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No Wait To Inhale

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By KLINT LOWRY The Suncoast News

The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 7, 2008

BAYONET POINT - Gianna Colucci was excited about starting middle school this year. When she and her mom, Linda, went to Bayonet Point Middle School to get her schedule and supply list, however, the wind was suddenly taken out of her sails.

Gianna has asthma, and they were confounded when a school worker told them she could not carry her inhaler with her. Instead, the breathing medicine dispenser had to be kept at the school nurse's office.

If she carried it with her on school grounds and got caught, she'd be suspended.

Linda explained Gianna had a note from her doctor and had been allowed to carry her inhaler in elementary school. Nope, they were told, she can't carry it with her, even if she has a doctor's note.

Rather than press the issue then and there, they left. Later, Linda told her husband, Jim, who was more willing to press the issue.

"I've got a good kid," he said. "She's never been in trouble."

Jim Colucci wrote a letter describing the situation as his family knew it and sent it to area newspapers. One paper ran the letter, drawing responses that supported Jim's opinion. This just wasn't right, one of the letters declared.

In fact, it wasn't right. The information Angie and Gianna had been given was incorrect.

"I wish he had called this office," said Lisa Kern, the school district's school nurse on assignment and acting supervisor of student services for health. "A simple call would have prevented any misunderstanding."

From the district's standpoint, there is no question of whether asthmatic students can carry an inhaler on campus, Kern said, because state law says they can.

Florida Statute 1002.20, Section 3, also specifies that a student at risk for potentially life-threatening allergic reactions can have epinephrine auto-injectors on school grounds with the permission of parents and a physician.

Sold under brand names such as EpiPen and Twinject, the devices deliver a measured dose of epinephrine. Also known as adrenalin, the hormone can reverse the potentially fatal breathing difficulty and sudden blood pressure drop people in anaphylactic shock experience.

The Pasco school district has a form for students who need to carry inhalers or auto-injectors, Kern said. Parents, doctor and student all sign it, and it goes into the district's records.

The entire process can be done by fax, Kern said. The doctor can verify the need for the inhaler or epinephrine pen on a prescription sheet.

There are many other conditions that might require a student to keep medication close at hand. In those instances, Kern said, a similar explanation of the situation and authorization from the parents and physician would suffice.

Otherwise, Kern noted, students and parents should be aware that for the most part, students are not allowed to carry either prescription or over-the-counter medication at school. This is to stave off the chance that a student's medication could accidentally or intentionally end up in the wrong hands.

For students who must take prescription medicines during the school day, the medication must be kept in the school nurse's office and taken there.

The rules for medication at school are described in the student handbook, Kern said, and if parents are told something that doesn't match what's written they should contact the school district's Student Services Department.

As it turned out, the Colucci family got satisfaction at the school level. By the time they called Bayonet Point Middle School a few days later, Principal Michael Asbell had seen the letter in the paper, and he assured them Gianna could carry her inhaler as she had before.

"I think the most important thing for any parent," Asbell said, "if something is told to you that you don't agree with, come to the principal or one of the vice principals."

Nine times out of 10, he said, a quick meeting is all it takes to resolve a problem.

"I was impressed with how quickly he handled it," Jim Colucci said, adding that he wasn't looking to make any trouble.

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