Tuesday, February 03 2009
Concern about the provision of care for diabetic school children has compelled MP Hugo Swire to write to every primary and secondary school in East Devon.
Hugo Swire wrote to the schools after being informed of research by charity Diabetes UK that fifty-two percent of schools in England have children with diabetes - and he wants to ensure adequate support was provided for these students.
He said: "Of these schools, forty-two percent do not have a policy advising staff to supervise or carry out blood glucose monitoring. In most of these cases, if children are unable to inject themselves, parents have to go in to administer insulin. This can obviously be disruptive for families who must constantly leave work to ensure their child's safety and health."
He added Diabetes UK say that the best support for children with diabetes or other long term diseases was for the schools to have a partnership between the school, the Primary Care Trust, as well as the Local Authority.
And Hugo added, "I would ask that you ensure that the medicine policies at your school are supported by both of these institutions," he said in the letter. "Diabetes is a life-long condition that can have serious complications later in life."