Schools have a duty of care to take reasonable steps to keep students safe while they attend school. They meet their duty of care obligations through the actions of their staff. This includes the administration of treatment for hypoglycaemia when a student has a "hypo" at school or during school activities. In the case of a severe hypo and where staff are not trained to administer glucagon, staff will provide a general emergency response, for example, place the child in the coma or recovery position and maintain a clear airway and call an ambulance.
Staff acting in the course of their employment enjoy full legal protection in relation to any personal liability claims. The education authorities are liable for their employees regarding claims for compensation that may be made in the unlikely event of a student suffering injury as a result of an employee's actions in dealing with diabetes. The legal principle involved is called vicarious liability. Essentially this means employers are responsible for what employees do as part of their work.
The only exception will be where the actions of the employee amount to serious and wilful misconduct. Carelessness, inadvertence or a simple mistake does not amount to serious and wilful misconduct.
School staff can access more information from Legal Issues Bulletin No.46 (intranet only).
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