Pandemic Brings Dramatic Drop in Asthma Hospitalizations, Study Finds

 

The pandemic kept many local children with asthma out of hospitals, according to a study by Children’s National Hospital in D.C.

There’s been a 75% drop in emergency room visits and hospitalizations among local children with asthma this fall, the study found.

“It is very stressful to have a child with asthma even when you have access to great hospitals and doctors and resources and (are) able to manage it,” said Kate Davidoff, whose 3-year-old son Andrew used to rely on a nebulizer and steroids to control his asthma when he got sick. “It is a lot of stress on parents and the children to be sick all the time.”..

https://www.nbcwashington.com/news/pandemic-brings-dramatic-drop-in-asthma-hospitalizations-study-finds/2605326/?_osource=SocialFlowTwt_DCBrand

School Board, Staff Not Responsible for Student’s Death in 2015, Judge Rules

After years of court proceedings, the Montgomery County public school system was found not responsible for the 2015 death of a 14-year-old Gaithersburg High School student, who died after an asthma attack in physical education class.

On Friday, a month shy of the fourth anniversary of Taylor Walton’s death, Montgomery County Judge Nelson Rupp ruled that neither the local school board nor its employees was negligent in caring for her or was responsible for her death.

“It’s an absolute tragedy what happened. … It just breaks your heart,” Rupp said during a court hearing Friday. “… The bottom line is, giving the plaintiff the benefit of all of the evidence that’s been submitted, even in the light most favorable, there’s no evidence that would permit a jury to conclude there was a standard of care … that was breached that caused (Taylor’s) death.”

The case was expected to go to trial this month. Georgia Grant-Walton, Taylor’s mother, was seeking more than $20 million in damages.

On Nov. 30, 2015, Taylor was in P.E. class, participating in “station” exercises, in which students participated in various exercises like walking, running and doing push-ups or sit-ups.

A video, submitted to court records and described by Rupp on Friday, showed Taylor participating, occasionally raising her arms above her head or leaning on a friend. Eventually, Taylor left the class. Shortly after, she was found lying unconscious in the hallway outside the gym.

Gaithersburg High School’s staff administered CPR and first aid and called for an ambulance, according to court documents. Taylor was pronounced dead upon arrival at a hospital about 4 miles away.

It was Taylor’s first semester back in public school, according to Rupp. She had been home schooled by her mother following her father’s death six years prior.

In 2017, Grant-Walton filed a lawsuit in Montgomery County Circuit Court alleging the P.E. teachers, Karen Philbin and Jeffrey Rabberman, denied Taylor’s requests to get her inhaler from her gym locker before she collapsed.

In her lawsuit, Grant-Walton said MCPS’ staff failed to provide “reasonable care” to protect her daughter from harm and teachers “falsely imprisoned” Taylor by denying her access to her inhaler. Additionally, she alleges the Board of Education failed to properly train the staff about how to identify and treat asthma-related medical issues...

https://bethesdamagazine.com/bethesda-beat/courts/school-board-staff-not-responsible-for-students-death-in-2015-judge-rules/

Mother alleges MCPS teacher denied teen’s request to get inhaler during asthma attack, seeks $20M+ in Damages

Attorneys are preparing for a November trial stemming from a lawsuit in which a Gaithersburg mother alleges teachers denied her daughter access to her inhaler during an asthma attack during gym class in 2015, leading to the teen’s death.

Georgia Grant-Walton’s lawsuit against Montgomery County Public Schools says her daughter, Taylor Walton, requested permission to leave gym class twice to get her inhaler from her locker because she was having trouble breathing, according to court documents. The teacher, Karen Philbin, allegedly denied Taylor’s request each time, court documents say.

After the second request, 14-year-old Taylor left the class at Gaithersburg High School without permission to get her inhaler. Shortly after, she was found lying unconscious on the floor outside the gym.

Gaithersburg High School’s staff administered CPR and first aid before calling an ambulance, according to court documents. Taylor was pronounced dead upon arrival at a hospital about 4 miles away.

Grant-Walton is seeking more than $20 million in damages from her daughter’s death, which occurred on Nov. 30, 2015...

https://bethesdamagazine.com/bethesda-beat/courts/attorneys-prepare-for-trial-in-case-stemming-from-gaithersburg-students-death-in-2015/

Lawsuit Over Gaithersburg Teen’s Death in Gym Class Continues in County Court

...The mother of Taylor Walton, a 14-year-old Gaithersburg High School student, filed the lawsuit after Taylor’s death in 2015 after an asthma attack in gym class.
The complaint claims that Taylor started having trouble breathing during her gym class on Nov. 30, 2015, and asked permission to get her inhaler out of her locker. Her gym teacher wouldn’t let her leave class after two requests.
Taylor later left the class without permission and was found unconscious near the gymnasium a short time later, according to court filings.
The federal complaint claimed that two Gaithersburg High School teachers were grossly negligent in refusing Taylor’s requests to leave class to get an inhaler and violated her civil rights by denying her permission to leave, and that the Board of Education was negligent in hiring and supervising employees...

Lawsuit Over Gaithersburg Teen’s Death in Gym Class Continues in County Court: A federal judge denied claim of Fourth Amendment violation, but made no decision on negligence claims

Video: Candlelight Vigil for Taylor Walton 4-3-2016

Fourteen million absences — or one-third of all missed school days — are due to asthma

Report: Chronic school absenteeism is contributing to academic gaps