Knowledge of asthma and anaphylaxis among teachers in Spanish schools

Allergic diseases affect 15-20% of the paediatric population in the industrialised world. Most educational centres in Spain do not have health professionals among their staff, and the teachers are in charge of child care in school. The advisability of specific training of the teaching staff should be considered, with the introduction of concrete intervention plans in the event of life-threatening emergencies in schools.

Evaluation of the training needs constitutes the first step in planning an educational project. In this regard, the Health Education Group of the Spanish Society of Clinical Immunology, Allergology and Paediatric Asthma (Grupo de Educación Sanitaria de la Sociedad Española de Inmunología Clínica, Alergología y Asma Pediátrica [SEICAAP]) assessed the knowledge of teachers in five Spanish Autonomous Communities, using a self-administered questionnaire specifically developed for this study. The data obtained were analysed using the SPSS statistical package.

A total of 2479 teachers completed the questionnaire. Most of them claimed to know what asthma is, and almost one half considered that they would know how to act in the event of an asthma attack. This proportion was higher among physical education teachers. Most would not know how to act in the case of anaphylaxis or be able to administer the required medication. In general, the teachers expressed interest in receiving training and in having an interventional protocol applicable to situations of this kind.

It is important to know what the training requirements are in order to develop plans for intervention in the event of an emergency in school. Teachers admit a lack of knowledge on how to deal with these disorders, but express a wish to receive training.