Learners unable to attend school due to medical needs

Many children cannot attend school due to their medical needs; some will be in hospital for a long time and others will need a variety of educational provision to meet their needs. However, it must be remembered that a medical diagnosis or a disability does not necessarily imply that the learner has special educational needs (DfES, 2001a: 88, 7:64). Access to Education (DfES and DoH 2001: 8) never-theless states that LEAs should ensure that learners with medical needs are not at home without education for more than 15 days. Learners with long-term, recurring periods of absence, should also have access to education from day one and if this is at home they should receive a minimum of five hours each week. This statutory guidance also says that the education should include a broad and balanced curriculum and that it should be of similar quality to that available in a school.

There are a variety of provisions available for learners with these needs. They include:

■ hospital schools

■ hospital teaching service

■ home teaching

■ integrated hospital/home education service

■ pupil referral units (PRUs)

■ psychiatric units and hospitals.

It is important for educators that they can meet with and be involved in the planning of provision for any learner who is returning to or leaving for a period of time from a mainstream environment. Without this close liaison between professionals, learners can find themselves isolated, at risk of bullying and teasing, unable to cope with the curriculum, resulting in under-achievement and with their medical needs misunderstood by staff and peers alike (DfES, 2001a, 2001b). Every Child Matters (HMSO, 2003: 91, 6.33), a government Green Paper, also rigorously supports this joint working approach: ‘The Government is committed to working with children’s workers to deliver world class services. To that end, the Children’s Workforce Unit will examine how to develop collaborative approaches with frontline staff to identify and overcome barriers they face.’

Educators also need to be aware that learners returning to school from a long illness may well get tired very easily, be anxious about meeting friends again or catching up on missed work. They may well be emotional or display behavior difficulties and some of course may still be on medication such as steroids that can make them more emotional than normal. Individual reintegration programs, written collaboratively, should enable all such areas of concern to be discussed and planned for proactively.

When learners miss school intermittently for a term or two, due to illnesses such as glandular fever, it is essential that this is planned for and that the learner receives appropriate homework that is regularly sent home and regularly marked. Contact with parents and other agencies is also vital so that everyone involved is aware of changes and that educational needs are met.

Other medical needs may include helping learners cope with allergies. Asthma and hay fever will be the most familiar to educators, but more complex needs may be met. The following case study shows how a school adapted their practice and the environment so that a learner could be included without social or educational repercussions.

Discussion

Who would be the guidance teacher in your educational setting? Have you experienced a similar situation, perhaps when work has not been carefully thought about and regularly sent home? Can you think why this was the case and what changes could be made so that other learners with medical needs requiring absence from school can be handled more effectively?

مواضيع ذات صلة

Other factors that affect learning: epilepsy, HIV/AIDS, puberty and mental health issues Key issues

How can educators identify learners at risk of mental health problems?

So what are mental health problems and mental health disorders?

Child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS)

Educating school-age parents

Puberty

Learners unable to attend school due to medical needs Case study 1

Learners unable to attend school due to medical needs Case study 1

Other factors that affect learning HIV/AIDS

Treatment of epilepsy Case study 2

Treatment of epilepsy Case study 1

Treatment of epilepsy