In Ontario’s Halton Catholic District School Board, school personnel turn to the online Anaphylaxis in Schools: What Educators Need to Know course offered at allergyaware.ca for their anaphylaxis training. Developed by Food Allergy Canada and Leap Learning Technologies Inc. and in collaboration with the Canadian Society of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, the online course was designed to help keep students at risk of serious allergic reactions safe at school.
The Anaphylaxis in Schools course was particularly helpful to Tanya Tatti of Bishop Reding Catholic Secondary School in Milton, Ontario, a health and physical education teacher and basketball coach, who is often called upon for assistance as one of the school’s first aid providers.
Tanya described a recent emergency situation involving a grade 12 student with an allergy to sesame seeds. Acting quickly, Tatti administered an EpiPen® and an ambulance was called. When the student’s breathing was not improving, Tatti gave the second dose after 5 minutes, remembering what she had learned from the course just the day before! The ambulance then arrived and the student was taken to hospital, where she fully recovered.
Kudos to Tanya Tatti, for her quick thinking, and to Bishop Reding Catholic Secondary School, and the Halton Catholic District School Board for making training a priority in their efforts to safeguard students at risk of anaphylaxis.
This good news story illustrates the importance of understanding the basics of anaphylaxis and knowing how to respond in the event of an emergency. The Anaphylaxis in Schools course was created with this in mind and is available for free in English and French to educators across the country.
In addition to Anaphylaxis in Schools, the Allergy Aware website at allergyaware.ca features the Anaphylaxis in the Community course for parents and others, and a child care course will be released later this year. Supporters of the Allergy Aware initiative include premier founding sponsor TELUS, provincial and territorial governments such as the Government of Ontario, and private donors.
Tags: AllergyAware.ca