HI! My DD started kindergarden this week. I turned in all of the paper work regarding her epipen only to find out that since the dr said that she couldn't self administer (she can, she taught her preschool teachers what to do)the school is insisting that she has to keep the epipen in the nurses office. Am I crazy to think that this is to far away. We live in FL. We have the Kelsy Ryan Act that says she can carry it on her person. I am so concerned that sticky fingers next to her in the cafeteria is going to touch her and cause a reaction (there is no peanut free table either) and she will have to get the attention of an untrained and busy cafeteria worker and somehow get them to understand that she needs her medicine and FINALLY someone will get it for her.
What can I do if anything? In preschool her room was peanut free. I haven't had to deal with this yet!!!
Dd wears her in a 'fanny pack'.
She started wearing it AND the medic alert bracelet when she was 4 yrs old, so by the time she entered K, she would be used to them both.
There is a spare one in an UNLOCKED drawer beside the secretary in the office with DD's name on it.
She will be entering grade 5, and I bought her a larger fanny pack to carry 2 epipens on her.
There will still be a spare one in the office and I have one in my purse.
I think ALL children should get used to wearing them ASAP because this will be a part of their lives.
IMO what good is an epi pen if it's not within reach of the person having a reaction???
The school won't let her wear it in a fanny pack unless the dr says she can self administer and she proves to the school district nurse that she can. The dr told me the reason she won't allow her to carry it is she's afraid the other kids will hurt themselves on it!!!!
A suggestion. Ask the school what the policy is when a child has a reaction. You may find that the school's system is OK for your situation.
My DD is entering 3rd grade and this is the first year I will let her carry her meds. The schools are right about other kids wanting to "see" and "play" with the EpiPen - they want to try everything and are naturally curious!
Having said that, prior to this year, I did ask for and got an accomodation that was different than other allergy parents in the same school. During lunch and outdoor recess, the nurse passed off a waist pack to a teacher who carried it in the cafeteria and on the playground. This was the same person who oversaw the allergy table. Then it was brought back to the nurse.
With this accomodation in place and the proceedures the school followed during an emergency, I was comfortable with the situation.
[This message has been edited by PurpleCat (edited August 26, 2007).]
My school has the same policy. What I had my doctor do was cross out all of the parts that said that my DS would administer the epi. Then the form just said that he would carry the epi. Every one seemed fine with. We did it in Kinder and now are doing it in first grade.
same here...we took the regular *carry* form and crossed out *self administer* and wrote in *carry only, NO self administration* and the doc signed it. Our school accepted it, so he wears his epipen in an Ebelt this year. The teacher and various staff are trained...so they now know all they have to do is lift up his shirt, open up the e-belt, take out the epipen and administer if neeeded.
The problem with the whole *if you carry you HAVE to administer it*....is during anaphylaxis(a real bad reaction) most likely you(or your child) would be to messed up(or unconscious etc...) to even do it. So IMO *no one* should be expected to self administer, that's rediculous(and allergist agreed).
edit...I guess our school was okay with this because I initially asked the teacher to carry/pass it off during the school day, and they did not want to do that...so the ebelt was my only option to have an epipen in the classroom/lunchroom/recess/artroom/you get the picture. The other epipen is locked in the nurses office [img]http://uumor.pair.com/nutalle2/peanutallergy/frown.gif[/img]
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Chanda(mother of 4)
Sidney-8 1/2(beef and chocolate, grasses, molds, weeds, guinea pig, hamster & asthma)
Jake-6 1/2(peanut, all tree nuts, seeds(all-sesame, sunflower, poppy, pine nut) beef, chicken, eggs, coconut(also avoiding legumes), trees, grasses, weeds, molds, cats, dogs, guinea pig & eczema & asthma)
Carson-4 (peanut, tree nuts, milk, soy, egg, beef and pork, cats, dog, guinea pig, hamster, grass, mold, dust mite and EE)
Savannah-1 1/2 (milk, beef and egg, dog(avoiding peanuts, tree nuts, strawberries, seeds, legumes and corn)
[This message has been edited by chanda4 (edited August 26, 2007).]
This is not a quick fix, but I was able to get on our District's Health Advisory Committee. One of the things I got them to change was the form. It now has boxes for the doctor to check including choices for "carrying medication" and "self-administering medication".
Cathy
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Mom to 8 yr old PA/TNA daughter and 4 yr old son who is allergic to eggs.
Quote:Originally posted by hornmommy:
[b]The dr told me the reason she won't allow her to carry it is she's afraid the other kids will hurt themselves on it!!!! [/b]
That's insane. Find a carrier that is safe, and they won't be able to hurt themselves.
As for self-administering -- as an adult with allergies, I make sure the adults around me know where my epi-pens are and how to administer them to me. I may not be capable of doing it myself if I need it. I think it's a great idea for everyone -- including children -- to be taught how to self-administer, but I would never expect a young child to have to do that. My son's school insists he carry one epi-pen himself, but they made it clear he is not expected to administer it to himself.
Thank you for all of the advise. I am going to meet with her doctor again. So far the doctor doesn't want her to carry it at all and wants it in the office which I am just not comfortable with. The school, at this point, is saying that if she carries it she has to self administer. I asked in our first meeting if the adult responsible for her could carry her epi but I was told that it is in the teacher's contracts that they do not have to give her medicine of any kind! The only person that they could designate to give her the epi was the school nurse. I agree that she should not have to self medicate. I am worried that she won't be able to do it because of the reaction. I am worried that she won't be able someone's attention. If we can't resolve this I may have to insist on a peanut free table. I hesitate to do that because I have read about some problems other parents here have had.
I want her to be as normal as possible. I am trying to teach her how to live in a world with peanuts. I just wish that this could be easier. There seems to be common sense solutions to this problem but there are so many rules that common sense doesn't work anymore! I am considering just putting the epi on her and letting it be.
A frusterated Mommy!
Christine
Just a question--
If the only person they can delegate is the school nurse, who will administer epi when the nurse is not there (went to lunch, meeting, out sick etc.)?
Cathy
According to the Kelsey Ryan Act, all you need is parental and physician authorization. Then she has the right to carry it. Just find another doctor who will authorize it. Maybe her pediatrician? Maybe another allergist?
Cathy
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