for the same things that the regular ed teachers called me for.I was under the assumption that is why they put him in special ed so that he can be with teachers that know how to handle these kids but it doesnt seem to be the case.They still deserve to have an education.
1070132
If you have a teacher who is not following your child's IEP modifications (such as frequent prompting), report him/her to the principal. If the problems still exist, call a new IEP and demand that training for the teacher be included in the IEP...yes, teacher training can be listed and then must be done by the district. It looks like the teacher you are dealing with does not understand that the need for the prompting will not go away, and that it is not a matter of your child "learning to behave correctly." Yes, this teacher needs more training. Big time. As well as an attitude adjustment.\n\nUnfortunately, regular ed teachers are NOT prepared for dealing with disabilities in their classrooms. They take ONE "Intro to Special Education course" before they graduate, and then get NO continuing professional development training in disabilities, unless forced to by IEPs. \n\nThere are wonderful regular ed teachers out there who do have the instincts and/or go out and educate themselves, are open to information and are flexible in their classrooms so that special ed teachers and therapists can provide ideas and support....\n\nAnd there are regular ed teachers who just want to teach the packaged curriculum, and resent having to do anything outside the "routine."  They often see the behaviors and learning difficulties from their students with disabilities as willfulness rather than a manifestation of the disability. After all, most kids with disabilities have normal smarts.... and all the teacher sees is the normal smarts combined with the non-learning or not-on-task.... \n\nIt requires VOCAL PARENTS to change this... we special ed teachers, and the therapists, have no clout regarding the behavior of our colleagues. 99% of education laws and programs are set through lawsuits, not legislation.\n\nGo get 'em!
1168254
i am in the same situation...i have a daughter that has adhd with mood disorder and she is on the highest medication you can give someone...(adult doses) she is on so many meds for morning,noon and night...it sucks...but she is truely out of control if she isnt on them...and yes we are extremly disciplinary so its not a parental problem....if she wasnt on the meds she wouldnt be able to go to school...the teachers cant handle her if shes off of them...if we took her off we would have to put her in a special school and that would probably be worse on her...embarressing and everything that goes with that!   i hate the fact that we have her on so many meds it could kill a horse but i dont know what else to do.i sometimes let her go without it...when shes out of school like now,but sometimes its just to much...i am not very patient with her sometimes and i hate myself for that!  but anyways i have never heard of anything outside of meds that can help with this...but i do commend you for not letting them push meds down his throat...but depending on his age and the severity of it the school may force you to or put him in a special school...
1081879
i am not a doctor, but i would say you should Not.  call Patient First near you, or a hospital or some kind of nurse helpline and ask a nurse.  Or you could even call the poison control number and ask before giving the medicine to your child.
880022
Not if they are prescribed to them. It depends how old the kid is, but it should be up to the parent to question the prescribing physician as to why their child is on the drug, and what the risks are Vs. the benefits.
48192
I've dealt with it in that I've been that kid--I did really well on tests, but I hated being cooped up in a classroom.  I don't think your son is the problem; I think the school is the problem.  It isn't natural for kids to be forced to sit still for hours and hours on end--and then people wonder why we have an obesity epidemic!\n\nThere is a good chance your kid is not being challenged enough.  The year I got "The Astronaut Award (for daydreaming so much it seemed like I was on another world)" from my teacher was the same year that I tested into the GATE Seminar program--second grade, age 7 (close to where your son is).  My suggestion is see if you can have the school hit him with an aptitude test that might qualify him for more challenging studies.  beyond that, make sure he has plenty of time after school to run and play outside and get the exercise he needs.\n\nI know I'm going to make a lot of enemies by saying this, but GOING TO A PSYCHIATRIST SHOULD ONLY BE DONE AS A LAST RESORT.  IT IS THE NUCLEAR OPTION.  THEY WILL GIVE HIM MEDICATION REGARDLESS OF WHETHER OR NOT THERE IS A NON-MEDICAL ALTERNATIVE.\n\nThey're doctors--they see a problem, they look for a medical solution.  If the problem was the school,m they'd never say it, because it isn't even on their radar to look to a non-medical solution.  And while things might be getting better, the truth is that the field of psychiatry is still over-loaded with quacks that cut their teeth on Freud, and who don't have the slightest hint of understanding the actions of drugs at a molecular level.\n\nKids who really NEED medication exist, but they are rare, and they are the exception to the rule.  Stay away from the doctor until you've exhausted all else.\n\nemail me if you'd like, at craven0811@yahoo.com
407845
I worked at preschool once that was very paranoid about it's employees starting their own preschool or day care and taking clients away from the existing facility.  It was even mentioned in the contract I was to sign when I started working for the school that if I was to start my own facility and took clients away that I could brought up on some legal charges.  It was also listed in the employee handbook.  You may want to do some investigating about this.  However, even with a doctor's note, you still caused some inconvenience for the school, making sure they had a sub for you being the main inconvenience.  As for the home day care, maybe they feel you are trying to solicit their clients.  You've stated here that you are upset at having no more contact with the children.  I know your reasons sound logical here, but maybe this school has had a problem with teachers going out on their own in the past and they are trying to stop it from happening again.  You don't need to call any of the children from the school. This could get you into more trouble.  If there are art projects left behind, the staff will make sure they get home to the parents, finished or not.