Diabetes
Diabetes is a life-changing and life-threatening disease that can be diagnosed at any age.
Whether your child is 5 or 15, whether they are newly diagnosed or diabetes experts, your MVSD school nurses will work with you to create a safe and personalized plan of care at school.
Annual Checklist for Parents - What to do every year before school starts...
Before your child is allowed to start school each year, your nurse needs the following items:
Doctor's orders for diabetic care and medications (these usually come from Children's) - signed by the doctor and the parent,
Rescue medication - Glucagon (nasal spray formulation preferred),
Meet or talk with the school nurse to update the health plan.
All paperwork must be submitted at least 2 weeks before the first day of school in order to ensure your child may attend without delay.
Families should make an appointment to drop off supplies and meet with the nurse sometime during the week before school starts.
New Students & Newly Diagnosed Students - Creating your first health plan
If your child is starting a new school or has a new diagnosis, your school nurse will meet with you to create your child's Individualized Health Plan (IHP) for diabetes care at school. Please contact your school nurse right away.
Components of an Individualized Health Plan
Choose your school:
Little Mountain Elementary is the only elementary school in our district with a licensed nurse on-site every day of the week. For younger children or older elementary students who need a higher level of assistance to safely manage their diabetes, we recommend placement at Little Mountain. Please see Campuses for Students with Significant Medical Needs for more information.
Nurses are also on site every day at LaVenture Middle School, Mount Baker Middle School, and Mount Vernon High School.
Assess Level of Independence:
What tasks can your child perform independently?
This will help us determine what level of care your child needs at school.
Predict the Daily Schedule:
How often does your child need supervision and care?
Some students visit the health room many times every day. Other students may be able perform all of their care without visiting the health room at all.
We will work with you to create a plan that is the least disruptive to the school day.
Identify who will provide care at school:
Your child will typically see our health assistants and nurses for diabetes care at school. In the event that those staff are not available, our secretarial staff have basic training to supervise students who are fairly independent. We will also call guardians, emergency contacts, or 911 as needed.
Parents may also wish to identify a Parent Designated Adult to provide care at school. This is a person at the school who volunteers to provide full diabetes care if the nurse is not available. PDAs must be trained by a diabetes educator from outside of the school district before they assume responsibility for the care of the child. Please ask your school nurse if you would like more information about PDAs.
Think about extracurricular activities:
After school, overnight, and off-campus activities require additional planning. Please contact your school nurse several weeks in advance of these activities. For younger students, parents or adult family members are encouraged to chaperone field trips and overnight camp experiences if possible. Please note that you will need time to complete volunteer paperwork.
Create and update the plan:
Your school nurse will consider all of these things in creating a school plan. Our aim is to provide safe diabetes care, while encouraging progressive independence. By late middle school or high school, we hope that students will be able to manage their health needs with minimal disruption to the school day, and participate in all extracurricular activities safely without parents present.
Every spring, we will send you a packet of paperwork to get your health plan and doctor’s orders updated for the following school year. All paperwork must be submitted at least 2 weeks before the first day of school in order to ensure your child may attend without delay.
Please contact your school nurse at any time to update your child’s health plan.
Deliver required paperwork and supplies:
By WA State law, all students must have the following items at school before they are allowed to start in the fall:
Doctor's orders for diabetic care and medications (these usually come from Children's) - signed by the doctor and the parent.
Rescue medication - Glucagon (nasal spray formulation preferred)
Meeting with the nurse to update the health plan.
Other necessary supplies:
Extra insulin,
Extra snacks and low blood sugar treatments as determined with your school nurse,
Extra blood glucose testing supplies, insulin dosing supplies, ketone testing supplies,
Disaster kit - 3 day supply of food for your student in case of an extended emergency situation such as earthquake or lockdown.
Middle and High School students are required to carry a small kit containing enough snacks & supplies to perform independent care for several hours in case of emergency, field trips, or athletic events after school.
Classroom Accommodations
Once your child's IHP is complete, your school nurse will share that plan with teachers, and other school staff who work directly with your student. Our MVSD staff are trained in keeping health information confidential.
Common classroom accommodations for students with diabetes are:
water bottle available at all times,
unrestricted bathroom privileges,
perform care, eat snacks in the classroom,
cell phone available at all times,
unrestricted health room visits,
postpone testing when blood glucose is outside of normal range,
if the student is not feeling well, always send to the health room accompanied by another person - do not leave the unwell student alone.
All school staff receive basic diabetes training every fall. In addition, for staff who will be in direct contact with your student , we provide training appropriate to the student's needs.
Additional planning is required for after hours, off campus, and overnight activities. Please notify your nurse several weeks in advance.
How Can I Tell if My Child has Diabetes?
Warning signs of insulin-dependent diabetes often appear suddenly and may include:
Drowsiness or lethargy
Extreme thirst
Frequent urination
Fruity odor on the breath
Increased appetite
Heavy or labored breathing
Sudden weight loss
Sudden vision changes
Sugar in the urine
Stupor or unconsciousness
If you see any of these signs in your child, please seek medical care right away.
For more information on diabetes in children, please visit JDRF.org
Links to more Information:
Seattle Children's Endocrinology & Diabetes
Juvenile Diabetes Research Fund - a fantastic resource for kids, adults and families
Living with Type 1 Diabetes - included resources for insurance and school
Connect T1D - Activities, summer camps, community building for kids, teens, adults & families.