Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40619393›Full record

ArticleAllergy, asthma, and clinical immunology : official journal of the Canadian Society of Allergy and Clinical Immunology2025

Online food allergy and anaphylaxis education for school personnel is effective and scalable: experience with the allergyaware e-learning portal from 2015 to 2022.

Bhanu Sharma, Stephanie Ayers, Joni Huang, Jennifer Gerdts, Susan Waserman, Anthony J Levinson

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Allergy, asthma, and clinical immunology : official journal of the Canadian Society of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Review
  2. Review
  3. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Bhanu SharmaMcMaster University, 1280 Main Street West, Hamilton, ON, L8S4L8, Canada.
Stephanie AyersMcMaster University, 1280 Main Street West, Hamilton, ON, L8S4L8, Canada.
Joni HuangFood Allergy Canada, 507-505 Consumers Rd North York, Toronto, ON, M2J 4A2, Canada.
Jennifer GerdtsFood Allergy Canada, 507-505 Consumers Rd North York, Toronto, ON, M2J 4A2, Canada.
Susan WasermanMcMaster University, 1280 Main Street West, Hamilton, ON, L8S4L8, Canada.
Anthony J LevinsonMcMaster University, 1280 Main Street West, Hamilton, ON, L8S4L8, Canada. levinsa@mcmaster.ca.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundProviding training to school personnel on how to prevent, recognize, and manage anaphylaxis is critical. Asynchronous e-learning (where instructional material is available on-demand) may be well-suited to help with the implementation, scale, and dissemination of this training. In this paper, we report on the design, pilot testing, widespread implementation, and evaluation of an online course for school personnel.

methodsBest practices in evidence-based instructional design for e-learning were incorporated into the course. Content was based on consensus guidelines and reviewed by experts. Initial pilot testing demonstrated large gains in post-course knowledge and self-confidence, as well as several suggestions for improvement. A website was developed to facilitate self-enrolment and delivery of the course modules in 2015 and has since been freely available.

resultsFrom 2015 to 2022 there have been over 170,000 course completions, with over one quarter of users completing the course more than once. Most completions occur at the start of the school year in the month of September. The median time to completion was about 25–30 min. Post-course participant self-reported confidence with epinephrine auto-injectors (EAIs) and emergency management of anaphylaxis was very high, and over 95% of participants would recommend the course to others. The average score on the 10-item post-course quiz was 9.05, with a pass rate of over 95%.

conclusionsThe AllergyAware e-learning course for school personnel is highly satisfactory to users, with high post-course quiz performance and self-reported confidence in anaphylaxis management. It provides a scalable and accessible approach to training school personnel on this critical topic. Future research is needed to assess participants’ application of knowledge in real-world settings. TRIAL REGISTRY: The Hamilton Integrated Research Ethics Board reviewed the study protocol and granted exemption from full review per their review process, as this was considered a quality improvement initiative.

Indexed as

AnaphylaxisAnaphylaxis awarenessAnaphylaxis preventionDigital healthE-learningFood allergyOnline trainingSchool healthSchool personnelWeb-based education

Identifiers

PMID40619393
PMCPMC12232682

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.