I am a school nurse. We have a child at school who has recently been diagnosed with insulin dependent diabetes. I am due to train several unlicensed personnel at his school to administer glucagon injections. Is there a glucagon training kit available that I could use and re-use to train people in glucagon administration? I’m interested in a syringe, a vial of normal saline, several vials of dextrose, and something like skin into which we can inject.

The Glucagon Emergency Kits are made by two companies, Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk. The Lilly kits are most widely used. I am not aware of any training kits, but I do have some suggestions. First, check with your local diabetes educators, located through the American Association of Diabetes Educators. They may have created some training materials (especially the pediatric educators).

The most difficult task of giving glucagon is the reconstitution (mixing) of the liquid with the glucagon powder. You can simulate this with a small vial of saline and a syringe with a needle.

The other possibility for locating training materials is to contact your local sales representative from Eli Lilly or from Novo Nordisk.

Finally, the easiest, least expensive tool for injection training is a small foam ball, typically found at toy stores.

BS