and you thought it was bad when BLS was pushing meds...

[dahlio]

I was recently in a school a week or so ago (a public elementary school), when I took a quick look at their AED. It revealed such photos

And you thought it was bad with the limited EMT education....try no education. What doctor would prescribe that? What kind of training do these teachers get to use them? A 2 hour class on the recognition of anaphylactic shock? Are we letting bystanders to start IV lines as well now?

i think dust is going to have a heart attack.

[chbare]

Hard to say. Much depends on the school and the specific school policies. I know some schools have teachers who are first responder or EMT trained and can provide basic care IAW specific policy. Other schools will only allow the school nurse to deliver any type of medical care. In addition, many special education teachers receive training and education regarding how to deal with the various health problems and challenges they encounter with their students. I could not give you a honest and well informed opinion on your dilemma without more information.

Take care,

chbare.

[JPINFV]

I'd rather have teachers have access to Epi-Pens like that [how many lay providers would really know what an epi-pen is unless they've been trained on it] than have them go around banning peanut butter sandwiches. I'm also going to bet that the average grade school teacher knows more about her students than the average EMT-B or P knows about their patient.

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html...;pagewanted=all

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1813632/posts

[VentMedic]

I can not believe someone would complain about this. It has taken several deaths of children and many years of fighting with state legislative issues to get easier access for lifesaving medication and devices in the school systems.

I can not believe an EMT with a 120 hour certificate and no other education could be that much different than a teacher with a college degree which may include a semester of first responder type training in that degree along with other additional training for the available equipment. The coaches and athletic trainers may definitely have medical education that by far exceeds the EMT's. These same teachers should have some knowledge and access to their students' medical conditions. The epipens are very regulated and are probably only given to those students that are do have a doctor's perscription. Teachers are probably very familiar with their state's statutes and aren't looking to "stick" just anyone with a needle. Having easy access beats running back to a locker or nurse's office or waiting for an EMT to find their way around a school campus.

Hopefully there was also an oxygen tank near the other equipment.

[ccmedoc]

I, for one, am very pleased that these are in place. In lieu of a school nurse, which most schools do not have anymore, usually administrators are trained with these, as well as the phys/ed teachers and various others. The vast majority of teachers and administrators are at LEAST masters trained...Although not in medicine, I think they could pick up the S/S of anaphylaxis as well as follow an AED.

Are we letting bystanders to start IV lines as well now?

This is a ludicrous statement and has no relation to your post..

I have to believe that you have seen a pediatric anaphylactic reaction or asthma attack...how could you be offended by the presence of epi-pens?? I have seen more than my share of pediatric deaths from asthma or anaphylaxis before EMS was able to arrive..These at home with parents present..

The coaches and athletic trainers may definitely have medical education that by far exceeds the EMT's.

Absolutely...

I applaud the school district for their foresight =D>

[Just Plain Ruff]

why is having an Epi-pen in the AED box a bad thing? I fail to see why this is a bad thing.

Be thankful the schools are forward thinkers.

And I agree, the teachers know more about their kids than emt's or medics know about their patients. The teachers see their kids 8 hours a day for 5 days a week for the school year. Couple that with some medical training and the coaches and trainers and nurses and I think our kids are well protected medically.

I for one find nothing wrong with having the Epi-pens in the AED box.

unfortunately this is needed because some schools do not have nurses full time. Some schools have to deal with sharing a nurse between 2 or even 4 different schools. So having that type of life saving item available to the teachers is a step in the right direction.

[Just Plain Ruff]

Dahlio wrote about a 2 hour course on anaphylaxis - let me ask this how many hours in your EMT class did you get on anaphylaxis? I remember my emt class and I think the amoun of time allotted for anaphylaxis was about 15 minutes. I would hazard to guess that 2 hours is better than 15 minutes. So in essence in that aspect, teachers with a 2 hour class on anaphylaxis are infinitely better trained than EMT's.

[JPINFV]

[devils advocate] But that's 15 minutes on top of our hour of pharmacology and two hours of anatomy and physiology [using NHTSA/DOT standards].

[JakeEMTP]

I have to agree with the above posters. I see no reason for not having Epi-pens in the schools.

People can purchase their own to carry with them. Are they medical trained? Probably not. However, they are trained enough to know when to use it and how to use it. As mentioned above, Coaches and trainers have some form of medical training, for the most part, therefore the availability of an Epi-pen seems logical.

It's not as if the Epi-pen is going to do the patient harm. In fact it may save their life before ALS arrives.

[dahlio]

Dahlio wrote about a 2 hour course on anaphylaxis - let me ask this how many hours in your EMT class did you get on anaphylaxis? I remember my emt class and I think the amoun of time allotted for anaphylaxis was about 15 minutes. I would hazard to guess that 2 hours is better than 15 minutes. So in essence in that aspect, teachers with a 2 hour class on anaphylaxis are infinitely better trained than EMT's.

But teachers don't have a background in medicine. This wasn't all about how I think it's a little crazy to have Epi-Pen's in schools, although some of it was. But the fact that a BLS unit doesn't even carry such a medication, and a BLS unit, I would hope would have just a little more knowledge in such a subject. I also find it no reason to be on a BLS unit either, as medication administration is mainly an ALS skill. My real point is that, we're letting teachers give ALS treatment. At least if a paramedic unit screws up with the epi, they are more capable to counteract what they have done.

And the two hour class was an estimate, I have no idea what type of training they need to go through.