14-year-old Maya Inez Detari-Hajnal was told she was “overreacting” and denied access to her epinephrine auto-injector while suffering an allergic reaction to a cornflake cake from the school cafeteria. The cake was displayed next to cookies containing nuts to which she is allergic, cross-contact with which may have triggered the reaction.
Her mother said that had she not picked up the phone when her daughter called “she would have died.”
A spokesperson for Jane Austen College in Norwich, UK, said that staff followed the correct procedures and “we don’t believe any comment about ‘overreacting’ was made.”
Just a few weeks before the incident, a freshman was rushed to the hospital after ingesting nuts at the school and was kept in the ICU for 13 hours. Following that incident, the school adopted an allergy action plan.
But Maya’s mom claims school staff ignored the plan by refusing to give her her epinephrine auto-injector and saying it was “unnecessary.”
The mother recalls:
I said please help Maya, she’s struggling. My child will die. I heard how bad her breathing was in her voice. Her lips and eyes were swelling and she was clutching her neck.
The staff finally relented and gave Maya her auto-injector at 3:08PM after pressure from her mother. She was then rushed to the hospital, where she was kept overnight.
The mom added:
I was shouting and crying. I had seen how bad she was a few weeks ago. If I didn’t pick up the phone then she would have died. She would be on a life support machine by now.
The spokesperson for Inspirations Trust, the operator of the school, stated:
From our understanding, Maya finished her lunchtime at 2pm and mentioned that she was unwell at 2.30pm.
Multiple staff members supported Maya and our first aid-trained staff dealt with the incident and followed her care plan.
Maya was coughing occasionally but was able to walk and talk, she was able to talk on the phone and we believe she wasn’t caused to suffer additionally.
An ambulance was called and staff followed the paramedics’ advice to support Maya until the ambulance arrived and she was taken to hospital.
After investigation, we don’t believe any comment about ‘overreacting’ was made. We take these matters very seriously and always support our pupils, especially at vulnerable times.
The mother said she would homeschool Maya until she finds a new school able to accommodate her severe allergy.
We’re relieved Maya survived the incident and has recovered. We’re sorry she and her mom were subjected to the horror inflicted on them by this experience.
Needless to say, the school’s response was entirely unacceptable.
If the timeline is correct, Maya complained of symptoms a full 38 minutes before she was allowed access to her epinephrine. That delay could well have cost her her life.
Epinephrine is the only drug that can halt and reverse the progression of anaphylaxis, a life-threatening allergic reaction. However, it can only provide the best outcome if administered shortly after the onset of symptoms.
We’re not sure what “allergy action plan” the school staff was following, but it is certainly not in keeping with action plans advocated by medical associations. These should be tailored to the specific patient by their doctor and registered with the school nurse, teachers, and administration. [Click here for the various action plan templates available from medical authorities.]
We advocate that all youth old enough to self-administer should be allowed to carry their emergency epinephrine devices to avoid just such a delay.
