Imagine eating in the cafeteria and suddenly becoming short of breath as your throat starts to close up. There are 6 million children living in the world who are at high risk of experiencing this condition (Cianferoni, 2012). This condition is called anaphylaxis caused from an allergen. This can turn into a life-threatening situation. School systems need grants to provide adequate care to these students that experience anaphylaxis to prevent from lethal occurrences. The School Access to Emergency Epinephrine Act is the answer to decrease the risk of these situations. The bill authorizes the Congress to give funding to the schools if they meet the following requirements: maintain an emergency supply of epinephrine, permit trained personnel of the school to administer epinephrine, and develop a plan for ensuring trained personnel are available to administer epinephrine during all hours of the school day (H.R. 2094, 2013). This bill can affect the overall healthcare system by providing a safe environment in the schools for children and providing peace of mind for the families of children with allergies. Anaphylaxis is an allergic reaction that occurs suddenly and without warning. It is severe and can be deadly if not treated immediately. During anaphylaxis, the airways tighten and cause difficulty breathing, swallowing, wheezing, loss of consciousness and sometimes hives. Anaphylaxis can occur not only from food allergies, but also medications and insect bites (Kim & Fischer, 2011). In children, food allergies are the most common source of anaphylaxis (Kim & Fisher, 2011). Anaphylaxis is treated with a medication called Epinephrine. In Massachusetts, the department of health found that a fourth of the students who needed Epinephrin... ... middle of paper ... ...reasonably believed to be having an anaphylactic reaction; and has in place a plan for having on the premises of the school during all operating hours of the school one or more individuals who are trained personnel of the school (H.R. 2094, 2013). This act is extremely important in the healthcare of the society. Without adequate funds and access to non-patient specific epinephrine during these situations could result in insecurity and possibly death in the school system. The School Access to Emergency Epinephrine will provide families assurance that their children will be safe and protected and if the situation occurs, that they would be treated promptly and effectively. Not only will this act provide peace of mind for families and children, but also allow the society as a whole to trust the legislative system to provide for their healthcare needs when they arise.
No greater obligation is placed on school officials than to protect the children in their charge from foreseeable dangers, whether those dangers arise from the careless acts or intentional transgressions of others. Although the overarching mission of a board of education is to educate, its first imperative must be to do no harm to the children in its care. A board of education must take reasonable measures to assure that the teachers and administrators who stand as surrogate parents during the day are educating, not endangering, and protecting, not exploiting, vulnerable children (Frugis v. Bracigliano, 2003).
EMTALA impacts Emanuel Medical Center because it will require mandatory treatment for emergency room visits by hospitals regardless of their ability to pay. EMC was established in 1917, which makes it an old, but bigger facility that can withstand a bigger capacity, sixteen thousand patients, of emergency visits per year. With the passing of this regulation, EMC emergency department treats forty-five thousand patients every year, and because the ED is small and greatly understaffed, it causes longer waiting periods for patients. The frustrations of patients who are sick or not feeling themselves and all have some sort of emergency, have to wait long periods constantly, results in a bad reputation for the medical center. This will affect services, and also a loss of market share due to potential customers traveling to a competing hospital or clinic to receive care.
Peanuts are one of the most prevalent food allergens worldwide, and it has become a nemesis for many in recent years. Peanut allergies have been known to be life threatening, but only a few sufferers react with such extreme severity when exposed to peanuts. While peanut allergies have long-existed, it seems like it was very rarely heard of prior to the 1980s. In the last decade, peanut allergies have become the focus of media attention and controversy. However, the media is not as accurate as the public understands it to be. The sensationalized media reports, especially those publicized in the United States, on the subject of peanut allergy led to unnecessary public concern that created a larger spectacle of the issue than it is supposed to be.
There are many allergic reactions that come with food allergies. The main one is called anaphylaxis. This fatal reaction is a violent allergic reaction that occurs thought the body causing nausea, vomiting, swelling, chest pain, choking and collapse.
One of the reactions to peanut allergies is anaphylaxis which is characterized by swelling of the mouth and throat, a feeling of panic or dread, followed by a drop in blood pressure, unconsciousness and death. I was on a Southwest Airlines flight to Los Angeles and the snack being served was peanuts. People all around me were eating peanuts. The aroma of peanuts pervaded the airplane. There was no place for me to go to get away from the smell. Panic crept in, even though I knew I had not eaten a peanut or touched a bag of peanuts. On another flight I ate a muffin that was specifically labeled and supposedly contained no peanuts. However, it did contain something that brought on the panic. What can you do at 30,000 feet? Not much. I asked the attendant if there was a doctor on board and she said no, but they could divert the plane to the nearest airport and have a doctor waiting.
Emergency services can visit a school to provide talks to pupils which can be incorporated within the curriculum. At our school we have a local community officer based on the premises and is they should a safeguard issue arise, as well as delivering information talks relating to their role and responsibilities.
Attention Getter: According to Food Allergy Research & Education Inc., “Every 3 minutes, a food allergy reaction sends someone to the emergency department – that is more than 200,000 emergency department visits per year.” ("Food Allergy Research & Education", n.d.)
a much bigger health challenge than once thought. Roughly one in twenty-five Americans are now believed to be affected by one or more food allergies." (Gordon 11) Further statistics online reveal
All sorts of food allergies affect eight percent of children and two percent of adults in the United States. Allergic reactions happen because one's immune system overreacts to regular foods that are ordinarily harmless to the general population (7). An allergy affecting many children and adults recently in the United States is an allergy to peanuts. In the last few years, tremendous amounts of people have developed this allergy, which seems, in most cases, to be very severe.
...ir doors in a way to stay hidden from any harm. If the intruder is smart enough, they can easily make their way through the school without being caught. That is where the emergency lock downs come into action. National School Safety and Security Services provide school emergency planning evaluations to help schools identify strengths and areas to build upon for creating school emergency plans that not only look good on paper, but stand a better chance of working effectively in a real emergency. Most school leaders know their schools have plans. They just don’t know whether their plans have appropriate or questionable content, if staff have adequately been trained for emergency preparedness, what type of testing and exercising of plans can be done in a reasonable amount of time, and how to improve the chances of what is on paper working in a real emergency (Trump).
In the United States, over three million people are diagnosed with food allergies every year, and over 50 million people have an allergy to some type of food. This number includes one in every 13 children. Most people are born with their allergies; however, allergies can develop at any age, and that is what happened to me. I developed an allergy when I was 14 years old. It was then that some troubling and deleterious side effects started happening to me. When people develop food allergies, their immune systems overreact to normally harmless food proteins. (foodallergy.org). These attacks can affect people in a multitude of ways; they can cause hives, difficulty in breathing, stomach aches, and many more symptoms.
Public schools in the 21st century provide many basic health care services. These services include having a full or part-time school nurse, dental care, mental health, special education programs, child obesity programs and reproductive health care. Schools are required to have at least one school nurse available on the premises. It is also important for public schools to be equipped to handle any kind of situation that might challenge a student’s learning ability such as having a learning disability, ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder), depression and even food allergies. ...
People/ children who have been diagnosed with a threat to anaphylaxis need to strictly follow the Action Plan (Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology & Allergy, 2012) as suggested by their medical practitioner. There is no preventive medication developed for this condition so far. However the only remedy to counter this fatal condition from getting bad to worst is the immediate administration of Adrenaline. Adrenaline(Ep...
Anaphylaxis shock occurs when someone who is sensitive to a substance they are exposed to which results in constricted airway and possible inability to breathe. Parents with children that experience any form of allergic reaction most notify the day care provider so appropriate precautionary steps are taken to maintain a safe health environment for these children. As allergy conditions have slowly increased within our society day care providers have taken more aggressive action to protect these children by extending a “peanut free environment” within the school setting. The percentage of children who experience their first allergic reaction outside the home has increased by 77% over past years daycare providers need to be trained and prepared to handle all types of allergic reaction situations. Steps that a provider and parent should take are as follows: 1. Food allergy action plan, 2. Inform all staff, 3. Post child’s name and allergy,
"Update: School Safety." Issues & Controversies On File: n. pag. Issues & Controversies. Facts On File News Services, 11 May 2007. Web. 5 June 2012. .