Communication and cooperation are key to keeping children with diabetes safe during the school day, and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) says this must be a team effort involving the student, caregivers, health care providers and school staff.
"Nobody knows your child's day-to-day needs and how to respond to a diabetes emergency better than you," Dr. Griffin P. Rodgers, director of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases at the NIH, said. "That's why it is so important to maintain open communication with school staff throughout the school year."
The National Diabetes Education Program's (NDEP) Helping the Student with Diabetes Succeed: A Guide for School Personnel is a valuable resource for parents and school personnel.
Developed by the NIH and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the program recommends parents notify the school immediately when a child is diagnosed with diabetes; share the child's medical information with school staff and provide up-to-date emergency contact numbers; work with the child's health care team to develop a diabetes medical management plan and submit it to the school nurse at the beginning of each school year; meet with the school nurse to review the child's school health care plans; and provide the school with all supplies, medicines and items needed to carry out the child's health care and emergency plans.
For more information and free downloads, visit www.ndep.nih.gov.
