>Hello listmates,
>
>My three year old daughter has been milk allergic for three years, but
>we were recently prescribed an Epi-Pen to carry since we live 25 miles
>from the nearest hospital.  We got one to keep at home, one for my
>purse, and one for her backpack.
>

You'd be better off with two at each location, in case one misfires or
isn't sufficient to hold until you get to the hospital.

>My question is this:  how do all of you deal with carrying the Epi-Pen
>around?   Since the weather has turned cold it  has become more of a
>problem.  The Epi-Pen says  to keep between certain temperatures.  That
>can be a problem sometimes.  For example, no leaving it in a cold or
>warm car, etc.

Don't (!!!) leave it in your car. Primarily due to the temperature swings,
but also because you may need it in a hurry.

>
>How do you men carry it safely?  I've heard of some people wearing them
>around their necks in a homemade carrier.  How about children old enough
>to carry it themselves?
>

I carry mine in a belt pack, and an extra in my briefcase. I never leave
either of these out in the cold or in the heat.

We replace them if there has been a "lapse". We figure, why risk it not
working if it's truly needed. Sometimes I mark one that's been allowed to
get too cold (but not freeze) and keep it as a backup.

For our son Josh, we carry a bright red belt pack with us whenever we go
anywhere. It contains an EpiPen, antihistamines, asthma inhaler, and Josh's
Medic Alert, emergency instructions and emergency contact list. My wife
carries an extra EpiPen for him in her purse, along with antihistamines.
The school nurse has an EpiPen for him, along with all of his other meds.

Now that Josh is older (10) and since he's quite responsible about his meds
and his condition, his doctor has given him written permission to carry his
meds in his backpack. For safety reasons, we only send along a single dose
of antihistamines. He's only to use these if he can't get to his regular
sources (home, nurse, parent) in a short period of time, and he's to report
immediately to us or the school nurse, teacher, principal, or other
responsible adult immediately.

This has worked well for us. We sometimes accidentally leave the "med kit"
some places and have to backtrack to find it. We try to either wear it
(even though it's unsightly) and, when we're not, we strap it onto my
wife's purse or whatever we're not likely to leave behind.


------------------
Mark Feblowitz