The College of New Jersey Health Services

ALLERGY INJECTIONS

 

Students can have their regular allergy injections administered at Health Services.   Health Services will store, without liability, a student's current vial of allergy serum and administer the injections according to their allergist's written instructions.   Students receiving allergy injections for the first time at TCNJ Health Services must schedule an initial consultation appointment with the nurse practitioner to review their allergist's instructions and TCNJ Health Services allergy injection policy prior to receiving their first injection.   Allergy injections are given by appointment and by our nurse practitioner staff.   The charge for this service is $10.00 per semester.

 

The injection of an allergen (a substance to which a person is allergic) is not a matter to be taken lightly.   Reactions to allergy injections can range from minor swelling to a life-threatening allergic response.   The possibility of a severe reaction is always present especially when the amount of allergen is being increased with each injection.   Even those who are on maintenance dosages and have never had problems with their allergy injections in the past are at risk for a serious reaction.   Numerous factors can adversely affect one's reactivity to an allergen such as current illness, fatigue and anxiety about school and other matters.

 

For these reasons, the following conditions were developed.   A student who is unable to meet or abide by the conditions of this policy will not be able to receive allergy injections at TCNJ Health Services.   These conditions apply to every set of new instructions/new vials that the student brings in during the school year.

1. Serum must be supplied by the student.
2. Allergist's written instructions must be legible and contain the following:
   • Allergist's signature
   • Allergist's name, address and telephone number
   • Patient's name (noted on vials and written instructions)
   • Contents of each allergy serum vial
   • Expiration date of allergy serum
   • Dose and frequency of allergy injections
   • Date and dosage of last injection, including reaction
   • Documentation that the first dose was administered by the student's allergiest.
   • Single dose vials will be accepted only if the contents of the vials are from a single batch of allergy serum
   • Your allergist's instructions for treatment of local reactions
   • Your allergist's instructions for "late" injections
3. Serums that require mixing cannot be accepted.
4. Students must remain in Health Services for 30 minutes following allergy injections so that he/she can be observed for any local or systemic reactions.   Students who fail to comply with this requirement will NOT be permitted to receive allergy injections at our office.
5. Students are responsible for informing us prior to the administration of an allergy injection of the following:
   • The current use of prescription and non prescription medications
   • the presence of wheezing, chest tightness, hives, fever, or allergy symptoms
   • illness
   • pregnancy or chance of pregnancy
   • prolonged or delayed reaction following the previous allergy injection
6. During the observation period after an injection is given, the student is to notify us immediately if she/he is experiencing any difficulties such as itching, sneezing, coughing, hives, wheezing, chest tightness, hoarseness, light-headedness, or difficulty swallowing.
7. Students who repeatedly (3 times within a year) "no show" for their allergy injection appointments will no longer be eligible to receive their injections at TCNJ Health Services.

 

Letter to students interested in continuing allergy injections at TCNJ Health Services

Letter for students to provide to their allergist

 

You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader (free download) to open these files.

If you encounter any problem or have a question, please e-mail us at hlthserv@tcnj.edu.