School District 43 staff have been trained to administer life-saving glucagon and monitor children's insulin injections, giving parents such as Julie Gomm some relief.
Starting this fall, 106 staff members in 44 Tri-City public schools can give glucagon injections when a child's blood sugar level becomes dangerously low. As well, 29 education assistants are being trained to provide diabetes care to younger children who aren't yet able to do regular insulin injections on their own.
The new diabetes care policy for SD43 students, 71 of whom have been identified and have special education plans, was announced at Tuesday's school board meeting.
But it has been the goal of parents like Gomm to get the province and local school boards to recognize that juvenile diabetes needs special attention and care in schools.
"All you want is your child to go to school and be safe," said Gomm, a teacher whose son, Aidan, an active 12-year-old with diabetes, attends Hillcrest middle.
Gomm is appreciative of Hillcrest's support of her son but said diabetes care has varied between schools until the province stepped in to ensure staff were trained.
Students are now required to have a diabetic action plan and medical alert forms filled out by parents while an arrangement with Fraser Health has resulted in training provided by Nursing Support Services.
The program is a long time in coming, Gomm said, "I spent hours and hours lobbying myself and those other parents spent countless hours," she said.
Her son, who plays hockey and other sports, can administer his own insulin but meets his principal, Nadine Tambellini, at 12:10 p.m. every day so she can check his dose. And while he has never needed to be injected with glucagon, the possibility exists if his blood sugar becomes dangerously low.
She noted that giving glucagon is a straightforward procedure, not unlike the administration of epinephrine using an auto injector.
"It's a lifesaving thing and you should save a life if there is something you can do," she said.
For more information about the new provincial standards and medical forms, visit here.
WHAT IS GLUCAGON?
Glucagon is a hormone made by the pancreas. Administered to a diabetic, it is used to treat severe low blood sugar, raising the blood sugar by sending a signal to the liver to release stored sugar. It is administered for hypoglycemia, severe low blood sugar, when a child is unresponsive and can't take juice or sugar orally.
