Friday, November 09, 2007

Emily? Suspended?

My daughter was suspended from 6th grade. Yes you read that right... suspended. Emily. E-M-I-L-Y.

Was she fighting? Nope. Breaking school property? No. Stealing? No way. My good, sweet, honor student daughter was suspended for lack of receiving the hepatitis B vaccination series.

I was shocked yesterday when I opened a letter from the school saying that her vaccinations are not up to date and therefore by some code that she has been suspended from school. Of course I freak out as this is the first documentation I have received on the matter, plus I didn't even have a clue as to what vaccination she needed. After a call to the school to find out it was the Hepatitis B series, I frantically spent two hours and lots of tears finding an appointment for Emily to get her shots on Monday morning. When Emily came home from school I told her the bad news. She informed me that she would rather be suspended then get a shot.

This morning I will still upset about the matter. I mean come on. I have gotten Sam's vaccinations for Kindergarten a year early because that is how on the ball I am about these things. I decided to pull out Em's shot records and see how I managed to forget such an item. I thought maybe it was something that they get upon entry to middle school. I looked at her record and right there in black and white it showed 3 hep B shots. All three in 1996.

I took her records to the school and after cross checking her file it appears that when we first moved to Illinois back in 1998 the doctor office forgot to enter the shots into the computer system. The shot records that were in Em's preschool and elementary file were from Illinois, not Ohio, therefore showing her as being incomplete. When I asked the nurse how it was never caught when we moved here last summer she told me the bigger question was how come it was never caught, at three different schools, until she went to this middle school. Makes you wonder what else schools are missing.

So my daughter has been "unsuspended". The nurse ripped up the letter out of Emily's file so there will never be a record of any of this. And her shot files has been updated. Sheeeeeew.

13 comments:

Michelle said...

Oh my gosh!! I would have gone crazy too! So glad that you got it all figured out! And, you're right! I can't believe that no one caught that before now?!

Jennifer said...

So my daughter won't have all her shots when she gets to school age. In Pennsylvania, you fill out 3 forms sign them and you are allowed past. There are exception forms in every state of the US for going to school without vaccinations. I am very allergic to some of the vaccinations and I wish I had never gotten them, so I won't put my daughter through it.

Tracey said...

Ok, they give you no previous notice or letter telling you she needs the shot by whatever date? They just go straight to she's suspended? That's ridiculous! Glad you got it straightened out and she's not suspended. Although I bet she's ticked she's not getting a free day off of school.

Jennifer said...

nice warning! crazy...glad you got things worked out

ErinFiat said...

My eyes darn near popped out of my head at the Emily suspended line.

I'm glad everything got straigtened out. :)

Anonymous said...

What a whole lot of craziness. I'm glad everything is okay!! That's just not right.

LiLi said...

I'm glad she doesn't have to have the shots now! I put Maegan's off, I cry when Maegan gets shots, so she'll get them next summer, before the start of school... WITH HER DAD by her side. I just can't bear to see her cry when she has to receive 4 shots at once! She got her flu shot, and they asked me if I wanted to do the Kindy shots as well... I said, NO THANK YOU, we'll put that off for a while yet!
I know you and Em are relieved to have that OFF her record, and to not have to go through shots!

Bronie said...

I'm new to your blog, but the Emily headline caught my eye because I too have an Emily. What parent wouldn't be upset over such news! So glad everything worked out (without shots.)

God bless.

Unknown said...

I read this last night in my bloglines but was too tired to respond. I couldn't hardly believe it though, and I can see where you would be upset and shocked! I would almost call her last school and ask how they overlooked a thing that is sooo important and required just to see what they would say, ya know?! Poor Em. I'm just glad it's all taken care of.

Kimberly said...

Oh wow, I would have gone crazy too! Glad you got it all sorted out though and nice warning they gave you!

mama2dibs said...

Ok, you know? The thing that bothers me the most about that situation...is the fact that the schools think they are so powerful that they can just kick your kid out of school for not having a shot. What happened to freedom of choice? What if you had decided that you didn't want the shots? Seriously! Anyway...I guess that's my take.

Anonymous said...

Gratitude is the sign of noble souls.


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The American University of Beirut

Anonymous said...

Nurture passes nature.

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