Care pathways for complex physical and medical needs
Children and young people with complex physical or medical needs are those with diagnosed conditions requiring transport to school or college when the journey is longer than they can safely spend without receiving medical assistance. We obtain professional medical advice about each individual child or young person.
It includes the following categories but this list is not exhaustive:
- Children and young people with continuous oxygen requirements
- Children and young people with a tracheostomy
- Children and young people with complex, unstable epilepsy requiring rescue medication
- Children and young people with asthma who may require emergency treatment
- Children and young people with stable epilepsy where rescue medication may possibly be required for unpredictable, prolonged seizures
Where specialist travel arrangements are necessary and your child or young person is eligible for NHS Continuing Care, you may be able to apply for NHS funding to provide a medically trained member of staff to accompany your child or young person on transport.
Passenger assistants and drivers are not trained to provide healthcare interventions during the journey between home and school or college.
Due to the individual nature of any complex physical or medical needs, you may be best placed to provide transport for your own child or young person. In such cases, you will be eligible to receive mileage expenses.
If you are unable to provide transport, we will offer suitable transport which enables you or your representative to accompany your child or young person in order to provide any medical assistance required. Your nominated representative must be age 18 or over.
Care pathways
In the event of a medical emergency one of the following care pathways will be followed.
Emergency care pathway
The emergency care pathway will be followed if there is a medical emergency. In accordance with NHS guidelines, medical emergencies can include:
- loss of consciousness
- an acute confused state
- fits that aren't stopping
- chest pain
- breathing difficulties
- severe bleeding that can't be stopped
- severe allergic reactions
- severe burns or scalds
- trauma due to a road traffic accident
View the emergency care pathway.
Epilepsy care pathway
For children and young people known to have epilepsy, the individual emergency epilepsy plan should be followed. Please note that all epilepsy care plans (agreed by Epilepsy Nurse Specialist, parents and school) will need to be made available as part of the travel assistance application process.
View the epilepsy care pathway.