Ontario mom urges schools to let asthmatic kids carry puffers

jason

Administrator
Staff member
Ontario schools should allow students with asthma to carry puffers with them in case of emergencies, says the mother of a 12-year-old boy who died when no one could get his inhaler in time because it was locked in the principal's office.

Ryan Gibbons died Oct. 9, 2012 when he suffered a severe asthma attack during recess at school in the village of Straffordville, in southwestern Ontario.

Sandra Gibbons says her son told his friends he wasn't feeling well and probably started panicking when they had to carry him to the office where the inhaler was kept.

"So as he was going to the office to get his inhaler, he kind of was having a hard time and had to be carried into the office, and by the time he got there he had blacked out," she said. "To this day I really don't know how exactly the whole day unfolded for him."

More Ontario mom urges schools to let asthmatic kids carry puffers - Ottawa - CBC News


This makes me glad my sons school allows us to bring a nebulizer in for him and keep it in his back pack. That backpack sits on the shelf well within the teachers grasp who is trained on how to use them.
 

polamalu43

New Member
I did not know that schools did not allow students to carry an inhaler if they needed it. I know other medicine needs to be kept in the nurse's office. What about an epi-pen? I would think that these types of things should be kept on the child.
 

jason

Administrator
Staff member
I did not know that schools did not allow students to carry an inhaler if they needed it. I know other medicine needs to be kept in the nurse's office. What about an epi-pen? I would think that these types of things should be kept on the child.
It seems a lot of schools will not allow it. Even if the child is not allowed then the teacher should at least have one. Like I said our son does not have one on him constantly, but the teacher has it. We also have a child epi-pen in the back pack too.
 

Bear

New Member
This is one of the many reasons that our kids will not be attending public school. Our school system has a similar position to the Ontario one. You can't even give your kids Tylenol if you come to the school and administer it yourself!
 

DeputyDad

New Member
That is a very sad story. The inhaler should never have been locked in an office and unavailable if the principle left his office. I bet there are a lot of remorseful people in this situation.
 

Andersson

New Member
The schools in our area require a note from home for any medicine, including inhalers. They are sent to the nurse's office when they need it and the problem with inhalers is the immediate need for it.
 

Karter

New Member
How sad for the parents, the teachers and children who witnessed this. I understand that schools worry about misuse of medication but this is ridiculous. Children who take these medications know how to use them properly. This should have been avoided.
 
Top