By Attorney Thomas B. Mooney, Neag School of Education, University of Connecticut

The “Legal Question of the Week” is a regular feature of the CAS Weekly NewsBlast. We invite readers to submit short, law-related questions of practical concern to school administrators. Each week, we will select a question and publish an answer. While these answers cannot be considered formal legal advice, they may be of help to you and your colleagues. We may edit your questions, and we will not identify the authors. Please submit your questions to: legalmailbagcasciacorg. _________________________________________________________________________________________

Dear Legal Mailbag:

These helicopter parents are driving me nuts. The latest is a parent who called up and told me that we are forbidden from providing first aid to her daughter, who is in third grade. We are very uncomfortable about this, and we really can’t see letting the poor girl bleed in class if she takes a tumble on the playground at recess. And even worse, what if she has a serious injury and emergency care is necessary? Can this parent interfere with our right to provide prompt and appropriate medical attention if and when required?

Signed,
Florence Nightingale

Dear Florence:

You make a good point. Parents do have a statutory right to insist that their child not be given medical examination or treatment, but it is limited as follows:

Sec. 10-208. Exemption from examination or treatment. No provision of section 10-206 or 10-214 shall be construed to require any pupil to undergo a physical or medical examination or treatment, or to be compelled to receive medical instruction, if the parent or legal guardian of such pupil or the pupil, if such pupil is an emancipated minor or is eighteen years of age or older, in writing, notifies the teacher or principal or other person in charge of such pupil that such parent or guardian or pupil objects, on religious grounds, to such physical or medical examination or treatment or medical instruction.

In considering the impact of this statute, two points are important. First, the statute gives parents the right to object to examination or treatment related to health assessments and visual and audiometric screenings. Second, the objection must be lodged on religious grounds, not general distrust or other concerns. This statute does not apply to first aid provided on an emergency basis.

Here, I would engage in further conversation with the parent about her reasons for making this request, and then follow up in writing. In general, we recommend that you defer to the parent’s wishes as to any medical treatment for her child. If and when you think that not providing treatment to the child puts the child at risk, I would have further discussion and ultimately report your concern to the Department of Children and Families if you cannot resolve the matter satisfactorily between you and the parent. As to first aid, we recommend that you inform the parent that you have an overarching responsibility for the welfare of the child and that, where appropriate, school personnel will either give emergency first aid and/or call 911. If you can manage it without sounding snippy, you can also inform the parent that she has the choice otherwise to educate her child at home or in a private school, as long as she assures that her child receives instruction equivalent to the studies taught in the public schools (in accordance with Connecticut General Statutes Section 10-184).