New severe allergy protocols a welcome sight at Holy Spirit schools

LETHBRIDGE, AB – On January 1, 2020, the Government of Alberta enacted legislation that required all K-12 schools in the province to have at least one epinephrine auto-injector (EpiPen) on-site at all times.

It also mandates that staff must undergo training to ensure they know how to help a student who is dealing with an anaphylactic reaction.

The rules apply to all public and separate school divisions, Francophone regional authorities, and both private and charter schools.

Ken Sampson, the new Superintendent of Holy Spirit Catholic School Division, says it has been a welcome addition to their 15 schools spanning Pincher Creek to Bow Island.

“We’ve always worked with parents to make sure that they’ve got their EpiPens for those individual students, but for the rare occasion that a student may go into an anaphylactic reaction for whatever reason, it’s absolutely critical. It’s life-threatening and it’s important that we have those devices there to be able to save the lives of students.”

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Being new to the school board, Sampson was not aware of whether there have been any incidents where someone experiencing an allergic reaction in their schools did not have the proper tools on hand. Either way, he wants to ensure that they are prepared.

Within Holy Spirit, every school has at least one EpiPen, although, for locations where they have students of all ages in the one building, they will have multiple.

Staff from across the division have been receiving ongoing training and schools have been upgrading their protocols thanks to pharmacists and healthcare providers.

This includes knowing how to administer an EpiPen, having a communication plan for disseminating information on life-threatening allergies, and ensuring that parents and students provide schools with details on any life-threatening allergies the student might have.

“Whenever there is training that’s provided by health individuals, it certainly eases some tensions and uncertainties,” says Sampson. “This is a relatively easy procedure to follow, so it’s certainly not something that would be met with opposition. We’re in a position to be able to ensure that students are well-protected.”

Full details on the Protection of Students with Life-Threatening Allergies Act can be found here.