Mom wonders why district wants daughter fed off campus
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GRESHAM, Ore. – A mother is looking for answers after she's told she must take her 8-year-old daughter out of school and off school property to feed her every day.
"It seems very unfair. No one else has to take their kids out of school to feed them at lunch," said Beverly Hanset-Burch.
But her daughter, Bonnie, has special needs, and somewhere a decision was made that the school and staff could not support them anymore during lunch.
Bonnie was born with arthrogryposis, a congenital disorder. She needs a lot of assistance to get through daily life. She can't eat solid food and has been plunge fed since she was 2 years old.
"I had hoped that Bonnie would get stronger and be able to feed herself, but fighting against her abs muscles is just not working right now. She doesn't have the strength in her upper body," Beverly said.
Bonnie's in the third-grade at East Gresham Elementary and since kindergarten an aide has plunge fed Bonnie at lunch.
But suddenly policy changed. Beverly was notified Monday the school district's nurses would no longer be giving directives to aides to perform medical procedures and feeding Bonnie is considered a medical procedure.
"They say it's dangerous," Beverly said. "We've had no danger. It's been fine. Nothing has happened with Bonnie."
According to Beverly, the Multnomah Education Service District now requires Bonnie be fed off campus.
According to Gresham Barlow School District spokeswoman Athena Vadnais, the district operates under rules set forth by the MESD. When the education service district changed their policy, the district followed suit.
Vadnais said the plunging method must be overseen by a licensed nurse and the school cannot make exceptions from the MESD rules. She said the school offered an alternative.
Bonnie said the alternative recommended by the educational service district was an expensive food pump machine that beeps frequently and draws unnecessary attention to her daughter.
MESD spokesman Mark Skolnick said he could not comment about specific students because of privacy concerns. He did say, however, that MESD nurses follow guidelines set forth by the Oregon State Board of Nursing.
He said school nurses no longer use the plunge method because it requires "continuous, forceful pushing of the syringe to administer." That causes concern that a nurse wouldn't be able to tell if there was a blockage, which could harm the student.
"I'm frustrated. I want my daughter to be in the cafeteria with other children eating with her typical peers like she has been (since) kindergarten, first, second and half of third-grade," Beverly said. "I feel like it's going to make other kids say, 'Where's Bonnie?' and make her freakish or something when she's a vibrant little girl who deserves a free and appropriate public education with her typical peers and less restrictive environment and needs supports in a place to help get that education."
Beverly said there were three people at the school trained and able to feed Bonnie and she just doesn’t understand why things had to change.
Full statement from the Multnomah Education Service District:
Multnomah Education Service District (MESD) and Gresham-Barlow School District (GBSD) are aware of the situation at East Gresham Elementary School.
MESD and GBSD are unable to comment on the health care of a specific student, respecting confidentiality requirements.
MESD provides professional registered nursing services to the Gresham-Barlow School District, the seven other public school districts in Multnomah County, and to school districts throughout the region. MESD’s registered nurses provide nursing assessment and management of all known health conditions of school children while at school.
MESD school nurses develop protocols to manage nursing procedures which follow the scope of practice defined by the Oregon State Board of Nursing, in accordance with the Oregon Nurse Practice Act.
The process for determining health care protocols for students under the care of MESD nurses begins with a nursing assessment. When assessment determines a feeding procedure is required, MESD nurses follow nursing practice guidelines to ensure the safest procedure is used. Nursing practice supports gastrostomy tube feeding by gravity or through a pump.
The plunge method, which MESD nurses no longer use in a school setting, requires continuous, forceful pushing of the syringe to administer. When thick blended food is forced through a tube using a plunger, a primary concern is that by forcing the plunger, the person feeding the child is unable to determine if a blockage is present. A blockage could mean that the tube placement has been dislodged, leading to injury to the abdominal cavity, peritoneum, or stomach wall.
Nurses can and do delegate gastrostomy tube administration of feedings using the gravity or pump method. This method is standard nursing practice and considered safe because the nurse can readily identify if there is a blockage preventing the flow of the feeding.* It is necessary to identify a blockage in order to prevent potential harm to the person receiving the feeding.
The goal of both MESD and GBSD is to provide a safe school environment and promote attendance for all students. MESD and GBSD understand the rules and regulations required by IDEA and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and follow these requirements with all students who qualify.
*Source: Hootman, J. (1996). Quality nursing interventions in the school setting: Procedures, models, and guidelines. National Association of School Nurses, Inc.
The days of separating out disabled people are over. The school needs to get with the times and do what this young lady needs to be able to have as near a normal experience at school as possible. There is simply no excuse not to. I have seen the emotional results of this kind of discrimination and Bonnie doesn't need it!! She has enough to deal with without feeling singled out so she can eat. It is sickening and ridiculous!
As the mom of a child who is fed the way Bonnie is, people need to realize that after a surgeon does the initial placement of the GTube, parents are given the FULL responsibility to care for it INCLUDING CHANGING IT OUT on a regular basis with NO nurse or medical assistant present!!  When we've been feeding our kids via 'push pump' as long as Beverly and other parents like us have, we KNOW how to give our child his/her 'feeding' properly and deal with the "equiptment".  It's not that hard to teach.  In Bonnie's case, it seems as if she has had an aide doing the feeding for her at school since K so I am *sure* the aide is more than able to administer the food and is *very* familiar with the 'equiptment.'  Also, it is NOT hard to detect a blockage in the tube and EASY to remedy.  Any experienced parent of  a tube fed child knows this.  I appreciate CTWU's insightful comment about how the school district could have AVOIDED all of this emotional turmoil and bad publicity by simply COMMUNICATING with Bonnie's parents BEFORE they changed the policy and get their input!  I will NEVER understand this and yet I hear about it happening OVER AND OVER.. especially with special needs kids. Â
I think one of my biggest problems with the story, as it is presented here, is that the school (and MESD) clearly had the time to meet and discuss Bonnie's care without involving her parent(s) or even her Aide. Â As a result, Bonnie's mother had to make a speedy decision (what would have happened had she NOT been able to get to the school for some reason or another?) to care for her daughter.
Rather than working with Bonnie, her family, and her caregivers, the school arbitrarily made a decision that further makes Bonnie "different" from her classmates. Â She's been fed this way at the school since she started there. Â If the policy did, indeed, change, Bonnie's family deserves a chance to understand the school's reasoning.
As far as the alternatives the school issued, they're not all presented here. Â But, last I checked, the school staff are NOT medical providers and, as such, cannot require specific medical treatments or procedures.
I don't know what works best for Bonnie's nutritional needs. Â I leave this decision up to her family, doctors, and care providers and, when she is a bit older, to Bonnie, herself. Â If she qualifies for a pump and money is an issue, how about the school sponsoring a fundraising drive to help the family pay for the device and the associated quantities of nutritional supplements to be sampled until they find one that works? Â At least that would show a sign the school is willing to work with the family.
There are countless children in our schools who require ostomies, catheterizations, and other more involved "medical" treatments for daily living. Â Its just that many of us are blissfully unaware. Â The family work with a variety of resources to get the needs of their children met. Â Thank goodness that the vast majority of you know nothing of having to support and care for children with any type of special need(s). Â Among other things, the financial burden on the families is beyond anything you can imagine (with insurance, a year's worth of pediatric cancer treatments without complications can easily cost the family $20,000+ a year -- again, that's WITH insurance).
In Bonnie's case, will the Gresham School District/MECD even EVER allow her the opportunity to self feed if she is able to do so? Â I know the schools allow kids to self-cath but they even sometimes have difficulty and need assistance. Â Why can't Bonnie's mother and/or the Aide or even a volunteer on behalf of Bonnie's family be allowed to remain with her in the school for feeding? Â That's really something I don't understand. Â Why make her "leave" campus? Â That wording makes me think it IS a legal decision. Â That has nothing to do with the school, the administration, or the staff.
To Bonnie's friends and family, now you understand what true support looks like (just ignore the rest).
Good luck, Bonnie!
What I would like to see is the evidence that pushing feeds is dangerous - double ransomized clincal trial please - isnt that supposed to be what all medical decisions be based on! and quess what - there are NONE - not that anyone has been able to produce when I have asked anyway! I can not understand how they can possibly say that pushing feeds is dangerous because if there is a blockage it could harm the child -if there is a blockage then the plunger simply does not push..... the human on the other end is forced to stop the feed....... how could that cause a rupture of the stomach lining???? Oh and what they are saying is incorrect - giving feeds via this method does not involve one long continuous pushing motion - in our case we feed this way by putting 5 mls in at a time - like a teaspoon, then waiting 20 - 30 secs then pushing again, just like if you were orally feeding a spoonfull at a time, pause as if there was a swallow then it is more like a natural feed and the stomach is protected. Personally I would prefer a human on the other end of a feed than a machine, Machines can not do this! Â - My daughter who is fed via this method or any child for that matter can not tell / indicate / non verbally communicate to a machine that they are feeling sick - about to vomit - or wants to stop!!!! they can if they are sitting with another human, which must be a basic human right I would say! Besides which the formulas that are prescribed are TOXIC - I want any professional who prescribes these feeds to first undergo - insertion of an NGT - and to have a full adult sized bolus feed poured into their stomach. once they have experienced this - if they still feel comfortable (and have not thrown it up) then sure go ahead and prescribe it!
@KÂ We have a few of us wanting to get a grant for such a study. Wish us luck. We do have feelers out there!
Why all the anger and resentment from some of these posters? I find it really disgusting how bent out of shape people become when they think a family "gets" something "special" that they don't get. Schools making accommodations for disabled children is nothing to be jealous of or mad about. What business is it of yours if another child receives tube feeding at school?Â
If your child was disabled and needed accommodations, I am sure you would push for them too and investigate if you don't think the school is upholding laws that are already in place.
Or, just maybe, instead of posting nasty messages about a mother advocating for her disabled child....be grateful you DO NOT have to advocate for your child in this way.
@Michell Wasson If you look at other stories (especially those involving mentally ill people - even if they're happy, feel good stories; elderly drivers, teen drivers, and, now gun control considerations), you'll see this hateful venom spewed by several of the trolls posting here. At least in the old posts were were able to "thumbs down" a person or their comment so you'd see a negative number associated with their name and realize (quickly) that they are trolling and really, sadly, take pride in hurting other people. We don't have that feature now so, sometimes, it takes a series of posts to even begin to understand you've started a flame war with a troll and it isn't the best use of your time or resources.
This is NOT something that the school should have to be accountable for. Period. Get over it. Â This little girl is NOT like all of the other children. Â The mother needs to recognize that she has special needs that the personnel at the school are neither trained for, nor want to be liable for.
@Reeldeal - it is actually the law - Eating is a covered life activity under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disbilities Act. Moreover, section 504 specifically outlines eating at school. 3 people at the school are already trained. Moreover, it doesn't take a lot of training to use a syringe. That is all it is. What about the asthmatic child or the child with allergies that may need an epi pen, should the school be responsible for those children when they need something - or should their parents have to come to the school and take them out?
@Traci Nagy Â
Laws have limits and they get modified all the time as the need arises. And no one is saying she can't have a tube feeding at school, so no laws are being broken.
@Beverly Hanset-Burch
Your doctor doesn't control the school's policy on tube feedings and the district is willing to feed your daughter under their policy so where is the law being broken? Over the formula?
I doubt if the district is going to provide an RN to plunge feed your child unless you can prove your child would be harmed by following the pump-only policy. Doctors don't usually want to order an exception to best practice policies unless it's pretty clear that actual harm will result from it. Given all the other kids who are on pumps in the district it sounds like you may have an uphill battle.
@ormom @Traci Nagy Actually laws *are* being broken. The district has to answer to the doctor. The nurses do not.
See BOLUS feed is always possible but doesnt have to happen that way...a pump can do the same.
@Lori S Kacz Well, no, a thicker BD won't go through a pump. Some kids handle thicker foods without the vomiting that thinner formulas cause. That might be one of the reasons Bonny's mom switched to BD years ago - that's why we did.
I bolus feed my GT dependent daughter because I prefer the thicker, organic blended diet I can make for her. However, there is a similar blended product called Compleat that contains real foods ( not milky formula) that can be easily gravity-fed or machine pumped over this child's lunch period at school. Maybe this would be a good compromise for mom and the MESD. Compleat can be ordered by an MD and obtained through a Pharmacy.
@mom of GT fed kidlet This is what is in COMPLEAT;  Ingredients: Water, Maltodextrin, Corn Syrup, Chicken Puree (Water, Dehydrated Chicken), Sodium Caseinate (from Milk), Carrot and Pea Puree (Water, Dehydrated Carrots and Peas), Tomato Puree (Water, Tomato Paste), Canola Oil and less than 2%% of Cranberry Juice (Water, Cranberry Juice Concentrate), Partially Hydrolyzed Guar Gum⦠(Soluble Fiber), Potassium Citrate, Calcium Phosphate, Salt, Hydroxylated Soy Lecithin, Sodium Ascorbate, Choline Chloride, Magnesium Oxide, Carrageenan, Magnesium Phosphate, L-Carnitine, Taurine, Alpha-Tocopheryl Acetate, Zinc Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate, Niacinamide, Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin A Palmitate, Copper Gluconate, Manganese Sulfate, Vitamin D3, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin, Thiamine Hydrochloride, Beta Carotene, Potassium Hydroxide, Citric Acid, Chromium Chloride, Folic Acid, Biotin, Sodium Molybdate, Potassium Iodide, Sodium Selenite, Phytonadione, Vitamin B12.
This is the "real food" of COMPLEAT, I think a diet of natural food is probably better for you then well Maltodextrin a starch additive and corn syrup besides water the 2 larget ingredients to the COMPLEAT formula I don't feed my kid Starch and Corn Syrup for every meal, yes they would probably be able to live off of it but i guess you probably could live off of pop and fris toÂ
@mom of GT fed kidlet I do not consider Compleat a real food. It is full of high fructose corn syrup, corn syrup solids, cranberry juice cocktail, and not the organic things I blend.
One of my favorite movies is "Freaks" filmed in "like" a long time ago.
I don't understand why this was allowed to go on for so long to begin with. It is a nursing procedure, and yes, the OSBN does and should be able to direct who can and can not perform the procedure, and MESD as well should be able to follow those requirements in a public, state funded (liable) institution.Â
Along with pharmacists injecting you, Â "estheticians" performing minor cosmetic surgeries, now we have "aides" accessing and potentially causing significant complications in a child feeding tube.Â
Sorry, but it is, in fact, a liability. And, regardless of well intentioned public policies, there will always be those who simply can't fit the off the rack accommodations We can't custom educate every single child, it's simply not feasible. If it's close to what fits, the family bears some responsibility in making it "custom" to fit exactly the way they want it to.
@vanburbian It isn't a nursing procedure. There are hundreds of thousands of children who are tube fed at home for a variety of medical reasons - some for severe food allergies. It doesn't require a nurse to administer a tube feed. The school has 3 people who are already trained. The whole thing likely takes about 15minutes, so this isn't really a considerable burden.
@Traci Nagy
Feeding by plunger is (now) a nursing procedure in public school because it has inherent risks (which you all keep lieing about) and the school is telling you they won't accept the risk, nor provide a nurse to do the feeding because it is unnecessary. There is a simple alternative of using a pump that makes it safer for the child in that environment anyway and reduces the risk of harm to a level the school district is willing to accept.
@cwpholder Â
It's called hypocrisy and it's rampant on the blog for sure.
Thank you for your kind words and support. I have a very thick skin and when I know I'm right I don't care all that much about the nasty comments and I just consider the source. Sometimes I give back as good as I get and then the hypocrites get really defensive and descend like flies.
What really gets me down as a nurse is the resistance to the truth of the matter that just keeps getting denied in the face of evidence to the contrary. They think the only people who know anything about tube-feeding are parents like themselves. That's why I keep pushing. I am determined to counter their lies with truth and I have as much right on here to educate the public as they do. And I have the time to do so!
@MissLissaJ @ormom @Traci Nagy
I've always found it ironic when a person posting on a comment forum berates another person for doing that exact same thing.Â
"I can log on here any time day or night and find that you've commented..." Â A bit hypocritical dontcha' think?Â
I, for one, learned a lot from ormom's posts and I admit, some of the other posts as well. I already knew quite a bit about it, caring for aging/ill parents, you learn about these things..
Thing is, some of the "tube feeding moms" Â keep insisting there is NO RISK and that just is not true. It may be rare or minimal but there is SOME risk involved.
Also more details came out about the type of food & feeding being done vs what the school will be responsible for doing on their property. The blended diet vs the commercial diet that can be fed via a pump. That is all very good and pertinent information for "lay people" such as myself and it does influence my opinion on this specific situation.
yes, yes, it's just my personal opinion but the mother brought this story  to the media for a reason.. To gather support for her cause and that's ok but at the same time there will be people that disagree too. Some people will say If the mom wants to feed her a blended diet that can't be pumped, that's her RIGHT but then she needs to feed Bonnie (and assume the risk) herself."
Anyway- I appreciate ALL of the educated opinions and factual info that has been shared here.Â
@MissLissaJÂ
Didn't like being called out on your fake resume did you?Â
And unless you are spending an inordinate amount of time lurking on here yourself how would you know anything about my posting habits? I have an excuse, I'm retired. Now you want to tell me how to spend my time. You supposedly are homeschooling a child so why don't you log off now and get back to it?
@ormom @Traci Nagy I really think you have nothing better to do than troll the boards, do you? I can log on here any time day or night and find that you've commented nastily at someone just moments before. If you're a retired RN with a masters...rather than spending that retirement snarking at people on KATU who have different opinions...why don't you volunteer your skills and services doing meals on wheels, or reading at the library to children, or doing outreach at a public health clinic? I think you'd be a lot happier if you did something positive with your life other than trolling the boards, forcing your opinion down everyone else's throats. Just a thought. Maybe you hate people and this brings you unmitigated joy. <shrugs> Different strokes for different folks.
@vanburbian Â
here's another atrocity for your list. Were you aware that the governor of Californis passed a law that will allow nurses and other para-professionals to perform abortions? They've re-classified it. It's not surgery any longer. Planned parenthood can't find enough doctors willing to do abortions anymore so this is how they are dealing with the shortage. But it's all good because we know they are all about women's health.
I find the decision to be a very bad one! Â Should they kick a child out because he or she needs a brace on his or her leg to walk? Â What about a child that has asthma and needs help with breathing? Â I have a grand daughter just a little younger than this girl who also depends upon a feeding tube for her feeds. Â My daughter taught the school nurse, her daughters teacher, and other staff how to handle it, so our grand daughter can attend school as often as her condition allows. Â She misses a lot of school, but absolutely loves being in school. Â She has to keep the feeding equipment in a back pack and is always with it. Â I know our grand daughter would have her heart crushed, if her school would have denied her the experience of being in school! Â School is very important, especially for these special needs children. Â It is tough enough to have an unusual disease, have to use a feeding tube and deal with the pain and discomforts that these conditions inflict upon the child, let alone being told they cannot be in school learning and around other children her age. Â I think it should be illegal for the school to deny her an education!
@VickiLFÂ No I believe lunch time and how she receives her lunch is the only issue here. Not her receiving an education.Â
@regularjoe @VickiLFÂ
Thanks for pointing this out' Â I was distracted while reading and only got part of it read. Â What a pain to have to take her off campus to have her fed, though. Â I can actually identify to both sides here. Â It is a fairly common thing, yet is not common enough that most people especially children will be familiar with this kind of feeding. Â I am very happy to see the district did not kick her out all together. Â Â
Plunge-fed, sounds grotesque and bestial.Â
@Kraut Â
Isn't that how they make Fois-gras?
That girl was just fine! I know I would be pissed and I would be suing if it were my child. My daughter has Spinal Muscular Atrophy, is tube fed, AND is on a continuous feed! I would not stand for that. That is discrimination, and something needs to be done. You have my support!
@JFWÂ Â
Why aren't you using a plunger?
KATU really needs to switch back to IntenseDebate for it's commenting section. This new system has brought on a disgraceful breed of vipers. Do y'all have fun sitting there cowardly behind your fake usernames making disgustingly hateful comments? What a shame this site has become!
@The_AnnaCannard I do have fun sitting here being a coward and you reading my words. Why do you hate vipers?
@The_AnnaCannard Viper? I approve of this new title, much better than the usual and tired "troll" that everyone seems to be throwing around. This Anna broad really has quite the progressive vocabulary.Â
This child has been safely getting BD tube feeds for years. That is a fact. And it should not be ignored just because the school has changed their policy. This child's anatomy requires this type of feeding. If the school is so concerned about liability, how about getting doctor's orders specifically stating the diet and how it is to be administered? I feel horrible for this girl and her family.
This is discrimination against a disabled child. Â Tube or plunge feeding is NOT dangerous, it is very safe, the only risk of puking is if overfeeding happens, and that is a small risk. Â If she has a tube site already into her stomach, it has healed since she was age 2. Â It is a safe way to get nutrients into a person, and as viable as eating to keep one alive. Â There is no more risk of bacteria or infection on her part, than putting food in one's mouth and chewing it up. Â This article indicates the child has an aide. Â Seek legal council, because this school district needs a law suit and let this child have some small quality of life without being further singled out, when she already has so much going against her in her life.
This school disgusts me, with it's actions. Â They should be ashamed of doing this to this child.
@SueMcMannÂ
"There is no more risk of bacteria or infection on her part, than putting food in one's mouth and chewing it up."
OK. First 2 that came up on google for gastric tube complications, there are tons more. If you actually believe the lies you are posting then PLEASE read this and then stop spreading mis-information. If you know you are lying, then PLEASE shut up.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8902109
http://www.aboutkidshealth.ca/En/ResourceCentres/BrainTumours/TreatmentofBrainTumours/ComplicationsSideEffects/Pages/Complications-From-Feeding-Tubes.aspx
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@ormom @SueMcMann Again with the insanity!! Did you actually READ either of these articles before you posted the link?!!! The first is a link to an ABSTRACT (not even a complete article) regarding infectious disease protocols being established for care and treatment of patients IN a HOSPITAL Setting. I notice NOTHING was said or done about those patients who are DC'd to their own or another adult's care and infections in the community. Secondly, the about kids' health article was a simple g-tube FAQs, probably for parents dealing with their first g or j tube. There is NOTHING about plunger feeding rupturing kids' stomachs or forcing food anywhere. Instead, it gives a nice run down on what to do for replacement of a gtube with an established stoma, how to prevent granulation tissue and bleeding around the stoma. It's actually a very good resource--if you're learning basic g tube care. Also...if you consider your quote and then comment above? If Bonnie is plunge fed, and then the tube flushed with saline or water per MD instructions, the risk of infection IS minimal. Â
This situation is the complete opposite of the article on nosocomial infections you posted the link to. The irony of the situation, ORMOM, is that you are disproving your own point with that last comment and the dangers of infection. Hospital patients are very much at risk for bacterial colonization of their tube BECAUSE their tube access is continually open and exposed, as those patients most often have feeding pumps going. Even a few minutes with the feeding bag opened while it is refilled is enough to open the entire system to all kinds of nasty hospital bugs. Then combine that with the fact that the food (sugars, minerals, and vitamins--a veritable primordial super stew for bacterial growth) stagnates hour after hour as it is slowly pumped from bag to patient at a rate between 25mL and 90mL/hr, and food just keeps getting added on top of the existing TF in the bag. Autoflush only does so much if the bacteria is reproducing in the actual TF, because the tube is never completely empty, it gives any bacteria plenty of time to colonize the tube as well, and cause infection.
Bonnie's is essentially a closed gtube system. It is opened, possibly disinfected, plunged, flushed, and closed. Not a lot of time for the bacteria to do much of anything, and like most people who chew their food, any harmful bacteria will be killed off by the hyper acidic stomach environment. So please...tell me again how the pump system works better than the syringe feeding system?Â
@Traci Nagyy
I don't deny you have experience but you also have a clear political agenda and that colors how you see the issue. You do everything you can to get people to see kids who have to be tube fed as normal and to support parents who struggle with it. That is a very laudable thing and I give you lots of kudos for it.Â
But you harm your credibilty when you deny the truth about very reals risks associated with it and I would think you wouldn't want to be doing that. There is no reason you can't have your activism and the truth as well. You will be better respected for it, especially within the health care community, and I would think you would like them on your side.
at least you now admit infections actually can occur, that's progress.
@ormom @MissLissaJ You know who really knows about tube feeding - those who actually do it. My son has been tube fed for the last 4.5 yrs and I run a non profit organization on pediatric tube feeding. I have spoken to thousands of parents and tube feeders. Concerns over infections do not lie with food. Infections are infequent. They are skin based and rarely interfer with feeding. They are often very simply treated with antibiotics. It would be pretty hard to break the skin around an established stoma without physically cutting it - moreover, it wouldn't be necessary at any point during the school day for anyone to be touching her stoma. It is very unlikely that a child would get an infection through anything at the school, without gross negligence.
@MissLissaJÂ
you can baffle with BS with the best of them, I'll give you that. But you clearly get your info off websites and not from real experience or real nurses training or you wouldn't say about half of what you do, nor say it the way you do. Nurses know when they are talking to other nurses.
Articles were posted to shut up the people that keep saying you can't get an infection in g tubes. Both make it really clear that you can and they can be really nasty. Really makes no difference if it's one day old or if it's 2 years old - all you need is a break in the skin or just a bunch of goo in the stoma and careless hand washing. And if you don't think grade schools are little cesspools of germs, well...nevermind.Â
And fyi, g tube infections occur at the stoma. They don't happen inside the tube because the germs drop into the food when it's opened, LOL. What nursing school did you go to? Oh, that's right, you didn't.
The other potential complications listed were just a bonus for those who think they are risk-free.
@SueMcMann This school disgusts you? I have spent a lot of time at East and am very familiar with Bonnie. I can tell you, without hesitation, that Bonnie is loved and cared for by all of the staff and students at East Gresham. As the article clearly states, this was not a school level decesion, or even a GBSD decision. This was the decision of the MESD that, by law, has to be followed by the district and the school. If you are angry and "disgusted" by these actions, it should not be directed at East Gresham.Â
@mdw74 @SueMcMann Your logic has no power here!
Looks like she is wearing the antibullying pink
@Bert You saw the irony in this, too, huh?
I do not understand why policies and saving the school's bacon is more important than the people..namely this little girl and her family. While I actually DO have knowledge AND experience with G-tubes, including gravity feeding and plunger feeding, I am not here attempting to educate anyone..just sharing my point of view! Of course tube feeding (any type) comes with risks and dangers...but so does performing CPR and other life saving procedures that may need to happen on school grounds. In addition, any child that's sitting there in the cafeteria eating their lunch could choke or have some other accident, so then why aren't ALL the children asked to eat off school grounds to make sure they  aren't liable? I think this is sadly a case of misguided policy and procedure, and it's pathetic IMO. .>:(
@Jess Blue and to add to what u just said...most schools have a nutritionist on site...and they can tell u that if a child is on a feeding tube, mickey button. peg tube or any kind of feeding device it is because they cannot put it in there mouth and chew and swallow it, so to get enough food in these wonderful people to sustain life is absolutely important. So why can the nutritionist have training to deliver the feeding? Its not hard at all...i would b more worried about the playground germs and the germs on the crayons used over and over again by hundreds of children than i would be about feeding a child who eats a bit different than normal!
bev it,s me Anna I moved out to Beaverton but what do you need me to do this is outrageous I have known you and Bonnie since she was a baby she is a very bright outgoing well adjusted young lady and you are a wonderful mother ,, this is outrageous ,,
@anna mathews Hi Anna, sign the petition at change.org