Originally Posted by Nebula:
I was not aware that Texas didn't allow you to keep medication in the center. Suppose a kid spikes 103 fever, mom is an hour away from the center... but asks you to give him/her age appropriate Tylenol, and you don't have it available. When my parents enroll their child, they sign a form authorizing those 3 medications in an emergency, and with their contact. In other words, I keep Infant and Children's Tylenol, Motrin, and Benadryl on hand for that very purpose (think bee sting kid is allergic...). The parents sign a statement when they enroll them, giving me permission to give those medications so I can contact them- and I already have their consent. They also sign another form when they pick them up where I signed that I gave them the medication......
All things aside, as a listed family home- we aren't bound by minimum standards. We are moving to a bigger house, and hope to upgrade to registered or licensed, so I am trying to meet all minimum standards anyway, because it is a safer environment- even though I am not required to.
First, sorry to hear about your accident, I hope you have a speedy recovery.
Second, you are allowed to have your own medication at your home, however, you are only supposed to administer medication to the child it was intended for. This means that the parent should provide the medication. The only exception to this would be providing medication to a child in the event of an emergency. Although you are listed, the law requires listed homes to abide by this rule.
Sec. 42.065. ADMINISTERING MEDICATION. (a) In this section, "medication" means a drug that may be obtained with or without a prescription, excluding a topical ointment obtained without a prescription.
(b) This section applies only to a day-care center, group day-care home, before-school or after-school program, school-age program,
or family home regardless of whether the facility or program is licensed, registered, or listed.
(c) A director, owner, operator, caretaker, employee, or volunteer of a child-care facility subject to this section may not administer a medication to a child unless:
(1) the child's parent or guardian has submitted to the child-care facility a signed and dated document that authorizes the facility to administer the medication for not longer than one year; and
(2) the authorized medication:
(A) is administered as stated on the label directions or as amended in writing by a practitioner, as defined by Section 551.003, Occupations Code; and
(B) is not expired.
(d) Notwithstanding Subsection (c)(1), a director, owner, operator, caretaker, employee, or volunteer of a child-care facility subject to this section may administer medication to a child under this section without a signed authorization if the child's parent or guardian:
(1) submits to the child-care facility an authorization in an electronic format that is capable of being viewed and saved; or
(2) authorizes the child-care facility by telephone to administer a single dose of a medication.
(e) An authorization under Subsection (d)(1) expires on the first anniversary of the date the authorization is provided to the child-care facility.
(f) This section does not apply to a person that administers a medication to a child in a medical emergency to prevent the death or serious bodily injury of the child if the medication is administered as prescribed, directed, or intended.
(g) A person commits an offense if the person administers a medication to a child in violation of this section. If conduct constituting an offense under this section also constitutes an offense under a section of the Penal Code, the actor may be prosecuted under either section or both sections.
(h) An offense under this section is a Class A misdemeanor.