Diana,

Thanks for sharing an experience that is instructive! It’s a little depressing to hear that this resistance to giving the shot is still out there - but it’s much better to be aware that this is the case I feel.

I agree with Laura. I’d call the endo and make sure the endo understands that the endo’s letter was ignored. I’d say the endo will be rather agressive after that.

You did very well giving the shot I think. As it happens I’m an EMT-Basic. I got to talking with a very senior paramedic (one of the guys who trains everyone else) about how to be sure these kids get the shot. The general upshot was that if it’s at all possible, give the shot yourself, prior to the 911 call. There are so many protocols and different approaches out there that he felt - and I tend to agree - that once the kid is entangled in the medical web, it can get out of your hands very quickly.

If my child gets an ambulance ride without me and winds up in the ER where they were not going to give the shot, I’d deny them permission to treat and then give the shot myself. It’s agressive but it’s not a situation in which I have time to tread gently around medical egos.

That’s just my approach. On a positive note, I’ve heard that there is now a question about adrenal insufficiency on (I think) the Colorado Paramedic exam. At least one paramedic I talked to about it started talking right away about how critical the shot is - he didn’t know my daughter had this, and he was saying stuff like "You know, these kids need that shot so bad, they actually train the parents to give it". So I think the word is getting out there.