Who is Responsible For Allergy Fatalities?

We recently stumbled upon a tragic story about a peanut allergic teenage girl who was accidentally given a snack at camp with visually undetectable peanut butter. Despite using three EpiPens to treat the allergic reaction, Natalie Giorgi passed away in the arms of her parents, who happened to be at the camp that day.

The camp was well aware of Natalie’s allergies—and it was also noted the teenager went to great lengths to avoid foods with peanuts. But yet, this tragedy—which is every parent’s nightmare—still occurred. 

What happened a few years after this incident is newsworthy as well. Giorgi’s parents filed a lawsuit against the city of Sacramento, which was responsible for running the camp, and the city wound up settling for $15 million. The parents argued the camp should have been more responsible when feeding campers, especially because their daughter’s allergies were well known amongst the camp’s staff. 

This case really got me thinking—who is responsible for allergy fatalities and has there ever been another case like it?  The horrible incident occurred right there in the presence of her parents. Natalie’s father is a physician and EpiPens were administered however according to a recent article in Allergic Living, the camp’s staff couldn’t locate the key to a medical cabinet that contained an auto-injector which delayed the administration of epinephrine.  Her father Louis Giorgi ultimately broke into the cabinet. 

So what are your thoughts?  At what point does the responsibility shift from the parents to the facility your child attends whether it be camp, school, etc? 

Should schools and camps be held liable for allergic reactions that happen on their premises, especially when they are given ample warning about a child’s health condition?  

Can anyone really truly be trusted?

UPDATE: Camp Sacramento–where this fatal accident took place–will become accredited with the American Camping Association and implement food allergy training and emergency protocols on October 5th, thanks to the efforts of Natalie’s parents. Hopefully, these changes ensure that no other camper will suffer the same fate as Natalie Giorgi.

We would love to hear your thoughts on this tragic story of a young life taken far too soon.   Leave us a comment (on FB) on your thoughts regarding this very sensitive subject. Once again our heartfelt sympathies and sorrow are with the Giorgi family.

If there are similar stories out there that you know of – please share with us.

Xo

Iris Shamus

Iris Shamus is a mother to three awesome kids & the founder/CEO of AllerMates. AllerMates was born as a result of her food allergic and asthmatic son, Ben. Iris and/or AllerMates have been featured in many places including Fox News, the Doctors, Veria Living, MSNBC, The Today Show & the Huffington Post with helpful advice on keeping kids safe.  Based in New York, Iris & her team design & ship their products, create informative content & obsess every day about safeguarding kids.