Did you know that November is Diabetes and Epilepsy Awareness Month? Many children in schools suffer from these two conditions. Getting diagnosed with either of these conditions can be extremely frightening, especially for children and their parents. The good news is that knowing how to manage the disease, and by being armed with the appropriate care information, allows children to continue on with their lives as normal as possible, while putting parents’ mind at ease.

Diabetes in Schools

Currently, 1.25 million American children have diabetes. Approximately 15% of Americans with type 1 diabetes are children. Diabetes is a disease that affects a family as a whole, especially when a child is diagnosed. Being a parent of a child with diabetes can be frightening and very overwhelming, wanting to ensure the child is safe at all times, especially during school hours.

Diabetes management is a 24/7 job. Children need proper care and support from their school staff in order to help prevent life-threatening complications. Many young students need help with monitoring and controlling their blood sugar levels. Even older children who are experienced in self-managing, may still need assistance from school staff in treating high and low blood glucose, or a treatment in the event of an emergency. 

Everyone manages their diabetes differently. Some use syringes, while others use pumps, and some need higher dosages of insulin while others need lower doses. Making sure schools can easily access vital health information is crucial. This includes providing staff access to each student’s health history, medications, medication dosage, and, of course, a Diabetes Action Plan for the student.

Thirty-eight percent of school personnel were very concerned about their preparedness to assist a child with hypoglycemia, 48% were somewhat concerned, and only 20% felt adequately prepared to assist a child with hypoglycemia. Magnus online software helps schools build customized Diabetes Action plans that schools can provide to families with diabetic children. This action plan includes the Diabetes Medical Management Plan (DMMP) that has to be completed by the student’s personal diabetes health care team, including the parents or a guardian. After the plan is complete and has been submitted, it is reviewed by the school staff. Once approved, it is accessible to all authorized school personnel. Parents can be at ease knowing staff members have all of the vital information needed to care for their child while at school. Automated email reminders help keep parents up to date on approaching form, medication, and requirement deadlines.

Epilepsy in Schools

470,000 American children currently suffer from epilepsy and according to the latest estimates, about 0.6% of children aged 0-17 years experience it actively. It is a disorder of the brain that causes seizures and affects people in different ways. This is due to the fact that there isn’t just one type of seizure – there are many. This plays a major role in determining both the severity of the person’s condition and the impact it has on his or her life. 

It can be frightening for parents anticipating their child’s next seizure episode, especially knowing that it may happen at a place like school. However, when school staff have access to vital student health information as the need arises, seizure management and treatment becomes simple and streamlined.

Seizure Action plan provides information on what type of seizure a student suffers from, how long do they last, how frequently do they occur, and specific treatment details. Magnus software provides schools with the ability to build custom seizure action plans for students, allows parents to submit health information on one online platform, which in turn can be accessed by authorized staff members at any time and from any mobile device. The Magnus app allows caregivers to instantly send medical alerts to emergency contacts or guardians in emergency situations.

Conclusion

Diabetes and epilepsy can be difficult medical conditions to manage for children on or off campus. However, providing school staff with the information needed for care and treatment can make it much easier. Magnus Health helps parents submit vital health information to their student’s school in order to ensure staff is up to date at all times, and improves parent communication while delivering a quicker response in emergency situations. Whether it’s giving a chaperone mobile access to a student’s health data for field trips or just having the information organized in one online location, Magnus helps schools provide better care for students.

Click here to see a quick demo and to learn how schools are managing Seizures and Diabetes for their students!