Families of young children with type 1 diabetes in Western Australia say a school funding rule leaves pupils as young as eight to manage the condition with little help, the Sydney Morning Herald reports.
Individual disability allocation funding, which schools can use to hire education assistants, is provided automatically only until Year 2. After that, schools and parents must apply case by case, on the assumption that pupils can now look after themselves.
The paper spoke to the mother of Declan Marshall, a pupil at Capel Primary School diagnosed at five, who said losing the support meant more unstable blood sugar and less time learning. She said many schools did not know an extension was possible, and that getting a specialist's supporting letter took four weeks. Badly managed insulin levels can cause seizures or a life-threatening emergency.
Source: Sydney Morning Herald
