Reader’s version

The whole story began in September last year, when a resident of Brzeźnik’s son had turned two. Our interlocutor wanted to enroll her child in kindergarten for the following year. She immediately pointed out that her son had type 1 diabetes and used an insulin pump.

The reader then spoke with the secretary of the School and Kindergarten Complex in Brzeźnik. She assured the boy’s mother that there would be no problem. She added that she should apply when recruitment began.

Mrs. Alicja completed all the formalities, and in the spring her son was placed on the list of children admitted to the kindergarten.

Then, as our interlocutor points out, things became complicated. It turned out that staff training was still to take place.

“I waited all summer for the school to contact me about this,” the reader tells us. “There were two weeks left until September, while there was still silence from the kindergarten.”

Concerned about what would happen with her little boy, Mrs. Alicja went to the kindergarten with her son’s disability certificate. She then had an opportunity to speak with the headmistress in person.

The head of the School and Kindergarten Complex, our reader says, was very surprised that the three-year-old was insulin-dependent and needed a special diet. “But it was already stated on the application that he had diabetes,” Mrs. Alicja says, puzzled.

According to the reader, one incident may have influenced everything. Once, Mrs. Alicja came to the kindergarten with her son, and he very much wanted to play with the preschoolers. The kindergarten teachers had no objection. The little boy played with the children for perhaps a quarter of an hour. Unfortunately, during that time his blood sugar level dropped drastically.

Mrs. Alicja says that the kindergarten employees were terrified by the incident. “I suspect they were very frightened, because when I came to the kindergarten the next day, I learned that the headmistress had instructed her subordinates that they would not be allowed to measure my son’s blood sugar or administer insulin. I was also told that I should arrange for a support teacher for my child,” she recounts. “Only later did I learn that children with diabetes are not entitled to such a teacher.”

The headmistress was also reportedly supposed to tell the reader that no one at the kindergarten would undertake to measure her son’s blood sugar, because if anything went wrong, Mrs. Alicja would take the matter to court.

What is more, the kindergarten employees believed that the mother herself would take care of her child at the kindergarten. However, our interlocutor had recently given birth to a daughter, so that option was simply not possible.

The resident of Bolesławiec municipality believes that her son, who will not attend the kindergarten in Brzeźnik, was discriminated against because of his illness. “Diabetes is not a terrible disease when it is kept under constant control,” Mrs. Alicja emphasizes.

The school’s version

We asked the headmistress of the School and Kindergarten Complex in Brzeźnik how the matter looks from the school’s perspective. (We publish the explanation we received by email in full):

J.K., a three-year-old, was admitted to the kindergarten in Brzeźnik as a result of recruitment held in March 2018. Mrs. A. K. attached to the application a Disability Certificate issued by the Bolesławiec District Office. The certificate classifies the child as a person with a disability and lists the following indications: the necessity of the child’s guardian’s constant daily participation in the process of the child’s treatment, rehabilitation and education; the necessity of constant or long-term care or assistance from another person due to a significantly limited ability to live independently.

When admitting the child to the kindergarten, we were not aware of the child’s health condition, so the kindergarten staff had not been trained in this area. In August of this year, Mrs. A. K. came to the School and Kindergarten Complex in Brzeźnik to train the staff in feeding and administering insulin (a child with diabetes and an insulin pump). However, she is not authorized to conduct any training.

I presented the child’s mother with our position, namely that a Disability Certificate does not authorize kindergarten employees to administer medication to a child. With the child’s safety in mind, I did not consent to the kindergarten staff administering insulin to the child. Furthermore, I informed the child’s mother that, in order for the child to effectively receive additional psychological and pedagogical assistance, the child should be examined by the Psychological and Pedagogical Counseling Center in Bolesławiec, and that [the mother] must submit an application to the aforementioned institution.

I suggested to the child’s mother that she administer the insulin herself and also ensure that the child received appropriate meals (the kindergarten provides food through catering, so it cannot ensure the child an appropriate diet), or that she bring the child for fewer hours.

At the same time, steps will be taken to train the kindergarten in procedures for dealing with a child with diabetes. After the training, neither teachers nor teaching assistants may undertake to administer medication (insulin).

Director M.C.

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