Photo: SBS

Minister for Health Jenny Mikakos launched new guidelines today, which will change how patients aged 16 and over with anaphylaxis are managed, treated and cared for in Victorian hospitals.

In the past, it was common for hospital staff to take adrenaline autoinjectors – known as an EpiPen – from patients on admission.  Now patients who carry an EpiPen should hold onto them throughout their hospital stay to use if they experience a severe and unexpected reaction to food or medication.

Safer Care Victoria’s new Anaphylaxis Clinical Care Standard will help hospitals better recognise, respond to and manage patients with anaphylaxis, and provide consistency across the state.

Based on evidence and coronial findings, and developed with a panel of experts, clinicians and consumers, the new guidance comes with staff handouts, clinical management cards, a check list and patient/family handouts.

The number of people going to hospital with anaphylaxis is increasing by 15 per cent on average every year. Between 2012-13 and 2016-17, there were 9,328 emergency department presentations with anaphylaxis.

The Labor Government has invested nearly $215 million to strengthen quality and safety in Victorian hospitals, including the establishment of Safer Care Victoria and the Victorian Agency for Health Information.

New laws requiring all Victorian hospitals to report cases of potentially fatal anaphylaxis came into force on 1 November.