Taking medication at Choate

I am a parent of a new Choate student who has asthma and allergies and needs to take an inhaler twice a day. I read on the parents portal that all prescription medication has to be brought to the health center and the students have to go there to take it. This sounds like a lot of trouble. Does anybody have any experience with how much time this takes? Will there always be staff there available to supervise? Does this mean that students can keep over-the-counter medicine (such as Zyrtec) in their room?

I have experience with taking meds at Choate! During the summer, I had to go every morning to Pratt Health Center, which honestly wasn’t that bad—it’s right next to the dining hall. Only takes about 5 minutes once you’ve checked in. I’m not sure if it’s any different for inhalers, but for prescribed medications during the school year you come at the beginning of the week and are given a week’s worth of medication. I believe students are allowed to have OTC meds in their dorm, but don’t quote me on that.