Managing Anaphylaxis in the School Setting
Teacher and Support Staff Responsibilities
As a teacher or support staff person it is your responsibility to:
- Manage forms
- Keep your school community informed
- Reduce the risk of anaphylactic reactions
- Manage auto-injector storage, access and availability
- Consider student safety when planning class trips
1) Manage forms
- Ensure that all “administration of medication” forms are complete
Any student with anaphylactic allergies must have a fully completed administration of medication form.- The Peel Board form is called Special Education Program Services 8 Form A - Administration of Prescribed Medication.
- The Dufferin-Peel Board form is called Authorization of Storage and Administration of Prescribed Medication.
- Ensure that all “allergy alert” forms are complete
Teachers must ensure that the parent/guardian of every student with an anaphylactic allergy completes an allergy alert form.
The allergy alert form should include:- The student’s name
- A current photograph
- The specific allergy or allergies
- Warning signs and symptoms of a reaction
- An emergency treatment plan
- The Peel Board allergy alert form is in the Special Education Program Services 8 Form B - Allergy Alert Emergency Plan (EpiPen® only) Form B.
- Dufferin-Peel Board teachers should refer to the General Administrative Procedures.
- Read a sample allergy alert form (PDF) from Safe4Kids.
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2) Keep your school community informed
- Identify students with anaphylactic allergies
Make a list of the students in your class who have anaphylactic allergies and might need an epinephrine injection. Give this list — with student pictures or other identifying information — to occasional teachers who teach your class in your absence. - Get signs and symptoms details from parents or guardians
Get as much detail as possible from parents of students with anaphylactic allergies. Since symptoms of an anaphylactic reaction are unique to each individual, knowing the details will help you recognize and respond to an anaphylactic reaction.
3) Reduce the risk of anaphylactic reactions
- Reduce exposure to food allergens
- Have children with anaphylactic allergies eat only the food they bring from home.
- Discourage all students from sharing lunches, snacks and cutlery.
- Clean all surfaces before and after eating.
- Ensure that any food brought into the classroom or school is safe for students with severe allergies to eat.
- Let students wash their hands before and after eating
Hand-washing reduces the chance that an anaphylactic student might be accidentally exposed to a food allergen. - Discuss anaphylaxis with your students
Help create an allergy safe school environment. Using age-appropriate language, discuss anaphylaxis prevention with your students. Remind students with anaphylactic allergies to have an epinephrine auto-injector within reach at all times. Ensure that students know the importance of not sharing utensils and containers with students who have anaphylactic allergies.
Learn more ways to prevent anaphylaxis. - Foster high self-esteem
Foster healthy self esteem and peer support through:- Reminding your class that if exposed to specific allergens, their classmate(s) might become dangerously ill.
- Identifying, as a group, practical ways to protect classmates with anaphylactic allergies from accidental exposure (i.e., buddy system).
- Recognizing that overprotecting a child with a history of anaphylaxis is common. Assure students with anaphylactic allergies that their safety in the classroom is important to their peers and they will be treated equally with respect and dignity.
Find more anaphylaxis community and media resources.
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4) Manage auto-injector storage, access and availability
- Know the number and location of all epinephrine auto-injectors
- Know how many epinephrine auto-injectors each student has and where individual injectors are stored
- Remind students to keep at least one epinephrine auto-injector with them at all times in a fanny pack or knapsack; inside the pocket of a jacket or in a designated storage area in the school office or classroom (i.e., unlocked cupboard)
- Share this information with your colleagues and occasional teachers.
- Ensure that epinephrine auto-injectors are stored correctly
Epinephrine auto-injectors must be protected from light and stored at room temperature. Do not refrigerate epinephrine auto-injectors.
Learn more about storing epinephrine auto injectors. - Overseeing an epinephrine auto-injection
If the student at risk of anaphylaxis CAN manage the epinephrine auto-injection, be sure to supervise providing that:- The student is conscious and competently able to administer the injection
- The school has written consent from the child’s physician and the parent/guardian if the student is under 18 years of age
Learn more about using an epinephrine auto-injector.
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5) Consider student safety when planning class trips
- Encourage parent/guardian participation
Encourage the parents and guardians of students with allergies to participate in special class event preparations (i.e., class parties) and to come along on class trips. - Confirm access to medical services
If a student with allergies/anaphylaxis is participating in a field trip, you must know:- If there is easy access to police, fire and ambulance services.
- Whether 9-1-1 services are available at the destination.
- If not, ensure that the number to access ambulance services is readily available.
- Epinephrine auto-injector:
- The student must have more than one epinephrine auto-injector if the nearest hospital is more than 10-15 minutes away (a second dose may be required if the reaction continues or gets worse).
- The address of and directions to the destination to advise emergency personnel.
