Students Carrying Medicine

STORY BY DAYTON FRASER »

In the EHS Student Handbook it states that students can carry ibuprofen, acetaminophen, and cough drops. Additionally, if students have the consent of their parents, you can carry over- the-counter medicines.

Surprisingly enough, the school is nearly as restricted at the students are when it comes to handling and distributing medicine. They do this for safety reasons, but it also limits the amount of medicine that is in the hands of the students, who are often less than responsible when keeping track of medicine. According to EHS Student Nurse Jill Freisberg, sometimes there will be pills on the floor.

Obviously, they don’t want students sharing medicines, which is why the system is so restricted.

“It varies from day to day.” Friesberg said. “Last week there was a day, where, maybe 20 instances that I had to hand out ibuprofen because of a cold going around.” Freisberg said that she usually sees a steady stream of students through her office on a daily basis.

“Other days there is only 1 person that needs something,” she said.

There are a few prescription medicines that can be carried, things like epipens and inhalers. “Those can only be carried if there is a doctor’s order and the parents consent on them,” said Friesberg.

Many students, however, need to have access to medicine during the day.
“I carry six ibuprofens with me every day,” Sophomore Aaron Brown said. “I use three in the morning, and three at night, because of my braces,”

Matthew Evans, Jr., carries ibuprofen with him as well.

“I usually take it once a day, sometimes never,” Evans said. “sometimes I get a headache before football practice and take it before then.”