Teen Refuses to Take School Nurse’s Advice After Peanut Allergy Attack—Mom Says It’s Why She’s Alive

Fifteen-yr-old Lia Sommer has spent her complete life studying to live with a extreme peanut hypersensitivity. That revel in may have stored her lifestyles these days, while she turned into by accident served peanuts within the faculty lunchroom.



In keeping with scary Mommy, Lia made a addiction of asking the cafeteria group of workers at Illinois' John Hersey excessive faculty if there have been peanuts inside the day's lunch services. On August thirtieth, Lia made her traditional inquiry and—having been assured that the food become secure for her to devour—ordered the same turkey sandwich she had eaten per week before.

What she failed to understand turned into that the school had substituted peanuts for pine nuts inside the sandwich's pesto spread. After taking a bite of the sandwich, Lia straight away realized she were exposed to a lethal allergen and went to the college nurse for assist.

Because the Chicago Tribune reviews, Lia's hypersensitivity requires epinephrine to save you a doubtlessly fatal reaction. But, when Lia went to the nurse's workplace to get her EpiPen, the nurse instructed the high faculty freshman to take Benadryl (an antihistamine) alternatively. It changed into exactly the wrong advice to provide. Thankfully, Lia knew better.

Conscious that taking an antihistamine like Benadryl would mask her signs without preventing the dangerous anaphylactic reaction, Lia refused to follow the nurse's recommendation. This is while the nurse made every other mistake. In place of administering the EpiPen, she insisted that the teen call her mother.

As Lia's mom, Lonnie pleasure Sommer, stated in a letter the district's Board of training:

"rather than following Lia's hypersensitivity and Anaphylaxis Plan on report in the fitness workplace, which simply states, 'give EpiPen First!' the nurse opted to have her call me to verify earlier than administering epinephrine, with my daughter's lifestyles held in the balance."
Lonnie couldn't believe it whilst she spoke to the faculty nurse and learned they nevertheless hadn't administered the EpiPen or called an ambulance. As she wrote in her letter:

"i used to be taken aback that a skilled scientific professional turned into both ignorant of the most up-to-date protocol for anaphylaxis, or unwilling to comply with it. I advised her [to] administer the EpiPen and contact 911 without delay. She stated that it might be completed, and confirmed i'd meet the ambulance at Northwest network health center."
The distraught mother became in for any other surprise when she arrived at the health facility to satisfy her daughter. The college had sent Lia to the emergency room by means of herself. For Lonnie, it turned into the very last straw in a chain of unbelievable mistakes.

As she instructed the nearby Board of training:

"it's far ludicrous that a minor would be sent alone to a health center throughout faculty hours with out a employees to represent her. I'm horrified and saddened by using the entire lack of common experience and compassion that predicated this choice."
fortuitously, Lia recovered from the incident. However, knowing that the final results might have been lots exclusive spurred Lonnie to write the letter to the college district.

Even as she became irritated with the nurse for no longer giving Lia her EpiPen, Lonnie turned into also worried approximately the carelessness in using peanuts as a food substitution. As she instructed the Tribune:

"With the rampant nature of meals allergies, all food carrier professionals have to recognize that the last issue one should use as a 'substitution' ingredient is one of the 8 important food allergens. An insignificant trace of peanut protein can motive a deadly response for my child, so discovering this turned into used as a main component substitution had me thanking God Lia knew exactly what to do to forestall the reaction."
The college district is presently reviewing its regulations and procedures regarding hypersensitive reactions and scientific treatment. The college has additionally apologized to the Sommer family and could pay Lia's scientific payments.

Lonnie says she wanted to bring the incident to the college district's attention in order that they could see where things had gone incorrect. The Sommers have now not filed a lawsuit in opposition to the college.
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