Endocrine Insider
August 19, 2009

(See Full Issue)

To help end discrimination and ensure that children with diabetes are able to participate fully in a medically safe school environment, The Endocrine Society has committed to supporting the American Diabetes Association’s “Safe at School” campaign.  The care of a student with diabetes requires management 24 hours a day, seven days a week. For students with type 1 diabetes, and for some with type 2 diabetes, that means careful monitoring of their blood glucose levels throughout the day and administering multiple doses of insulin therapy. 

These children must have support from their teachers and school administrators to effectively manage their disease throughout the day, and the school personnel must be equipped with the appropriate training and resources to provide support to these students and deal with an emergency situation.  The “Safe at School” program raises awareness of this issue and paves the way for changes to be made that will greatly improve the school environment for many children with diabetes.

The Safe at School campaign will include efforts to:

• Educate the public and the media about issues facing children with diabetes at school.
• Improve the situation for students who do not have any school personnel trained to provide diabetes care.
• Counter efforts by those who are taking measures to prevent the training of non-medical school personnel to provide needed care for students with diabetes, thereby jeopardizing the health and safety of students with diabetes.
  

The Endocrine Society encourages its members to support the campaign's efforts by becoming a member of the health care professional legal advocacy network. As legal advocates, physicians have helped by:

• Providing expert testimony in court that helped to knock down blanket bans in employment that said no one with diabetes need apply.
• Testifying before legislative committees to secure passage of laws that advance the rights of children with diabetes in school.
• Leading workshops to train school personnel in diabetes care tasks in the school setting.
• Collaborating with professional organizations to establish guidelines for employment of people with diabetes, diabetes care at school, and care in correctional institutions.
• Preparing advocacy materials for use by people with diabetes.

For more information on the "Safe at School" campaign, please visit the ADA's website.

More information on becoming a member of the legal advocacy network can be found here.