Question: Where can I get help?

Read the contents of this page and the Help page. If your question is not answered go to www.allergy.org.au/vic-schools-help, fill out the form and you will be responded to as soon as possible. 

Question: Who can sign my certificate?

Answer: As stated on the ASCIA website, ASCIA anaphylaxis e-training courses should always be completed in conjunction with practice using an adrenaline autoinjector training device (with no needle and no adrenaline).

To order adrenaline autoinjector trainer devices contact your national patient support organisation:
Allergy & Anaphylaxis Australia www.allergyfacts.org.au 
Allergy New Zealand www.allergy.org.nz

The supervisor or other adult witness (18 years or older) who signs the certificate to confirm practice with the trainer devices does not require any special qualifications (except in Victorian state schools - see below).  They can refer to instructions on ASCIA Action Plans or videos on the ASCIA website www.allergy.org.au/anaphylaxis 

During physical/social distancing restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a person may demonstrate an adrenaline injector (EpiPen and Anapen) trainer device on themselves and an adult within the same location may witness correct administration of the trainer device. If this isn’t possible, correct administration may be witnessed by an adult over a video call and signed off with a digital signature. The trainer devices should be wiped clean with disinfectant after use and before they are used again.

During restrictions in Victoria, school staff may demonstrate the use of an EpiPen and Anapen trainer device on themselves or a willing household member to the School Anaphylaxis Supervisor via video conferencing, and a digital signature may be used for sign off. Schools will need to arrange the postage of the trainer devices to school staff allowing for the competency check to occur within the 30 day window. Please ensure that the devices are only handled by the school staff member, good hand hygiene practices are followed and devices are wiped down with disinfectant prior to posting (both ways) and upon receipt.

Staff in Victorian schools usually need be verified (face to face), by the School Anaphylaxis Supervisor within 30 days of completing the ASCIA e-training as being able to use the adrenaline injector trainer devices correctly to complete their certification. Click on www.education.vic.gov.au/school/teachers/health/Pages/anaphylaxisschl.aspx and the Anaphylaxis Supervisor Checklist is located under the ‘Training requirements’ tab. For further information you can contact the Royal Children's Hospital Anaphylaxis Advisory Line by phoning 1300 725 911.

Note: Anapen has been available in Australia on the PBS since Wednesday 1st September 2021, and that was also the date when updated ASCIA Anaphylaxis e-Training courses were released that include Anapen instructions, as well as EpiPen.

The Victorian Department of Education and Training is updating the Anaphylaxis Policy, associated guidelines and resources to include the Anapen device by the start of Term 4, 2021. In addition, the Department will send all Victorian government schools Anapen trainer devices to use for training purposes with their staff.

It is not expected that all staff have to re-train immediately if they have recently completed training. 

Anaphylaxis supervisors at schools should complete updated training as soon as possible, and have access to an Anapen Trainer device, to demonstrate and supervise other staff when they practise using the device. 

In 2022 the Victorian Department of Education and Training has engaged Hero HQ to provide the following anaphylaxis training:

• Course in Verifying the Correct Use of Adrenaline Injector Devices 22579VIC (online and face-to-face)
• Course in First Aid Management of Anaphylaxis 22578VIC (online and face-to-face)
• Anapen Workshops (online)

For all school anaphylaxis training requirements, schools can contact Hero HQ by:

• phone: 1300 054 563
• email: schools@herohq.co
• website portal:  www.herohq.co/schoolsanaphylaxistraining

Additional Anapen trainer devices are available by emailing info@allergyconcepts.com  

Question: Is ASCIA anaphylaxis e-training accredited?

Answer: ASCIA anaphylaxis e-training was developed for school and childcare services staff where face to face training is not possible (or feasible), or as a refresher, or for interim training whilst waiting for face to face training. It was developed by the peak professional body for allergy and clinical immunology in Australasia (ASCIA), but it is not an accredited course, which is required by some Victorian schools and children's services under legislation introduced in 2008.

The childcare version of the courses has been approved by the Australian Children's Education and Care Quality Authority (ACECQA) for the purposes of the Education and Care Services National Law, and published in accordance with regulation 137(1)(e) of the Education and Care Services Regulations.

Question: How often should I undertake anaphylaxis training?

Answer: ASCIA cannot recommend how often training needs to be undertaken, as this differs between regions, however it would seem reasonable to repeat training at least every two years. You should check your region's guidelines/legislation to meet the training requirements.

It is recommended that Victorian school staff complete the online anaphylaxis training course every two years, to keep their knowledge current. For further information about these requirements go to https://www2.education.vic.gov.au/pal/anaphylaxis/policy

The Victorian Department of Education and Training requires staff to be verified in the use of an adrenaline autoinjector by a School Anaphylaxis Supervisor within 30 days of completing this course. Please check that your school has staff that have been trained in this role. 

If your school does not have a School Anaphylaxis Supervisor you may need to complete the course again once a verifier is available. For any further information, please contact the Royal Children’s Hospital Anaphylaxis Support Advisory Line between the hours of 8.30am to 5.00pm, Monday to Friday. Phone 1300 725 911 or 03 9345 4235 or email at anaphylaxisadviceline@rch.org.au  

Question: Which course should I choose?

Answer: See Course selection 

Question: I am having trouble registering. I have not received an email and can't log in.

Answer: The automatic email that is sent to a nominated email address to authenticate an account may be blocked by a Spam filter on your own computer, your network provider or your ISP. 

If your email address is a common email address such as; hotmail, yahoo or bigpond, the automatic email confirmations may be stopped by firewalls. If you have not received your confirmation email, please try your junk/spam inboxes, try using another email address that is not hotmail, yahoo or bigpond or contact Help.

The automatic email also cannot be received if you enter your email address incorrectly when creating your account, so correctly entering your email address when registering is essential.

For more help see Having troubling establishing your account? 

Question: My password is not working?

Answer: Both usernames and passwords are case sensitive. The password must have at least 8 characters, at least 1 digit(s), at least 1 lower case letter(s), at least 1 upper case letter(s), at least 1 non-alphanumeric character(s).

Example password: kp?Gd6ma*7 

Question: Can I log in using someone else's password or email address?

Answer: An individual's result is stored on the site database and accessible by them, so each individual needs to have their own account and therefore their own email address.

Email addresses may be established at no cost by anyone if they have access to the internet (e.g. http://mail.google.com/ https://login.yahoo.com/ ).

Question: Can our School or Childcare centre use the one email login for all staff?

Answer: An individual's result is stored on the site database and accessible by them, so each individual needs to have their own account and therefore their own email address

Question: Why do screens appear to "freeze"? 

Answer: The apparent freezing is a slow response from your internet connection. There is continuous communication between the website and your computer. Variables such as an individual's computer reliability, browser type, internet connection problems, interference from phone lines and restrictions imposed by local area networks (LANs) and associated firewalls cannot be influenced nor controlled by ASCIA.

When undertaking ASCIA anaphylaxis e-training (or any other web based training), access to a reliable computer and good internet connection are key factors to successful completion of e-training. To allow for these variables ASCIA anaphylaxis e-training has been developed so that new attempts may be undertaken as many times as an individual wishes to do so.

Note: If you access using wifi, it must be a stable connection. 

For more help see Browser use

Question: I completed the course but it dropped out or froze, which may be due to my internet connection and my progress wasn't saved.

Answer: If you have not completed the course and leave it open on your computer in an inactivate state for more than 60 minutes, the database will automatically log you out. With an automatic log out your position in the course or your final result may not be captured.

When undertaking ASCIA anaphylaxis e-training (or any other web based training), access to a reliable computer and good internet connection are key factors to successful completion of e-training. Variables such as an individual's computer reliability, browser type, internet connection problems, interference from phone lines and restrictions imposed by local area networks (LANs) and associated firewalls cannot be influenced nor controlled by ASCIA. To allow for these variables ASCIA anaphylaxis e-training has been developed so that new attempts may be undertaken as many times as an individual wishes to do so.

For more help see Browser use

Question: I completed the final test but I am having troubles finding the certificate. Can you help or is it gone forever?

Answer: When the database has captured your result following course completion, a certificate will be available to print. Access to the certificate is gained from your course page. The certificate is only valid if it shows your result as 80% or more.

Question: What are the minimum computer and internet requirements to run ASCIA anaphylaxis e-training?

Answer: ASCIA anaphylaxis e-training should function correctly with:

• Computers using a modern browser (eg Internet Explorer, FireFox, Google Chrome, Safari etc). It is strongly advised to keep your browser up to date. 
• Cookies enabled (Most Internet browsers are preset to accept cookies). Cookies allow your results and activity to be captured.
• Stable internet connection, broadband recommended. (For users going through a Local Network, check with your local Network administrator for any firewall issues.) 

Question: What are the factors that may influence the speed of my connection to the Internet?

Answer: Three points to consider

• Network peering affects uploading and downloading
  As your data travels through the Internet, different network hosts hand it off to the next host in a process called peering. 
  Occasionally, networks will experience a delay when sending a piece of data to the next destination. When latency occurs, it can cause peering issues. As a result, people using certain ISPs may have trouble accessing data other from sites.
  
  
• The upload speed offered by your ISP
  Many ISPs gloss over their uploading speeds because most common high-speed technology has uneven or asymmetrical uploading/downloading (sometimes called upstream/downstream) speeds.
  
  Cable internet, for example, is one of the most widely used internet connection types. Downloading is usually very fast at around 10 megabits per second (Mbps). Uploading speed, however, is typically limited to around 1 Mbps. Your specific speed will vary depending on your network, but you can expect about a 10:1 download/upload ratio.
  
  
• With wireless networking speeds vary based on the number and types of devices connected. A lot of devices advertise high networking speed, but those figures refer to devices talking to each other, not necessarily how fast it can send and receive data through the Internet. Some devices, such as 4G phones, connect at only 9.5Mbps which will slow down the entire network to 9.5Mbps.
  
  Additionally, your bandwidth may become constrained If multiple users in your office/school are also uploading large files at the same time.

Question: My school is planning a PD day and everyone will do the course at the same time. What issues may arise?

Answer: There are a number of points with regard to large school group access of the course that are important.

1. Registration uses a system email. A user has to get their email correct in the first place for the system generated email to have a chance of reaching them. 
2. How the system email is perceived by your ISP, LAN Spam protection and computer Spam protection may also influence receipt. Legitimate system emails sometimes may be incorrectly treated as Spam (as more than 90% of the world's emails are Spam). 
3. The ASCIA anaphylaxis e-training website is capable of handling multiple users into the thousands in a day. However if multiple access occurs from a particular network position, local congestion may be a factor. If you have all staff trying to access over your school LAN at the same time this may be an issue. You should seek advice from your LAN administrator.
4. Experience from school staff trying to access for PD days shows the following: 
   - register before the day so that if an account is not established there is some time to have it confirmed manually.
   - allowing/encouraging staff to complete the course throughout the day or over the week, rather than at the one time may reduce staff frustration if there are any issues.
   - allowing/encouraging staff to complete the course at alternate times of their choosing before the day.

Question: Who should be contacted about school anaphylaxis management, including the implementation of Ministerial Order 706?

Answer: Contact the Royal Children’s Hospital Anaphylaxis Support Advisory Line for all school anaphylaxis management enquires, including the implementation of Ministerial Order 706. The advisory line is available between the hours of 8.30am to 5.00pm, Monday to Friday. Phone 1300 725 911 or 03 9345 4235 or email anaphylaxisadviceline@rch.org.au

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