My Food Allergy Back-to-School Checklist

Food Allergies at School

Ah yes, it's that time of year. One dollar notebooks, one cent pencils and buy one/get one composition books jump off the pages of glossy advertisements. 

Back to school ads are also my prompt to pull out my yellow "Food Allergy School" folder. In it I'll find:

• Copy of 504 Plan
• Form giving permission to carry EpiPen
• Food Allergy and Anphylaxis Action Plan

All of these papers and forms need to be updated annually, so here's my back-to-school checklist:

__ Review 504 plan. Is it still relevant for upcoming school year or are changes needed?

__ Schedule 504 meeting several days before school starts. Invite school nurse, guidance counselor, teacher (or team of teachers)

__ Get doctor to sign form giving permission to carry epinephrine at school.

__ Review Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Action plan with doctor. Attach updated photo.

__ Get prescription for EpiPens as I'll need two extra to send to school.

__ Prepare bag for nurses office to include EpiPen, bottle of Benadryl and a copy of the Action Plan. 

We also meet with the director of the school cafeteria each year to review ingredient changes in foods that have been safe to eat in the past and to see if there are any new foods to add. 

I remember feeling overwhelmed by all this when I first sent my food allergic child off to school. We've been doing this for 8 years now, and it's just become part of the routine...just like shopping for notebooks and pencils.Be sure to communicate early and often and have a great back-to-school send-off.

If you're new to this, check out some of the posts I've written over the years about preparing for school with food allergies:

• Food Allergy Back to School Guide 
• Food Allergy and 504 Plans at School
• Food Allergy at School
• Food Allergies at School: More Tips
• Food Allergy Lingo When Talking to School Administrators

Food Allergy and 504 Plans at School

As I prepare for our annual 504 meeting with our school later this week, I am reminded about how far we have come. It was only in 2008, that Congress expanded the definition of who is eligible for federal protection. Now, individuals are protected- even if they don't suffer a disability all the time.

Prior to 2008, parents had to fight for any accommodations for their food allergic children at school. It was at the discretion of the school district how food allergy would be handled. When my child with food allergies entered school 5 years ago, we did not have any type of formal written agreement. The school did allow him to carry an EpiPen® (beginning in kendergarten) and a special food allergy table was established in the cafeteria. After a disappointing experience in 2nd grade, where he was excluded from making gingerbread houses with his grade due to his food allergy, we insisted on something more formal. We were offered an IHP, an Individualized Healthcare Plan.

The IHP was a document between us as parents and the school nurse. It was a good start, but not enough, as it didn't include key players within the school system like teachers, bus drivers and even the facilities and maintenance department (they're the only ones who knew the ingredients in the soap in dispensers near school sinks).

Enter last year and our first 504 Plan. We held a group meeting- parents, nurse, principal, guidance counselor, classroom teacher and head of facilities for the school district (also in charge of our bus company contract). Together we completed an individualized document to best meet my son's needs. This year my son will join the meeting and we will all work together to update the 504 Plan as needed.

The 504 Plan makes everything much easier because everyone, including the student, knows what they are responsible for. I like this recent article about 504 Plans for those who aren't familiar with federal protection for food allergic students.

 Are most of you using 504 Plans or do you use other documents or tools at school?