Children with diabetes at school: better provision needed
Published: 23 March 2007
The main charity for people with diabetes in Wales, Diabetes UK Cymru, is calling for better provision for children with diabetes when they are at school.
In a comprehensive report, published jointly with the Royal College of Nursing (RCN), the charity highlights examples of good practice in many schools, but also draws attention to some of the problems that have arisen, often as a result of lack of information or lack of confidence amongst school staff in dealing with diabetes.
Amongst the issues highlighted, are:
· Lack of understanding by some staff about the need for children with diabetes to eat outside of normal mealtimes.
· Lack of suitable space for carrying out insulin injections.
· Parents’ concerns about transferring children from primary school, where staff have become familiar with diabetes, to secondary school, where there is no certainty that the same care and expertise will be available.
Margaret Knight, Policy Officer with Diabetes UK said, “With appropriate support, children with diabetes can play as full a part in school life as any other child. Some of our schools are doing excellent work, but problems have arisen in some places. We need to ensure that consistent guidelines and policies are in place, and that staff are sufficiently well informed and confident to support children with diabetes as needed.”
Tina Donnelly, Director RCN Wales said, “In Wales, provision in schools for children with diabetes varies greatly in quality from one area to another. There has to be a learning tool for school staff dealing with pupils with diabetes. The learning process should include being educated about clinical words and terms that describe diabetes and how to manage it, including insulin, ketones, blood sugars, bodily reactions, and what to do in an emergency situation. Until these words become a part of everyday language and are fully understood, it is easy for confusion to occur. An approach where education is key would generate the kind of support that children with diabetes need.”
The report makes a number of positive recommendations to improve the current situation, for the benefit of both staff and children. Amongst their main recommendations, Diabetes UK and the RCN are calling for:
· All school staff to be provided with basic information on diabetes, with more in depth training for key individuals in schools with a child with diabetes; also, for all school nurses to be trained in diabetes care.
· Allocating a suitable quiet room in schools for children to do their insulin injections, when required.
· All schools where there is a child with diabetes to have a designated member of staff to link with the child with diabetes, family and all the professionals concerned in their care
In order to support the implementation of these recommendations, Diabetes UK, in co-operation with the RCN and others, is intending to produce a teaching manual to facilitate the education of staff in schools where there is a child with diabetes.
Copies of the report are available on-line at www.diabetes.org.uk/Professionals/Information_resources/Reports/
or contact Diabetes UK Cymru.