School Absences & Doctors excuses

[Justanopinion]

You could probably talk to the principal or someone at the school and get an exception to the rule excuse type thing.

I totally understand the school's policy though. I have a relative that was clearly a helicopter parent but only to one of her two daughters. She would let the older child stay home constantly but would send the younger daughter to school no matter what. The school did the same thing, she had to start having Dr.'s notes. This mom went so far as to get a Dr. to diagnose Bi Polar in her child. How she did that I will never figure out.
But she truly favored and babied her oldest daughter. This child did not have a bed time, she was allowed to run the streets(small town) and then when she was too tired to get up in the mornings all she had to say was I have a headache and mom would let her stay home. This went on in high school. The child quickly learned too, how to play mom. They did end up charging mom with truancy and she did have to pay a fine.

 

[shirleyb]

It may actually be a state law and have nothing to do with your school's policy. We got a note like that once for one of my kids and the law quoted some PA statute.

 

[randommail]

10 days for a semester is quite a bit to be honest.

Not saying you were not justified, but it is enough for the school to want/need a doctor's excuse.

I don't see a problem with them asking for it.

 

[waltsgirl]

I would call the Dr's office and see if they will give you an excuse. It does not have to be a "seen in my office" note just an "off school" note. If you have a good relationship with your Dr and the Dr knows that you wouldn't keep your child home for just a running nose, this should be no problem.

 

[Stacerita]

Our school district does this. More than X amount of absences, a doctors note is required.

My son is four years old. He's been sick a number of times. They've even called me twice to come pick him up. I've been given notice that docs notes are required now.

Uh, do you really think my 4 year old is playing hooky? Or maybe they think I'm too lazy to get up in the morning and get him off to school? Since my 9 year old has only missed 1 day all year, they know that isn't the case either.

There are many parents who let kids stay home just because they want to. Or to take a vacation or a trip. So playing "hooky" is something schools see. Also, there are parents who really can't be bothered to get up and get their kid out the door to school. They like to sleep in so they let the kid miss. It happens.

I completely understand your frustration but there (may) be a lot of parents out there who just let their kids stay home from school because they can't be bothered.

I think that 10 absences is a lot to have taken with 4 months left to go and can certainly understand why they would need documentation - that's 2 whole weeks of school.

That is a lot of missed school. DD missed more than that when person quarter when she was in the lower grades of elementry school. She had asthma and was sickly. Lucky she grew out of it. But I had to produce many notes to the school and was really close to the office staff to make sure they understood the situation.

What do they want the doc's note to say?? They have no right to ask you specifics- this is protected under the Health Information Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). I would tell them that I would be happy to take my child to the doctor for every illness- if they are willing to pay for the office visit.

It doesn't have to say anything about why the child was out. It can state that the child was "under their care" or that the child is cleared to return to school on a certain date.

 

[Mermaid02]

If you want to get nit picky- even your child's physicians NAME is none of their business. What if a child sees an infectous disease specialist?? That is NONE of the schools business. What if they see a mental health specialist? Again, none of their business.

I just think the public school system tends to over reach. A parents word ought to be enough. If they have concerns otherwise- they need to say so outright.

 

[Mickey Fliers]

What exactly are they going to do if you never produce a note?

 

[SpecialK]

If you want to get nit picky- even your child's physicians NAME is none of their business. What if a child sees an infectous disease specialist?? That is NONE of the schools business. What if they see a mental health specialist? Again, none of their business.

I just think the public school system tends to over reach. A parents word ought to be enough. If they have concerns otherwise- they need to say so outright.

I completely agree. Unfortunately, schools have to write their policies for the greatest offenders and everyone gets painted by the same broad brush.

In this situation, I would talk to the principal. Keep in mind, however, that a lot of schools only cite policy when they think parents are being negligent about attendance.

 

[MushyMushy]

They've had to crack down thanks to NCLB. Some of the schools in my district have been on the "needs improvement" list because of attendance issues, so they've really been after parents HARD for these absences.

For those saying 10 days is a lot of days, yes it is. But when a kid is sick, those days can really add up fast! They get something at the beginning of the year and are too sick to go for 3 days. Then a month or two later, there's another 2 or 3 day illness. A month after that, something else is going around and they're out for another 2-3 days... there you go, you're close to your 10 already and it's not even December!

If the schools are anything like my kids' schools, they can be puking in the classrooms or in the halls, spreading germs everywhere, and they won't send them home. I think schools are just big germ factories.

What exactly are they going to do if you never produce a note?

Send you to court, where you'll get a lovely fine. And then if you miss way too many days, give probation or even take your child off of you. That's for more extreme cases, but it does happen.

 

[randommail]

If the schools are anything like my kids' schools, they can be puking in the classrooms or in the halls, spreading germs everywhere, and they won't send them home. I think schools are just big germ factories.
.

My kids school is opposite. I had them call to pick up my son literally 10 mins before dismissal due to him having a stomach ache. 10 mins! No fever, no puking etc. I mean I could not get to there in under 30mins anyway so he just took bus anyway.

 

[MushyMushy]

My kids school is opposite. I had them call to pick up my son literally 10 mins before dismissal due to him having a stomach ache. 10 mins! No fever, no puking etc. I mean I could not get to there in under 30mins anyway so he just took bus anyway.

Wow, that might be overdoing it a bit! But from what I understand, when schools have a strict no fever, vomiting or diarrhea policy, kids are healthier overall.

 

[kristilew]

These kind of attendance policies go hand in hand with the stupid perfect attendance awards, IMHO. They basically give a certificate and a pat on the back to the kids that made my kid sick during the year!

If your kid is sick, every mom appreciates you keeping him home. Truly. As for the school, I agree with pp's that showing receipts for previous dr's visits, or even scrips for antibiotics (I assume you had them for the strep) should buy you some days.

Usually, the note is just a formality and if you can talk to the AP or Principal about it, you should be fine.

 

[dairyou]

I didn't read the entire thread but schools are cracking down. I work at our local high school and kids don't show up all the time. The school looses money if your child doesn't come to school with an excuse. Now on the other hand if my child is sick and I know he is and called the school I think that should be good enough. Even if he wasn't sick and I wanted to keep him home I don't think that's anyones buisness as long as his grades are good.

I've stood in line at midnight to get the newest video game and let my kids stay up all night to play it. They skip school the next day and get right back on track. There have been times where they said they couldn't miss school and turned down my offer to stay at home. My kids are responsible young men and I don't need a school to tell me I have to bring in a note.

Okay, I've gone on and on too far. Don't flame me too much.

Deb

 

[monkey68]

When I was in school, you were allowed a certain number of unexcused absences, but the rest you needed a note for. If I was sick and went to a doctor, we always got a note to turn in, just in case I would go over the number of unexcused. It's pretty common, I think to have a policy like that. And usually, even if you are sick, but not enough to see a doctor, you can usually call the office, and they'll write you a note.

 

[MiniGirl]

I didn't read the entire thread but schools are cracking down. I work at our local high school and kids don't show up all the time. The school looses money if your child doesn't come to school with an excuse. Now on the other hand if my child is sick and I know he is and called the school I think that should be good enough. Even if he wasn't sick and I wanted to keep him home I don't think that's anyones buisness as long as his grades are good.

Deb

DING. DING. DING!!!! We have a winner!!!! I'm sorry, and I know I sound like a cynic. However, the school district does not "care" about my child. The individual teachers may, but not the district. Just this past weekend we got a call from the school's phone tree reminding us of a huge meeting taking place tonight. We also received a letter about this meeting every day last week. The state is making huge budget cuts and the schools are really pushing parents to attend this big town hall type meeting. No problem with that, but this is, by far, more advertising than I have seen for any other event.

In our district, any excuse that is not accompanied by a doctor's note is unexcused. We can call up the school and say Johnny won't be coming to school today because he is sick, but without the note, it is still unexcused.

The year we took our cruise it meant going to the doctor for things that we wouldn't normally go for. It is their game, so we played by their rules. This year we are homeschooling our oldest and will bring our youngest home next year as well. I can't wait. We are an airline family, and I hope to take advantage of the perks and do lots of travelling with my girls.

 

[hegsag]

I can understand what you are saying. I would do just what you said. Have a "nice" talk with the principal/teacher, so that they understand your son's situation. Not sure if a nice talk will make a difference or not, but it's worth a try. Or if that doesn't work, do what a pp suggested...ask your family doctor if they will fax a note to the school without your having to take your son to a doctor each and every time. Especially if it's a virus, and a trip to the doctor's office isn't really necessary. Good luck.

ITA. It's too expensive and a waste of everyone's time for you to br running to the doctor for every sniffle and ache... It does get frustrating - GL.

 

[ROIE01581]

When my daughter was in school, they could fail you if you missed more than 10 days of school. You could repeat the year. You had to have a doctors note for any days over 3 in a row.

I always sent my daughter to school and told her if she was ill have them call me. I sent her, they send her home.

 

[Rora]

I can see both sides of the coin.

Being a parent, it must be annoying to take your kid to the Doctor for simply a bad cold just so you can get a Doctor's note. Now, I would assume it would depend on the Doctor but my friend has a young child who goes to a school that's strict about attendence. When he has a cold, my friend will call the Doctor, explain the situation and he'll write a note excusing the absence at no charge, no visit, etc. I'm sure not every Doctor will do this though..

However, from the schools perspective, there is probably a district policy they must abide by. Also, it's shocking to find how many students actually forge notes, lie, and fake their parents signatures. The school is liable for it's students during school hours.

Regardless, this is an annoying situation for a parent.

 

[hrh_disney_queen]

Sorry, I haven't read the whole thread, just wanted to chime in because this irritates me, too. Our district is the same way. We are allowed 10 total absences per year, 5 sick, 5 unexcused(which is nothing short of immediate family illness or death). I thought that we were in trouble if we got over 5 sick absences, but upon speaking with a teacher they would be acceptable in excess of 5 with a Dr's excuse. So the advice is, whenever you are in the Dr's, Dentists', Eye Doctors, whatever's office, get an excuse.

If you took your child to the Dr during those first 10 absenses, would it be possible to ask the Dr. to verify your visit and possible write an excuse to give to the school. I don't know about your school, but all they are worried about is NCLB, and that their absences are considered excused so they will get their funding. Unexcused absences=lost funding..

 

[Piecey]

What do they want the doc's note to say?? They have no right to ask you specifics- this is protected under the Health Information Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). I would tell them that I would be happy to take my child to the doctor for every illness- if they are willing to pay for the office visit.

I agree.

I got mono my Jr. year... I've had chronic insomnia since about 4th grade (I would go 3-4 days without sleeping before I'd crash- Dr.'s tried everything from therapy, drugs, diet control, etc.. I just can't sleep sometimes )

The insomnia made is almost impossible to get over mono and by the time I finally did, my immune system was dead and I caught everything. EVERYTHING. I went to school 1/2 day once and ended up home vomiting/cramps/nauseous/headaches for the next THREE weeks.

My Dr. wrote a note that said "Please excuse Patsy *** on whatever days she does not attend school due to an ongoing medical issue."

The school couldn't question it, it had her signature, and my parents stopped getting the pre-recorded messages that I'd missed class.