>I am sure you are aware of this, but for others on this list, I just want to
>mention that if a child with severe allergies or asthma goes to public schools
>(as opposed to private or parochial schools) then accommodations for dietary
>considerations as well as dispensing of medications and treatment of
>emergencies must be accommodated by the school in accordance with applicable
>federal disability laws.  No parent of a child in public school should be
>required to rush in and give a child meds because the school doesn't have
>adequate nursing staffing or other trained personnel to do so.  A school must
>make "reasonable accommodations" to ensure the health and safety of a child
>while providing a public education.  Section 504 and the IDEA laws provide for
>this.

This is good for the parent of an allergic child to know. If there is such
a situation, there are legally-enforceable options.

In our case 6 years ago, the standing notion of "reasonable accommodations"
was that a nurse be contacted at another school site, with the possibility
of a 10-15 minute delay. While that may be appropriate for many
emergencies, that time may be critical for a swift and severe allergic
reaction. We found it easier and more reliable to be involved ourselves.
The other option would have been to send him to the one school that had a
full-time nurse - the school where most of the special needs students are
sent. Since our neighborhood school is 2 blocks from our house and the
other school was several miles away, we opted for the more local but more
troublesome option. Luckily, this has worked well for us.

And, fortunately for us, the increasing emphasis on inclusion of
special-needs students in the mainstream schools has necessitated increased
nursing at all of the schools. This means that special needs parents, who
already have a strong organizaztion and lobbying support, can use their
influence and the laws to get the requisite medical care at the school.
While I know that we could have gone this route several years ago and
pushed for a better arrangement; we were just too weary from having three
young children with various health issues to want to take on a system that
we didn't understand. It's unfortunate that this is the case, but we've
learned that in many cases we have to be active advocates for our children.
I do encourage those who have the circumstances and the energy and
resources to pursue what Lynda has suggested.

Mark

____________________________________________________________
Mark Feblowitz                  GTE Laboratories Incorporated
[log in to unmask]              40 Sylvan Road, Waltham, MA 02154-1120