KozyEpi’s Autoinjector Carrier: Why We Use it
Last year, in preparation for Tristan’s first time at day camp, I searched for a medicine pouch to keep all his rescue meds in one place and for an epinephrine carrier, an easy way to keep his epinephrine on him at all times. I wanted something fun and boyish that he wouldn’t be embarrassed to be seen with. You know kids – if their friends don’t have the same thing – its so not cool. So, I was worried because none of his friends have food allergies. How would they react to seeing Tristan wear his epinephrine? How would Tristan handle it?
Our Allerject and KoziEpi Quattro Pouch.
I searched and searched and finally found a Canadian company called KozyEpi who had some really fun things and a lot of variety. They sent me a Quattro Pouch and a Ject Pouch Uno. The Quattro Pouch is amazingly spacious and perfect for holding his Allerject, inhaler, spacer/chamber, and antihistamines all together – and we still have room for his eczema cream! The Ject Pouch Uno is essentially like a small fanny pack just for holding his Allerject, so it’s small and discrete. What’s great is they have a lot of colors and patterns to choose from – things younger kids would love all the way up to more trendy or simple things (depending on preference) for teenagers and adults. All their pouches are made from a very durable neoprene fabric that is water-repellent. But if water-repellent isn’t enough for you, they do have some water proof carriers for trips to the beach or water park. In addition to epinephrine pouches, they also have some just for asthma inhalers too.
Wearing his KoziEpi Ject Pouch Uno.
What did Tristan’s friends think about his new Ject Pouch? How did Tristan react? The first day he put up a bit of a fight because he doesn’t like to be singled out in any way. But we talked about why it was important to have quick access to his epinephrine, so it wasn’t too bad. After the first day, he never complained again. My guess is that he probably got some comments about the cool race car on his pouch and that sealed the deal. We have been very thankful for the Quattro Pouch as we’ve been able to easily find it (it’s big and red) in times of crisis and were able to quickly remove the meds we needed in the moment. Case in point, Tristan had a severe asthma crisis last summer at camp and his counselor knew just where to find his inhaler to give him some relief until we could get him to the hospital for treatment. So, the pouch has quite literally been a life saver.
We now keep the Quattro Pouch with us at all times and it is always in his backpack at school.
Do you have a favorite epineprhine or inhaler pouch you or your children like to use? Have you tried KozyEpi?
I like the looks of the Ject Pouch Uno. I like that it is small and trim. My daughter wears her Auvi-Q’s in a sports belt, but I hate that she has this “big bulge” sticking out from under her shirt all the time. I am sure it isn’t always comfy. She prefers to wear it on her back rather than the front, but then if she sits in a chair or car, I can’t imagine that being comfortable. Also her sport belt is not water resistant.
The Ject Pouch Uno seems so small in the pictures, but it only holds 1 Auvi-Q. The pens are supposed to be kept together as a set and not separated in case you need both. I see they have a Duo also to hold 2.
But aren’t you uncomfortable with him only carrying 1 when they should not be split up? I’m surprised that the company is even selling the Uno pouches when it is clearly not best practice (i.e. it encourages people to carry just 1, splitting up the set, when they are not supposed to do that).
Hi Lorrie – We’ve always split up his auto-injectors as I like to have them in a few locations. At school he has one in his back pack and another in his lunch bag. And where we live the paramedics are authorized to give epinephrine and we live in the city, so they are close by at all times and easily accessible. In our case, we’d likely only need to give him one injection and then the paramedics would give him the next dose….which is what happened when my son did experience anaphylaxis.
Don’t think that there is one blanket medical recommendation for all allergic kids: our son is required to only carry one so the Uno is perfect for us. His reaction has historically been intestinal, and his allergist says he should carry an epipen “just in case” but that it’s very unlikely he’ll ever need it.
I would not venture to suggest that the company shouldn’t sell the Uno, or that anyone should be “uncomfortable” with doing what they think is appropriate, or that there is a clear “best practice” that universally applies to everyone’s situation.