A suburban school has apologized after a teen girl with a severe peanut allergy was mistakenly exposed to peanuts while at school, but the girl and her family say that wasn’t the only problem with what happened that day.
According to Lia Sommer and her family, instead of giving the teen her required Epi-Pen, the school’s nurse gave the girl Benadryl.
Sommer has been dealing with a severe peanut allergy since first being diagnosed as a baby. During her second week of school at Hersey High in Arlington Heights, she was inadvertently exposed to peanuts when she ate a sandwich sold at the school cafeteria.
“I took a bite and I could feel my throat closing up a little bit,” 15-year-old Sommer said.
Sommer said she knew the exposure had started an allergic reaction that could turn fatal, so she visited her school’s nurse.
“She immediately knew something was wrong and we describe it as a feeling of dread,” said her mother Lonnie Sommer.
But instead of giving Lia Sommer the Epi-Pen shot she needed, both Sommer and her mother says the nurse gave her Benadryl.
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“She recommended that I take some Benadryl and then just wait and see but I told her that I’ve had these symptoms before, I need to take my Epi-Pen immediately,” Lia Sommer said.
That’s when Lia Sommer said she called her mom from the nurse’s office.
“I said, ‘Have you given my daughter an Epi-Pen?’” Lonnie Sommer said. “Have you called 911? She said, ‘No,’ and I told her to do that immediately.”
While the district acknowledged an error was made in the ingredients of the sandwich, but said in a statement that the nurse “acted professionally” and “consistent with district protocols.”
“The Food and Nutrition Services Department substituted peanuts for pine nuts in the pesto sauce and did not inform our students and staff of that change, which is inconsistent with district protocols,” the statement read. “The student presented mild symptoms of a potential allergic reaction. The nurse contacted the parent and an EpiPen was administered. The school nurse acted professionally and, consistent with district protocols called 911, which happens whenever an EpiPen is administered. We apologize to the family and are working to improve our protocols regarding allergies and food in the Food and Nutrition Services Department.”
Lonnie Sommer said the district apologized for what happened and even promised to pay for the medical bills. But Sommer says things need to change in the district, so the incident doesn’t happen again.
“There was so many things that had gone wrong in one situation with one child,” Sommer said. “She was able to, in a time of panic, even though she looked calm, she was able to advocate for herself and do the right thing.”
