5141.25 5141.25Students
Students with Special Health Care Needs
The focus of a Districtwide Food Allergy Management Plan shall be prevention, education, awareness, communication and emergency response. The management plan shall strike a balance between the health, social normalcy and safety needs of the individual student with life threatening food allergies and the education, health and safety needs of all students. The District Food Allergy Management Plan shall be the basis for the development of the procedural guidelines that will be implemented at the school level and provide for consistency across all schools within the district.
The goals for the Districtwide Plan include:
1. To maintain the health and protect the safety of children who have life-threatening food allergies in ways that are developmentally appropriate, promote self-advocacy and competence in self-care and provide appropriate educational opportunities.
2. To ensure that interventions and individual health care plans for students with life-threatening food allergies are based on medically accurate information and evidence-based practices.
3. To define a formal process for identifying, managing, and ensuring continuity of care for students with life-threatening food allergies across all transitions. (Pre-K-Grade 12)
It is the policy of the Board of Education to follow the guidelines developed and promulgated by the Connecticut Department of Public Health and Department of Education for students within the District with life-threatening food allergies and glycogen storage disease. Such guidelines include (1) education and training for school personnel on the management of students with life-threatening food allergies and glycogen storage disease, including training related to the administration of medication with a cartridge injector and the provision of food or dietary supplements, (2) procedures for responding to life threatening allergic reactions to food, (3) a process for the development of individualized health care and food allergy action plans for every student with a life-threatening food allergy, (4) a process for the development of individualized health care and glycogen storage disease action plans for every student with glycogen storage disease and such plan shall include, but not be limited to, the provision of food or dietary supplements by the school nurse or by any school employee approved by the school nurse, to a student with glycogen storage disease provided such plan does not prohibit a parent/guardian or a person they so designate, to provide food or dietary supplements on school grounds during the school day, and (5) protocols to prevent exposure to food allergens.
It is the Board’s expectation that specific building-based guidelines/actions will take into account the health needs and well-being of all children without discrimination or isolation of any child. It is the Board’s belief that education and open and informative communication are vital for the creation of an environment with reduced risks for all students and their families. In order to assist children with life-threatening allergies to assume more individual responsibility for maintaining their safety as they grow, it is the policy of the Board that guidelines shift as children advance through the primary grades and through secondary school.
The District’s plan for managing students with life-threatening food allergies shall be posted on the District’s website (and/or on the website of each school within the District).
Note: In the absence of a district or individual school website, it is suggested that the plan for managing students with life-threatening allergies be included in the student/parent handbook of each school.)
(cf. 5141 - Student Health Services)
(cf. 5141.21 - Administering Medication)
(cf. 5141.23 - Students with Special Health Care Needs)
(cf. 5141.3 - Health Assessments)
(cf. 5145.4 - Nondiscrimination)
Legal Reference: Connecticut General Statutes
10-15b Access of parent or guardian to student’s records.
10-154a Professional communications between teacher or nurse and student.
10-207 Duties of medical advisors.
10-212a Administrations of medications in schools
10-212c Life threatening food allergies; Guidelines; district plans, ass amended by P.A. 12-198
10-212a(d) Administration of medications in schools by a paraprofessional
10-220i Transportation of students carrying cartridge injectors
52-557b Good Samaritan Law. Immunity from liability for emergency medical assistance, first aid or medication by injection
PA 05-104 An Act Concerning Food Allergies and the Prevention of Life-Threatening Incidents in Schools
PA 05-144 and 05-272 An Act Concerning the Emergency Use of Cartridge Injectors
The Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies section 10-212a through 10-212a-7
Federal Legislation
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794 § 504; 34 C.F.R. § 104 et seq.)
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 (42 U.S.C. §12101 et seq.; 29C.F.R. §1630 et seq.
The Family Education Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA)
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 1976 (IDEA) (20 U.S.C. § 1400 et seq.); 34 C.F.R. § 300 et seq.
FCS Instruction783-2, Revision 2, Meal substitution for medical or other special dietary reasons.
P.A. 09-155 An Act Concerning the Use of Asthmatic Inhalers and Epinephrine Auto-Injectors While at School
Land v. Baptist Medical Center, 164 F3d 423 (8th Cir. 1999)
Policy adopted: