Why should education support professionals care about food allergies? One reason is that many children experience their first food allergy reaction while at school, and reactions can range from mild to severe and can progress in severity very quickly. Severe food allergy reactions can result in anaphylaxis, which can be life-threatening if not treated immediately. This means that all school staff should:
- Understand food allergies
- Know how to identify the signs and symptoms of anaphylaxis
- Be trained in how to administer epinephrine auto-injectors (if allowed by state law)
I was shocked to learn that so few NEA members had received training at their school about food allergies. Some school secretaries or office attendance staff had to administer medications such as epinephrine (the first line of treatment for anaphylaxis) to students because there was no full-time school nurse in their building. Talk about other duties as assigned!
NEA Members made it clear to me that the food allergy training we offered was critical.
The food allergy training was a happy marriage of NEA HIN guidance (focusing on the team approach) and the National Association of School Nurses training (focusing on training unlicensed school staff to administer epinephrine). I co-presented the “Eat, Drink, and Be Prepared: Food Allergies in the School Environment” workshop with NASN’s expert Sally Schoessler.
Sally and I blended together both organizations’ work in helping school staff understand their roles in preventing and responding to food allergy emergencies. We drew from NEA HIN’s new food allergy booklet for school employees “The Food Allergy Book” and NASN’s new “Get Trained” program.
School nurses, health aides, food service workers, secretaries, and paraeducator, and other education support professionals attended our workshop. Some had a food allergy themselves, some had children with food allergies, and some cared for a student with food allergies.
ESPs made clear that they believe:
- ALL school staff has a role in helping students manage food allergies!
- With proper training, school staff can administer epinephrine and save the life of a student!
I am proud to serve NEA members all across the country. Not only do they care about their students’ academics, but they care about student health, safety, and wellbeing. Among the many hats ESPSs wear,
I can confidently say that the one they should wear most proudly is that of a caring, dedicated hero!
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