Medical conditions: Asthma policy and procedure

Early Learning Victoria is committed to the safety, health and wellbeing of children in its care, including children with asthma. We are committed to providing all staff with the information, training and skills they need to support children with asthma and respond effectively in an emergency.

1. Scope

This policy applies to children, families, staff, management and visitors of Early Learning Victoria centres. This includes volunteers, students on placement and contractors or labour hire employees of Early Learning Victoria.

2. Policy statement

This policy describes procedures to be implemented at Early Learning Victoria centres to:

ensure that staff respond appropriately to asthma emergencies by following the child’s Asthma Action Plan
raise awareness of asthma and appropriate management among all staff through education and policy implementation
work with parents or guardians of children with asthma in understanding risks, developing and implementing an individualised Asthma Action Plan, Risk Minimisation Plan and Communication Plan to support the child and help keep them safe.

This policy should be read in conjunction with:

Administering medication policy and procedure
Administration of first aid policy and procedure
Management of medical conditions policy and procedure
Medications: anaphylaxis and allergies policy and procedure
Incident, injury, trauma and illness policy.

2.1 Requirements

Under the Education and Care Services National Law Act 2010 and Education and Care Services National Regulations 2011, Early Learning Victoria must ensure:

that this policy is adhered to and reviewed annually
that all staff, families, contractors, volunteers and students are provided with a copy of this policy and have read and understood it
families are aware of expectations for their role in acquiring an Asthma Action Plan completed by the child’s medical practitioner.

This policy has been informed by the Asthma Australia guidelines and Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy (ASCIA), the peak professional body of clinical immunology and allergy in Australia and New Zealand.

2.2 Background and information

Asthma is a serious condition that causes a person’s airways to become inflamed or swollen when exposed to a trigger. Signs and symptoms of asthma may include difficulty breathing, shortness of breath, chest tightness and wheezing. There are multiple types of asthma, including allergic asthma, thunderstorm asthma, exercise-induced asthma and childhood asthma. Understanding asthma types and triggers is an effective strategy in managing asthma symptoms.

Asthma symptoms in children can be more difficult to detect, as young children may not be able to identify or communicate symptoms of asthma. Children may show signs of asthma through changes in how they breathe, extended periods of breathlessness after play, or complaints of a sore chest or stomach.

There are 3 types of medications used to treat asthma:

preventers – to reduce the presentation of symptoms
relievers – to treat symptoms caused by asthma triggers
add on medicines – to manage ongoing symptoms or severe asthma.

Reliever medication comes in a blue/grey metered dose inhaler and is always used in an asthma emergency.

3. Actions and procedures

3.1 Responsibilities of families

Families are responsible for:

informing staff, either on enrolment or on initial diagnosis, of their child’s asthma
providing a completed enrolment form for their child that includes medical information and written authorisations for medical treatment and ambulance transportation
providing Early Learning Victoria with an Asthma Action Plan, signed by a registered medical practitioner and written consent to use medication prescribed in line with the action plan
working with the nominated supervisor to develop an individualised Risk Minimisation Plan for their child before they begin orientation
providing the nominated supervisor with an adequate supply of medication and equipment to treat their child’s asthma, including reliever medication, a spacer and child’s face mask (if necessary).

3.2 Responsibilities of staff

Individualised Asthma Action Plans

Individualised Asthma Action Plans must be attained by the nominated supervisor to document a child’s asthma and management of the asthma, including what to do when the child’s asthma worsens and the treatment to be administered in an emergency. The plan must be agreed to and signed by the child’s medical practitioner and must be reviewed annually or sooner if the child’s allergies change.

Risk Minimisation Plan

It is important to consult with families to agree on strategies for reducing a child’s susceptibility to an asthma emergency. This should be done as part of developing the child’s individualised Asthma Action Plan.

For children known to experience asthma, the nominated supervisor, in partnership with the parent or guardian, must develop an asthma Risk Minimisation Plan (see Attachment). The Risk Minimisation Plan should be developed for day-to-day asthma management at the centre and for excursions, as the risks are different. The Risk Minimisation Plan should be updated in accordance with changes to the child’s Asthma Action Plan.

For all children, including those not previously diagnosed with asthma, staff should monitor weather and pollen conditions and bring children inside before, during and after thunderstorms. This also includes when planning or on excursions.

Communication Plan

The nominated supervisor is responsible for ensuring that a Communication Plan is developed to provide information to all centre staff, volunteers, students and families about asthma and this policy (see Attachment). The Communication Plan must include strategies for advising staff, volunteers, students and families about how to respond to asthma in children in various environments, including during excursions. Any changes to a child’s Asthma Action Plan and Risk Minimisation Plan will be updated in the Communication Plan.

Emergency response

An asthma emergency can occur suddenly or develop over hours and up to multiple days. A person experiencing an asthma emergency will show symptoms that are worse than usual after asthma medication is administered or may not be responding to their prescribed asthma medication.

It is important that first aid is administered immediately in response to symptoms of an asthma flare up, regardless of the severity. First aid must be administered following the child’s Asthma Action Plan and the asthma first aid procedure.

For children not previously identified as diagnosed with asthma who present symptoms, staff should follow the asthma first aid procedure. If a child has a known allergy or anaphylaxis and presents with difficulty breathing, always use the adrenaline injector before using the reliever medication (see the Medications: anaphylaxis and allergies policy and procedure).

Incident reporting

If a child has an asthma emergency, Early Learning Victoria centre staff will complete an incident report (see the Incident, injury, trauma and illness policy). The nominated supervisor will work with Early Learning Victoria central office to:

notify the Regulatory Authority of serious incidents online through the NQA IT System (NQAITS), if required
record the incident appropriately (using, for example, the Incident, injury, trauma and illness record or EduSafe Plus for staff-related incidents).

Staff will be offered a debrief after each incident. An emergency can cause distress not only for the child but for staff and other children, especially if the event was life-threatening.

Review

The child’s individualised Asthma Action Plan will be reviewed to identify if further risk minimisation strategies are needed, or if some strategies need to be adapted. It is important to understand what could have been done differently to learn from each incident and to put plans in place to help prevent the same accident from happening again.

Educators are responsible for:
- ensuring families have access to this policy
- meeting requirements in relation to emergency asthma management training
- adhering to the individualised Asthma Action Plans, Risk Minimisation Plans and Communication Plans for each child with asthma
- ensuring awareness of and can readily identify each child diagnosed with asthma
- ensuring that children with asthma are not discriminated against for their medical conditions and may engage fully in the centre program
- communicating any concerns to parents or guardians if their child’s asthma is limiting their ability to participate fully in the centre program
- maintaining current approved first aid qualifications
- storing and administering prescribed asthma medication in accordance with the child’s Asthma Action Plan and the Administering medication policy and procedure
- ensuring that families have provided written authorisation before children attend excursions (see Excursions, incursions and regular outings policy and procedure)
- following appropriate procedures set out in the Incident, injury, trauma and illness policy if a child is ill, or is involved in a medical emergency or an incident at the centre
- ensuring the first aid kit, asthma medication and Asthma Action Plans are kept together in a kit and are accessible to staff when children are inside, outside or on excursions.
The nominated supervisor is responsible for:
- ensuring a current Asthma Action Plan for the child, prepared and signed by the child’s medical practitioner, is provided as part of the child’s health information during enrolment and is recorded in the enrolment record for that child
- ensuring that a Risk Minimisation Plan and Communication Plan is developed in consultation with the child’s parents or guardians
- ensuring that all staff members are aware of and able to identify each child diagnosed with asthma
- ensuring that whenever a child with asthma is enrolled at Early Learning Victoria or newly diagnosed with asthma, all staff will be told:
  - the child’s name and room
  - where the child’s prescribed asthma medication and equipment are kept
- ensuring all asthma medication is stored and administered in accordance with the child’s Asthma Action Plan and the Administering medication policy and procedure
- ensuring asthma medication and Asthma Action Plans are taken whenever the child goes to offsite activities, in accordance with the excursion or regular outings plan, and that a Risk Management Plan is completed (see the Excursions, incursions and regular outings policy and procedure)
- ensuring that when medication has been administered to a child in an asthma emergency without authorisation from the parent or authorised nominee, or from a medical practitioner or emergency services, the parent or authorised nominee of the child and emergency services are notified as soon as is practicable
- ensuring all staff are aware of and follow the asthma first aid procedure
- ensuring all staff are aware of the location of the asthma first aid kit and that an asthma first aid kit is taken on excursions
- implementing procedures to avoid exposure to triggers, such as by staying indoors with windows and doors closed during weather associated with a potential thunderstorm asthma event
- ensuring that staff are provided with an opportunity to debrief after each asthma emergency incident
- acting on advice and warnings from the Department of Education’s Security and Emergency Management Division associated with a potential thunderstorm asthma activity, and implementing a communication strategy to inform families
- following appropriate procedures set out in the Incident, injury, trauma and illness policy if a child is ill, or is involved in a medical emergency or an incident at the centre.
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The approved provider is responsible for:
- ensuring adequate provision and maintenance of asthma first aid kits
- establishing robust induction procedures that include the provision of information for implementing practices outlined in this policy
- ensuring that all staff, parents and volunteers are provided with a copy of this policy and have a clear understanding of its procedures and practices
- ensuring all educators’ approved first aid qualifications, anaphylaxis management training and emergency asthma management training are current (see the Staffing overview policy) and documented
- ensuring at least one staff member with current approved emergency asthma management training is on duty at all times
- working with the nominated supervisor to notify the Regulatory Authority of a serious incident using the NQA IT System (see the Incident, injury, trauma and illness policy).

4. Resources

Legislation and standards

Education and Care Services National Law Act 2010
Education and Care Services National Regulations 2011
Health Records Act 2001
National Quality Standard, Quality area 2: Children’s health and safety
Privacy and Data Protection Act 2014
Privacy Act 1988
Public Health and Wellbeing Act 2008
Public Health and Wellbeing Regulations 20019

Administering Medication Policy and Procedure
Administration of First Aid Policy and Procedure
Anti-bias Approach Policy
Duty of Care Policy
Incident, Injury, Trauma and Illness Policy
Infection Control and Immunisation Policy
Management of Medical Conditions Policy and Procedure
Staffing Overview Policy

Training

ACECQA-approved first aid, emergency asthma management and anaphylaxis qualification and training courses can be found on the NQF-approved qualifications list.

Attachment

Attachment: Medical conditions, risk minimisation and communication plan

Definitions

Allergic asthma: Caused by allergens such as pollen, dust, food items and mould.

Asthma Action Plan: A record of information on an individual child’s asthma and its management, including contact details, what to do when the child’s asthma worsens and the treatment to be administered in an emergency.

Asthma emergency: The onset of unstable or deteriorating asthma symptoms requiring immediate treatment with reliever medication.

Asthma first aid kit: Kits should contain:

reliever medication
2 small volume spacer devices
2 compatible children’s face masks (for children under the age of 4)
record form
asthma first aid instruction card.

Asthma Australia recommends that spacers and face masks are for single use only. It is essential to have at least 2 spacers and 2 face masks in each first aid kit, and these should be replaced once used. These used items can be provided to the child or family as a means of suitability.

Asthma triggers: Things that may induce asthma symptoms; for example, pollens, colds, respiratory viruses, dust mites, smoke and exercise. Asthma triggers will vary from child to child.

Childhood asthma: For some, asthma only happens when a child, then seems to disappear. It can, however, come back later in life.

Reliever medication: This comes in a blue/grey metered dose inhaler containing salbutamol, an ingredient used to relax the muscles around the airways to relieve asthma symptoms. This medication is always used in an asthma emergency. Reliever medication is commonly sold by pharmacies as Airomir, Asmol, Ventolin or Zempreon.

Thunderstorm asthma: Mainly caused by allergies to rye grass pollen, during thunderstorm seasons in certain areas.

5. Authorisations and review

This policy is the responsibility of Early Learning Victoria. Contact: ELV@education.vic.gov.au

It was approved by the CEO, Early Learning Victoria, Department of Education on 29 November 2024.

Early Learning Victoria regularly reviews its policies and procedures. This policy is due for review on 29 November 2026 unless changes in legislation or Department of Education policy require it to be reviewed sooner.

Reviewed by Director, Strategy and Planning, Early Learning Victoria

Education

Updated 23 June 2025

On this page

1. Scope

2. Policy statement

2.1 Requirements

2.2 Background and information

3. Actions and procedures

3.1 Responsibilities of families

3.2 Responsibilities of staff

Individualised Asthma Action Plans

Risk Minimisation Plan

Communication Plan

Emergency response

Incident reporting

Review

4. Resources

Legislation and standards

Links

Training

Attachment

Definitions

5. Authorisations and review

Medical conditions: Asthma policy and procedure

On this page

1. Scope

2. Policy statement

2.1 Requirements

2.2 Background and information

3. Actions and procedures

3.1 Responsibilities of families

3.2 Responsibilities of staff

Individualised Asthma Action Plans

Risk Minimisation Plan

Communication Plan

Emergency response

Incident reporting

Review

4. Resources

Legislation and standards

Related policies

Links

Training

Attachment

Definitions

5. Authorisations and review