It's not all about nuts!
The A word, founded by Emma Manuel and Jacqui McPeake. Together, we are working as advocates for those at risk of anaphylaxis, predominantly in health, education and catering environments.
We recognise that there are many causes of anaphylaxis, and our aim is to raise awareness by campaigning and building a culture of confidence in organisations through our training programmes and advisory services.
Welcome to our site.
OUR CAMPAIGN:
In 2014, legislation changed to allow generic asthma inhalers to be kept in schools for use in an emergency and in 2017, for generic adrenaline auto injectors (AAI) under the same criteria. The A word want to ensure students in University can have access to the same provisions in an emergency. Currently it is not possible for Universities to implement the provision of devices or inhalers without local agreement, which is not always achievable and does not allow for national uniformity. This disparity in provision does not give reassurances to those at risk, or the staff responsible for supporting them.
Jacqui and Emma are passionate about allergy care and have been liaising with The Anaphylaxis Campaign and other stakeholders to pursue a change in the law through the Department of Health. We believe that all educational establishments should have the option to stock generic adrenaline auto injectors, as schools do.
Research has shown that teenagers and young adults are the most vulnerable to serious reactions for a variety of reasons and furthermore, that 44% do not always take their prescribed devices with them. Deaths occur and whilst these may not be completely avoided, by rapid access to generic adrenaline autoinjectors lives can be saved.
Our recent fundraising event:
The A word, alongside the Cambridge College Nurse Association, were thrilled to have hosted a fundraising dinner to raise funds for The Anaphylaxis Campaign to help with our initiative to review the law.
The dinner coincided with 25 years of The Anaphylaxis Campaign and we were pleased to be able to welcome their CEO Lynne Regent and other staff members to Cambridge, to celebrate their achievements and help raise funds for this charity.
Held in the historic 16th century setting of St John's College formal dining hall located in Cambridge city centre, on the evening of Saturday 8th June, 2019 we had three expert speakers, entertainment and were thrilled to raise over £1700.
Keep an eye on our blog for further updates on the ongoing initiative and what else members of theaword are up to!
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