School Allergy Emergency Plan: What Parents Must Communicate with Teachers

The first is a list of allergens that are accurate to the different triggering conditions of exposure/ingestion/inhalation. The second is the specific first aid procedures and authorizations corresponding to different allergic reactions. The third is advance plans for special scenes such as spring outings and handicraft classes. To put it bluntly, don’t let the teacher guess, and don’t wait until something goes wrong to take responsibility.

A while ago, I heard a pediatrician from a community hospital near my home talk about a case of a first-grade boy who was allergic to mango. When the parents filled out the health form at the beginning of school, they only wrote "food allergy: mango." They did not mention that even if the mango juice touches the skin, it will cause blisters and oozing. Last month, the class held a fruit platter activity. When the classmate brought a cut mango and handed it to him, he accidentally rubbed his forearm. The teacher thought it was a mosquito bite at first, so he rubbed some calamine on the child and sent him back to class. After two classes, the child's arm was swollen. I couldn't even roll up my school uniform sleeves, so I was rushed to the hospital in panic. When my parents arrived, they slapped the table on the teacher's face and said, "I clearly told you that your child is allergic to mangoes, why didn't you pay attention?" The teacher was also aggrieved, "You just said you can't eat it, but I don't know how to touch it."

When I was chatting with a class teacher at a public elementary school for 10 years, she complained about it. Nowadays, many parents are too perfunctory when filling in allergy information. They just check "food allergy" and "skin allergy" and nothing more happens. If they ask too many questions, they become impatient and say, "Just don't let my children touch things they are allergic to."”； Or he is too anxious and sends a WeChat message three times a day asking, "Have my children eaten snacks with nuts today?" This makes the teacher take out his portion separately and read the ingredient list repeatedly every time he distributes snacks, which adds unnecessary burden to normal teaching.

There are actually difficulties from the school's perspective. Nowadays, the ratio of school doctors in many public schools is only 1:2000 or even lower. It is impossible for a school doctor to take care of thousands of children and remember the details of each child's allergies, not to mention that the head teacher has to take care of the study and daily life of thirty or forty children. The more specific information you give, the less panic they will have to deal with it. Don't write "allergic to nuts", instead write "allergic to peanuts and cashews. Laryngeal edema will occur within 10 minutes after eating. Put the epinephrine pen in the red mesh pocket on the outside of the school bag. If you have difficulty breathing, inject it directly into the outer thigh. My home is an 8-minute drive from the school. Call 120 and I will be there right away." There are numbers and specific locations. If there is a problem, anyone who gets the school bag will know how to deal with it.

Oh, by the way, here is another controversial point that the industry has yet to reach a consensus on: Many schools, out of risk aversion, require faculty and staff not to give children prescription drugs at will, even allergy medicines and epinephrine pens that parents have placed in the school in advance, for fear that if there is a problem with the medicine without medical qualifications, they will be held responsible. In this case, don't worry about "the school is irresponsible". Sit down with the teacher and school doctor in advance and have a clear discussion, or sign a formal exemption authorization letter to make it clear that the school will not be held responsible for the consequences of taking the medication. ； Either make an agreement to call you as soon as possible if an allergic reaction occurs, and at the same time send you to the nearest hospital with emergency allergy department in the school. The route is fixed, so that there will be no blame-shifting in an emergency.

Many parents are prone to leaking non-food allergens. I met a child who was allergic to latex before. The parents specially sent two boxes of nitrile gloves to the classroom and told the teacher to use them for their children during handicraft classes. They also specifically told other parents during the parent-teacher meeting not to bring latex balloons to school. This is much more useful than just telling the teacher, "My family is allergic to latex." Also, can children with pollen allergies attend outdoor physical education classes in the spring? Can children who are allergic to dust mites apply to have their seats moved further away from the air-conditioning outlets? If you mention these trivial requests in advance, most teachers will be willing to cooperate, and they really won't notice.

In fact, when it comes to allergies, to put it bluntly, parents and schools work together to build a protective net for their children. No one is right or wrong, and there is no absolute standard process. If you explain more details, the teacher will avoid a pitfall. There is no need to just fill in the form casually for fear of trouble, and there is no need to be overly nervous and chase the teacher every day to ask questions. It is much more useful to speak up and say ugly things in advance than to sit in the infirmary and blame each other when something happens.