The Elephant In The Classroom...Part Two

In our last post, we decided to take on the proverbial elephant in the classroom...the life threatening nature of food allergies (and the implications of LTFA's in school).

Reporting of death from anaphylaxis is tricky at best.  That being said, deaths at school (from anaphylaxis) have (as far as we know) been fairly accurate and consistent as the internet has become an integral part of our lives.  We live in the age of instant information, and, as such, we learn about these tragedies quickly.  (For a discussion on why death due to anaphylaxis reporting is inconsistent, check out this discussion, forewarning, it is lengthy).

Despite an increase in reported deaths in schools, they appear to be relatively infrequent.  That being said, anaphylactic reactions at school are not.  We (OrAAA) have both had incidences of our children having allergic reactions at school (my daughter went into anaphylactic shock in November of 2013).  According to the CDC, somewhere between 16-18% of food allergic children have had at least one allergic reaction at school, with 25% of those reactions ocurring in students that were not previously diagnosed with food allergies (http://www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/foodallergies/pdf/13_243135_A_Food_Allergy_Web_508.pdf).  These appear to be consistent with OrAAA's recent survey.

While students with food allergies (in general) and allergic reactions in school appear to be increasing, access to accommodations that help ensure the safety of food allergic students can be difficult to codify (nonetheless enforce).  Protests over accommodations are becoming more common, often pitting parents of food allergic and non-food allergic children against each other (at a time when support and unanimity is most needed).    Retaliation, harassment, and bullying (of both students and parents by both students/families and school staff) are common occurrences.  Battles over accommodations often include complaints or administrative hearings of different types.  In our study, close to 15% of parents reported having filed at least one complaint on behalf of their child/themselves.

What has become clear is that while this issue is not currently being remedied in a time and fashion that ensures the safety of food allergic children currently in school, it is an issue that will have to be addressed soon.  Check back with us next week for our thoughts on the solution to this problem!