A new starter at work has just warned us she has a nut allergy. Even from smelling them or touching a piece of paper passed to her by someone else who’s eaten nuts…

She has an Epipen which she can use so should be ok if the worst happens. Quite a few of the team, including me, do eat bags of mixed nuts & dried fruit.

I’m a trained first aider but have never administered an Epipen. From what she said I should simply stab her in the leg with it, but is there anything else I need to know if she needs some help?

My daughter has to carry an Epipen for a nut allergy (thankfully haven’t had to use it yet) and has done for the past 8 years.

Your New Starter’s Dr’s surgery will be able to lend her (and you) a dummy one without a needle or dose in it to practice with so you can get the feel for it.

I think whoever does your 1st Aid training will also probably be able to help with this.

EDIT

The instrustions that are printes on the side of the pen are very good. Above all, if you have to use it DON’T PANIC!!

Even from smelling them or touching a piece of paper passed to her by someone else who’s eaten nuts…Quite a few of the team, including me, do eat bags of mixed nuts & dried fruit.

I can see the epipen getting a fair bit of use if she’s that sensitive and sharing an office space/kitchen/toilets with nut eaters.

As far as it goes*, YOU shouldn’t be administering it, only helping her to.
FWIW, in my limited experience they’re a case of wrap their hand around it, thumb on top, remove the safety cap and either whap firmly into the thigh for the impact to trigger or whap in and use their thumb to press the trigger button on top

*nb: That’s the legal version anyway. As a first aider you’re not trained to administer medication. I’ve ended up ‘helping them administer it’ twice.

She has an allergic reaction to the smell of nuts?

Has she actually got allergies or is she a drama llama who doesn’t like nuts? Make her play Russian Roulette with a bag of Revels.

There are instructions on the side but you should know that should should lie her down and call an ambulance if you need to use it.

Pull off the grey cap, push the BLACK end hard into the outside of her thigh and press hard, hold for 10 secs. Its actually quite hard to activate, you need to press hard. If you can’t get a trainer pen you can ask that she gives you her old pens when they expire so you can have a go on something like an orange.

If she is that allergic you would be most helpful by suggesting that you have a nut free office. you might get nuts on the door handles or in the air con.

Most importantly, do not get it the wrong way round. In their excitement keeno first aiders have managed to inject their own thumbs, which if not treated can make your thumb fall off. 😮

Ask her to show you? Radical suggestion I know but there you go. What Pyro says is however technically correct as far as I can remember from my first aid training.

Its the only way to be sure. Prop the fire escape stair doors open for added fun.

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9GYruyl9_j8&feature=related[/video]

squirt it at her face then rub is in whilst screaming “BE HEALED!!! DEVIL BE GONE!”

that applies to epipens and sex.

In their excitement keeno first aiders have managed to inject their own thumbs,

Or in the case of a mate of mine, jab themselves in the thigh with what they thought was a dummy pen, which wasn’t. Sky-high heart rate and a serious whang-on, apparently.

in my limited experience they’re a case of wrap their hand around it, thumb on top, remove the safety cap and either whap firmly into the thigh for the impact to trigger or whap in and use their thumb to press the trigger button on top

I don’t think there’s a trigger. Once you remove the cap it is live.

You may not have to do it, but you would be helpful finding it for her in her bag, reminding her to lie down or just calling an ambulance when she realises she left her epipen at home….

Actually, the most important thing you could do is go nut free. It’s such a ball ache asking people not to eat nuts, its better if it came from someone else.

Re-iterate what evh22 said, the BLACK end is the business end.

We went to the the GPs surgery recently to get a lesson from the practice nurse on how to use one for MrsDonald’s recently developed bee-sting allergy. The nurse took the safety cap off, put her thumb over the black end and tapped the pen into an orange. She then ran from the room with an epi-pen dangling from her thumb!

In my opinion the user interface is not good enough for something designed to be used by a non-preofessional in an emergency. The stabby end should be painted in black and yellow stripes and there should be arrows on the body of the pen indicating direction of use.

If she is that allergic you would be most helpful by suggesting that you have a nut free office

+1

The stabby end should be painted in black and yellow stripes

Is that some kind of sick joke at the expense of bee sting allergy sufferers?

you would be most helpful by suggesting that you have a nut free office

It’s too late I think, they’ve already hired her.

Is that some kind of sick joke at the expense of bee sting allergy sufferers?

Nature’s warning colours, innit.

It’s too late I think, they’ve already hired her.

bravo!

Pyro, that’s properly made me giggle in the office that has 😀

pyro – As far as it goes*, YOU shouldn’t be administering it, only helping her to.
…..
*nb: That’s the legal version anyway. As a first aider you’re not trained to administer medication. I’ve ended up ‘helping them administer it’ twice.

That I believe is actually an urban myth propagated by ill-informed first aid trainers. See here: http://www.realfirstaid.co.uk/use-of-epi-pens/
http://www.hse.gov.uk/firstaid/faqs.htm#tablets
http://www.resus.org.uk/pages/faqana.htm (item 8)

Your office should have a ‘first aid risk assessment’ which identifies how many first aiders you need along with any specialist training they might need. That should really be reviewed in light of the new risk profile of your employees and training arranged for those who might need to assist your colleague.

As has been said above, you should not be doing the administering. You may be able to help her with it if she’s having trouble though.

The morphine styrettes issued in theatre have the same colour scheme. People have, apparently, ended up with a nice pierced thumb when trying to administer morphine. Read the instructions, follow the instructions.

Get some black yellow danger tape and corden off her desk. Place large signs around which say “NUT WARNING” in red. Get some of these and place them in a square round her desk…

As a first aider the adrenalin pen isn’t really for them, Its for you. Having far too much adrenalin in your system helps you react fast make important life dependant decisions. True.

“Medicines legislation restricts the administration of injectable medicines. Unless self- administered, they may only be administered by or in accordance with the instructions of a doctor (eg by a nurse). However, in the case of adrenaline there is an exemption to this restriction, which means in an emergency a layperson is permitted to administer it by injection for the purpose of saving life. The use of an Epipen to treat anaphylactic shock falls into this category. Therefore, first-aiders may administer an Epipen if they are dealing with a life-threatening emergency involving a casualty who has been prescribed and is in possession of an Epipen, and where the first-aider is trained to use it.” HSE.

send off for one of these ?

Pyro – Member
Sky-high heart rate and a serious whang-on, apparently.

😆