22nd-29th April 2023

Communication between school personnel, parents and students diagnosed with primary immunodeficiency diseases is of the utmost importance. Along with the parents, the school should identify and agree to the necessary steps to take to ensure a positive school experience for the child.

The following materials outline suggestions that school staff can use to learn about the child’s particular primary immunodeficiency disease and needs.

Below you can find some useful tools to guide the releatioship between teachers and their PID affected pupils.

  • IDF School Guide Information about Students with Primary Immunodeficiency Diseases – This guide is a valuable reference for parents and school personnel, including administrators, teachers and nurses. It contains key medical points about primary immunodeficiency diseases and associated special needs, legal rights of children with chronic disease and resource referrals. 
  • Our Immune System – This storybook educates children about primary immunodeficiency diseases through delightful, eye-catching illustrations. The characters explain how the immune system works and describe the treatments for pediatric patients. It is also available in Spanish.
  • THINK ZEBRA! is the awareness program of IDF, the national patient organization in the U.S. for those living with primary immunodeficiency diseases. In medical school, many doctors learn the saying, “when you hear hoof beats, think horses, not zebras”, and are taught to focus on the likeliest possibilities when making a diagnosis, not the unusual ones. However, sometimes physicians need to look for a zebra. Patients with primary immunodeficiency diseases are the zebras of the medical world. 

Schools Toolkit

Along with the parents, the school should identify and agree to the necessary steps to take to ensure a positive school experience for the child. The following materials outline suggestions that school staff can use to learn about the child’s particular primary immunodeficiency disease and needs.

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