Community steps up to learn life-saving injection protocol for local boy

November 25, 2015
Charlea Mills
Last week, a special class was held at Southwest, but it wasn’t a class for students. Alli Gebhardt, mother of four children and two grandchildren in the district, and her daughter-in-law Kendra Outhouse taught a special class to faculty and staff as well as interested people from the community who were willing to learn how to give her son a life-saving injection.
Kaleb Outhouse, 8, has an unusual disorder called adrenal insufficiency, which means his body cannot produce cortisol. Unlike other hormone-related disorders, the lack of cortisol can mean death in a matter of minutes if Kaleb isn’t given an injection any time he experiences stress. Stress can be a simple injury, emotional stress or an illness. Without cortisol being released, the body goes into shock and eventually shuts down.
After Kaleb was diagnosed, his mother, Alli, has fought to educate everyone from teachers and staff to paramedics and first responders on what to do if Kaleb goes into shock. While he is given daily medication to help with the disorder, in the event of trauma, he needs to receive a special steroid injection to keep his body from going into shock.
While at first Gebhardt was met with some resistance, now more people are willing to learn. She said, “I understand why people don’t want to give it, it is a scary thing, but if he needs it, it can mean his life.”
At the special class, 13 people came to learn how to give the shot in the case of an emergency. “Before, only the nurse knew how to give his shot, but now we will have more people who can administer it if he’s in need.”
Gebhardt reached out to elementary principal Jeff Payne to see if the school would be willing to facilitate the learning session. Gebhardt said, “Mr. Payne has been really interested in learning about it, and I really appreciate that.” Payne was one of the attendees at the Friday night class.
Elementary principal Payne said, “Kaleb is one of our kids and the last thing we want is to have anything of course go on. But we all need to be prepared for what does happen, and worst case scenario, if no one else is available to do it, I want to have the skills to be able to help. I really wanted to know what to do, so I can feel confident in providing the aid that he needs to get him through it.”
Gebhardt said, “Even some of the teachers who are afraid of it wanted to take the class because they know how important it is.”
Part of the importance of training events like this is because Kaleb’s injection is not a one-step process. Gebhardt said, “It would be great if this were like an epi-pen, but it’s not. It’s such a potent steroid that it doesn’t take very much to save him.” To give Kaleb the injection, a seal has to be broken to mix the steroid, then a separate syringe is used to draw up the solution. On top of that, his vial of medication needs to be kept at room temperature, which means it can’t be kept in a car.
Gebhardt said, “There is always one of his packs near him. I carry one, there is one in the nurse’s station, his sister carries one. He always has it close, it just is a matter of someone knowing how to do it.”
Before this, nurse Gayla Treadwell was the only one who knew how to give Kaleb’s injection. Gebhardt said, “Gayla really stepped up and learned a lot about Kaleb’s condition when we found out, but if she wasn’t there, no one would be able to do it.”
Multiple faculty and staff attended the class, as well as a few first responders from the Washburn area. Gebhardt said, “I just really appreciate everyone who came.”
She continued, “If you give him the shot and he doesn’t need it, it doesn’t hurt him. But if he needs it, you’re going to save his life. I just want people to understand that.”
Charlea Mills
Last week, a special class was held at Southwest, but it wasn’t a class for students. Alli Gebhardt, mother of four children and two grandchildren in the district, and her daughter-in-law Kendra Outhouse taught a special class to faculty and staff as well as interested people from the community who were willing to learn how to give her son a life-saving injection.
Kaleb Outhouse, 8, has an unusual disorder called adrenal insufficiency, which means his body cannot produce cortisol. Unlike other hormone-related disorders, the lack of cortisol can mean death in a matter of minutes if Kaleb isn’t given an injection any time he experiences stress. Stress can be a simple injury, emotional stress or an illness. Without cortisol being released, the body goes into shock and eventually shuts down.
After Kaleb was diagnosed, his mother, Alli, has fought to educate everyone from teachers and staff to paramedics and first responders on what to do if Kaleb goes into shock. While he is given daily medication to help with the disorder, in the event of trauma, he needs to receive a special steroid injection to keep his body from going into shock.
While at first Gebhardt was met with some resistance, now more people are willing to learn. She said, “I understand why people don’t want to give it, it is a scary thing, but if he needs it, it can mean his life.”
At the special class, 13 people came to learn how to give the shot in the case of an emergency. “Before, only the nurse knew how to give his shot, but now we will have more people who can administer it if he’s in need.”
Gebhardt reached out to elementary principal Jeff Payne to see if the school would be willing to facilitate the learning session. Gebhardt said, “Mr. Payne has been really interested in learning about it, and I really appreciate that.” Payne was one of the attendees at the Friday night class.
Elementary principal Payne said, “Kaleb is one of our kids and the last thing we want is to have anything of course go on. But we all need to be prepared for what does happen, and worst case scenario, if no one else is available to do it, I want to have the skills to be able to help. I really wanted to know what to do, so I can feel confident in providing the aid that he needs to get him through it.”
Gebhardt said, “Even some of the teachers who are afraid of it wanted to take the class because they know how important it is.”
Part of the importance of training events like this is because Kaleb’s injection is not a one-step process. Gebhardt said, “It would be great if this were like an epi-pen, but it’s not. It’s such a potent steroid that it doesn’t take very much to save him.” To give Kaleb the injection, a seal has to be broken to mix the steroid, then a separate syringe is used to draw up the solution. On top of that, his vial of medication needs to be kept at room temperature, which means it can’t be kept in a car.
Gebhardt said, “There is always one of his packs near him. I carry one, there is one in the nurse’s station, his sister carries one. He always has it close, it just is a matter of someone knowing how to do it.”
Before this, nurse Gayla Treadwell was the only one who knew how to give Kaleb’s injection. Gebhardt said, “Gayla really stepped up and learned a lot about Kaleb’s condition when we found out, but if she wasn’t there, no one would be able to do it.”
Multiple faculty and staff attended the class, as well as a few first responders from the Washburn area. Gebhardt said, “I just really appreciate everyone who came.”
She continued, “If you give him the shot and he doesn’t need it, it doesn’t hurt him. But if he needs it, you’re going to save his life. I just want people to understand that.”