Call for inclusion of diabetic kids in schools
On World Diabetes Day, parents talk of challenges
As Dubai marks World Diabetes Day on November 14, parents of children diagnosed with Type I diabetes called for greater inclusion of these young patients in schools across the UAE.
Discussing the challenges they face in helping their children manage the disease, they said lack of awareness about the condition among the general public is the main reason why children with Type 1 Diabetes feel isolated.
Type I diabetes is an auto immune disorder affecting young children whose body makes little or no insulin.
Pained by the lack of awareness surrounding Type 1 diabetes, Dubai-based Pamela Durant, whose son was diagnosed with diabetes at 20 months, gave up her highly successful career in health care management to start her own diabetes awareness company Diapoint to educate the community. Bringing up her son, now 11, she has been a hands on mother volunteering to accompany the school on field trips to keep an eye on her child, but she says not all kids are fortunate enough to get this inclusion.
“Children with Type I diabetes require to have their blood sugar monitored regularly to avoid high or low blood sugar episodes. Sometimes, a school understands the severity of what could happen, or the care required, it may be frightening for them, or may seem like too much of a liability.”
Elsewhere, Louis Kiernander, a mother of two, recently faced a terrible dilemma when her 11-year-old son Jack had to go on a school trip in a new secondary school he had recently shifted to. Kiernander said: There are 11 diabetics in the secondary section and my son is the youngest. While the school tries to be supportive, challenges remain. As per law, only a certified nurse is allowed to give a life-saving injection in case of hypoglycaemia. So my son was asked not to go on the regular school trip. He was segregated and felt ostracised.
“I was asked to sign a form saying that if my son faced an emergency in those three days, no one would be giving him a life-saving injection. It was a horrible situation and felt like signing a death warrant.”
Dr Amani Osman, paediatric diabetologist with Imperial College of London Diabetes Centre at Al Ain, who handles several cases remarked that every child had a right to be treated well in school. “This is a psychosocial element and I constantly advise parents and schools that one must not set boundaries for a child because of his diabetes. No child should be denied the right to live a normal life, play sports and go on field trips or be treated any differently because of their condition.”