Meet the First Aid Team

Pictured below is the ENPS First Aid Office Team. If your child is unwell or has an injury which requires further medical attention and needs to be collected from school, you will receive a call from Kiera, Emma, Teresa or Darcy.

(please scroll across to view entire team)

For all other illnesses/injuries requiring assessment and treatment in first aid, you will receive timely Compass notifications/emails from our First Aid Office Team, please ensure you have the Compass App downloaded to your phone with notifications turned on and ensure your contact details (email and phone) remain up to date with the office.

Anaphylaxis – Risk Minimisation Strategies

Anaphylaxis is a severe, rapidly progressive allergic reaction that is potentially life threatening. At Essendon North Primary School (ENPS) we are dedicated to being an ‘Anaphylaxis Aware’ school. We will continue to support our growing community in developing an understanding of the importance in minimising risks for our students who are anaphylactic or have allergies.

We have students in every year level at ENPS who are at risk of anaphylaxis, and for these children, it’s a life-threatening condition. Ensuring the safety and wellbeing of our anaphylactic students remains a joint obligation of the school and parents/carers. Reducing the risk of an anaphylactic incident at ENPS is a community wide responsibility.

We currently have over fifty students at ENPS who are allergic to a variety of foods, and we ask that we all work together to minimise risks. Following the Department of Education Anaphylaxis Guidelines set out under the Education and Training Reform Act (2006) and Ministerial Order 706, we do not ban food products at ENPS, but instead encourage responsible eating and food allergy awareness. Common Allergens at ENPS include eggs, sesame, kiwi fruit, nuts (including but not limited to: peanuts, pine nuts, cashews, hazelnuts, coconut, pecans, pistachios, almonds, walnuts, macadamias, brazil nuts and other tree nuts), prawns, fish, shellfish, salmon, legumes, seafood, cow's milk, dairy and even animal hair. We strongly recommend and encourage avoiding these food products where possible to minimise risk. Please remind your child about these allergens, helping us reinforce the message shared by their class teachers.

All staff receive training in anaphylaxis management and actively promote food allergy awareness across the school. Each classroom displays the following Anaphylaxis Awareness poster, By reminding students of these important points, we aim to work together with our parents/carers to minimise the risk of exposure for affected students and ensure the safety of all students.

Please note that this also includes bringing any homemade items or party bags to school. At ENPS, while we appreciate and celebrate birthdays, we do not have birthday cakes in classes and actively discourage children bringing cakes, homemade items, treats or party bags to school to share with other children due to the potential for anaphylactic/allergic reactions. Please keep these for at home or at parties held outside of school.

To further reduce the possibility of a student suffering from an anaphylactic reaction at school, Essendon North Primary School have put in place the following strategies:

notify families of specific allergies in their child/children’s classroom
students will eat outside of the classrooms and learning spaces where practically possible
staff and students are reminded and encouraged to wash their hands before and after eating
students are not permitted to share food at any time
specific dietary requirements will be outlined on excursion, incursion, special events and camp forms where applicable
garbage bins at school are to remain covered with lids to reduce the risk of attracting insects
gloves will be worn when picking up paper or rubbish in the playground
General Use EpiPens are stored in the first aid room and gymnasium
planning for off-site activities will include risk minimisation strategies for students at risk of anaphylaxis including supervision requirements, appropriate number of trained staff, emergency response procedures and other risk controls appropriate to the activity and students attending.

Important Reminder: if your child has anaphylaxis or allergies, they must have a current medical (ascia) plan (note: a current Asthma Australia Asthma Action Plan is required if your child has asthma). All plans should be updated annually, and parents/carers must provide the necessary medications to be administered in the event of an emergency.

If you have any questions please review the ENPS Anaphylaxis Policy on our website, or contact our School Nurse, Kiera Heasly or Principal, Kate Barletta.

We thank you in advance for your cooperation and support in keeping our students safe.

Action Plans – All Medical Conditions

In accordance with the Department of Education guidelines, all students with a known medical condition should undergo an annual review with their General Practitioner (GP) to review their current medications and management plan strategies.

Parents and carers are reminded that if their child has Anaphylaxis, Allergies, Asthma or another diagnosed medical condition which may require management/administration of medication at school that their child MUST HAVE A CURRENT PLAN and the necessary medication provided to the First Aid office.

Red ASCIA Anaphylaxis Plans can be downloaded below and must be prepared in colour, completed by your GP and have a current photo of your child attached to it.

https://www.allergy.org.au/images/stories/anaphylaxis/2026/ASCIA_Action_Plan_Anaphylaxis_EpiPen_2026.pdf

Green ASCIA Allergic Reaction Plans can be downloaded below and must be prepared in colour, completed by your GP and have a current photo of your child attached to it.

https://www.allergy.org.au/images/stories/anaphylaxis/2026/ASCIA_Action_Plan_Allergic_Reactions_2026.pdf

Blue Asthma Australia School Action Plans can be downloaded below and must be prepared in colour, completed by your GP and have a current photo of your child attached to it.

https://asthma.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/AA2025_Asthma-Action-Plan-First-Aid-Colour-A4_v20.pdf

Orange Allergic Rhinitis (HAY FEVER) Treatment Plan can be downloaded below and must be prepared in colour, completed by your GP or Pharmacist and have a current photo of your child attached to it.

https://www.allergy.org.au/images/pc/ASCIA_Allergic_Rhinitis_Treatment_Plan_2024.pdf

You can find a full list of Medical Action Plans, that meet the schools compliance requirements on our school website's Policies page. (Eczema, Epilepsy, Diabetes, Haemophilia)

Storing Medicine at ENPS and Administration to Your Child

At ENPS, we understand that there will be times when your child will require medicine while at school. Medicines can only be administered at school under the supervision of our First Aid staff and when medical authorisation is provided by a parent. This includes situations where your child is suffering acute symptoms from a mild illness (for example, a headache requiring Panadol or hay fever requiring Zyrtec). Where your child has been ill and is on a scheduled course of prescribed antibiotics or pain relief, these may be left with our First Aid staff for administration. All medicine is to be stored in our First Aid room, not in your child's bag or classroom. Medication must not be kept with the student.

If your child needs to take medication at school for either a regular or short-term period, ALL MEDICINES MUST BE ACCOMPANIED WITH CLEAR INSTRUCTIONS FROM PARENTS/CARERS outlined on an Annual Medication Authority Form (attached below) and returned to the First Aid office along with the medication in its original packaging inclusive of the expiry date. Due to limited storage space, we kindly ask that you get your Pharmacist to label your child’s medication directly on the bottle/inhaler etc so we can dispose of excess packaging.

*As per our school's Asthma Policy, it is noted that students between Years Four to Six may keep their asthma medication with them, as required.

Infectious Diseases Cases - Exclusion from School

Staff at Essendon North Primary School are governed by Public Health and Wellbeing Regulations 2019 (regulation 111). If your child is unwell, Victorian primary schools and children’s services have a responsibility under the Public Health and Wellbeing Regulations 2019 to exclude certain children for periods as specified in the regulations. We are mandated to follow the minimum period of exclusion from primary schools and children’s services.

For your information, the school exclusion table and minimum periods for exclusion may be viewed here.

We thank parents and carers for attending school to collect their child (if advised to do so) in the event of illness and for adhering to our Respect for School Staff policy in conjunction with these mandatory guidelines.

Healthy Food Options – Brain Food

At ENPS, we encourage children to pack healthy food options for their brain food, morning tea and lunch during the school day.

The purpose of brain food is to provide a quick mid-morning snack prior to recess to help keep children focused when learning. We ask that brain food be a simple, easy and mess free snack that students can enjoy while they work. Brain food should be a fruit or vegetable snack where possible that doesn't create more distraction than necessary, mess or require cleaning up. Some great ideas for brain food include cherry tomatoes, veggie sticks, grapes, strawberries, an apple, or banana. We ask that other snacks such as yoghurt or fruit cups (and things alike) are saved for recess or lunch time.

Student Self-Care

We encourage students to be mindful of the warmer weather conditions and strongly advise bringing a water bottle to school each day to ensure they are consuming adequate amounts of fluids as the drinking fountains can only offer students a few sips of water at a time. On hot days students are encouraged to engage in weather-appropriate activities and avoid over-exerting themselves in the yard. Students are encouraged as a first point of call to see their/yard duty teacher if feeling unwell and attend our first aid office as required.

Thank you,

The ENPS First Aid Team

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