Asthma and Self-Carry in a Large Georgia School District: Dan Burrows’ story

Categories: General

October 6th, 2011 2:40 pm ET - Curt Shannon

(Editor’s Note: We are pleased to have Dan Burrows tell his story about living with asthma. For more information about how CDC ’s National Asthma Control Program supports laws to allow children to carry medication to school, see School Asthma Policies Can Save Lives.)

I chose to work with the CDC National Asthma Control Program because I wanted to help make a difference in the lives of people like me who live with asthma every day. I knew that asthma could be controlled because I have done so myself since I was diagnosed with asthma as an adult. My doctor prescribed both controller and rescue medication, taught me how to use the medication, and provided self-management education. Since that time I have taken charge of the daily management of my condition. I am in control of my asthma and lead a normal life.

My wife and I have two children. They both have severe food allergies and one has asthma. We have had a child in a county school system in Georgia since 2005. We have been lucky. Our elementary and middle schools are well prepared to help a child with asthma or food allergies.

Both schools have school nurses trained in the prevention and handling of emergencies. The nurses educate the teachers, counselors, and other staff about the signs and symptoms of an asthma attack and food allergy reaction. The nurses also teach the staff what to do should an emergency occur. All teachers and substitute teachers are made aware of the students with special health needs. The schools have asthma and food allergy policies in place. Parents, nurse/health aides, teachers, and students all recognize the importance of having a partnership to address health issues in the school.

However, until recently our school district did not let children carry and use their emergency medication.

The district’s policy called for all medication to be given to the school nurse/health aide and stored in the health office. If a child had an asthma attack or a severe allergic reaction, the nurse/health aide would be contacted and would bring the medication to the child for administration. We could not let our children ride the county school bus because they could not carry their emergency medication and because school bus drivers were not allowed to carry and administer medications to students. My wife and I had to make special arrangements to drop off and pick up our children from school. This included finding a private transportation service that would carry and administer children’s emergency medication.

Beginning with the 2011-2012 school year, our school district began allowing students to carry and use emergency medication with their doctor’s consent. The doctors must sign a document that states that they have taught the students the proper use and dosage of the medication and that, in their professional opinion, the students should be allowed to carry and use the medication as ordered by the doctor.

Because our children have been trained on when and how to use their medication, this new policy will reduce some stress for my wife and me, will give us more transportation options, and most important, might save our children’s lives.

Dan Burrows, M.S.H.S.A , has fourteen years of experience working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. He is currently a Lead Public Health Advisor with the National Center for Environmental Health, Division of Environmental Hazards and Health Effects, where he works as a Team Leader and Project Officer for the Air Pollution and Respiratory Health Branch’s Asthma Program Team. Dan also has ten years of experience working in state public health in the areas of tuberculosis control and genetics.

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