PARENTS PROTEST SCHOOL'S DRUG POLICY

Edmonton - An Edmonton family demonstrated outside the Edmonton
Catholic school board's annual staff liturgy at the Winspear Centre
Thursday to protest what they say is pressure by their son's school to
put him on the controversial drug Ritalin.

Jocelyn and Glen Best, seven of their nine children and some family
friends held up signs in the lobby that outlined the side effects of
the drug, which can include nervousness, insomnia, dizziness,
headaches and nausea, before being asked to leave.

"They're coercing parents to put their child on Ritalin, you can't
force anyone to, but they can coerce," says Jocelyn Best.

"They're making our lives miserable if we don't put them on Ritalin,
but then they're throwing it back on us and saying 'oh no, it's the
parents' decision with the doctor."

Ritalin is used to treat Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
(ADHD) which was previously known as Attention Deficit Disorder.
Best's son, Glen Jr., was diagnosed with ADD when he was in Grade 1.

Best says she was told last year by a social worker working for St.
Alphonsus school that Glen, then 12-years-old and in Grade 7, had to
go on Ritalin or he would end up in trouble at school and eventually
with the police.

The school pushed for the boy to be assessed by a doctor, she says,
but Best refused because Glen had already been assessed. Best, who
does not believe in using drugs in these situations, feels that
doctors will automatically prescribe Ritalin.

"He didn't need to go to the doctor for a new assessment, he only
needed to go to the doctor to be put on Ritalin," she says.

In response, Best says, the school first said they would send Glen
home when problems occurred. They then said he would have to be in a
special education class unless he went for the doctor's assessment,
she says.

To avoid sending her child to the doctor, Best agreed to put Glen into
the class but withdrew him in the spring from both the class and the
school because he was being beaten up by other boys in the class.

Glen will return to regular classes at St. Alphonsus this fall but
Best expects Ritalin to still be an issue.

Best says her son requires firm discipline, but after studying ADHD
she has become skeptical about the validity of it as a diagnosis.

"They are children who are boisterous, rambunctious children and they
like to use the words, hyperactive and attention deficit disorder,"
Best says.

Donna Gingera, the spokesperson for the Edmonton Catholic board, can
not speak about individual cases, but she says staff will not pressure
anyone to go on any kind of drugs.

"A staff member in our jurisdiction would not do that," she
says.

Gingera says staff members can suggest that a child should see a
doctor if behaviour or school work is suffering.

"We have administrative policies to ensure that a child is getting the
best care they can to get an education," she says.

Best says her family undertook the protest at the Winspear Centre to
educate staff about what Ritalin does.

"They think it's a miracle cure that lets kids sit still, but it's a
drug and they're drugging them into submission," she says.

Checked-by: Patrick Henry