One day, when Trudy Adams? son, Dylan, was lying down for his afternoon rest period in junior kindergarten, he began convulsing and lost consciousness. Dylan has type 1 diabetes, and this was exactly the kind of crisis his parents feared when they sent him off to school: Dylan?s blood sugar had dropped so low he needed a life-saving injection of a medication called glucagon, which wasn?t on hand, since school personnel had been reluctant to learn how to administer it. Thankfully, Dylan?s dad, who got to school faster than the ambulances, was able to give the shot, and Dylan bounced back.

Adams is one of many parents who worries about their diabetic kid every day. One in every 300 Canadian kids has type 1 diabetes, and according to new survey data released by the Canadian Paediatric Society, the Children?s Hospital of Eastern Ontario, and the Hospital for Sick Children, nearly one-third of Ontario parents whose kids have the condition aren?t confident the school staff can keep their kids safe, and nearly 13 percent have to go to school at least once a week to monitor their child?s care. However, a new online resource for parents and school staff should help prevent near-misses like Dylan?s, while providing peace of mind for the parents of kids with type 1. Intended to ensure kids with the condition can participate fully and safely in all aspects of school life, Diabetes@School features accurate, easy-to-digest lessons on topics like how to recognize ...