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After the acts of violence committed by their son at Saint-Étienne college in Cahors on Tuesday, the parents explain that their child is being treated for diabetes. It is his hyperglycemia which would have fueled this anger, which is confirmed by his doctor at the Toulouse University Hospital.
On the kitchen table, an insulin injection, measuring devices, medications… This is the daily life of this 3rd grade student who is diabetic. An illness that he discovered in 2020, during the covid confinement, and which he is trying to understand and manage with his parents.
For them, their son's outburst of violence, Tuesday noon, at Saint-Étienne college in Cahors, is linked to his medical situation and an emotional outburst that he was not able to control. “It all started in the canteen. He had given an insulin injection, but obviously the product did not spread well and his diabetes rate continued to rise,” says the student’s mother.
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The boy already has a headache. When the altercation occurs with a friend who has just crushed a kiwi on his pants, his anger explodes. Chase, shove, slammed door, the schoolboy is beside himself and three adults have to intervene to control him, despite the blows. Meanwhile, the other student found refuge in the office of a staff member of the establishment where they locked themselves to protect themselves. The management speaks of a particularly violent scene which aroused strong emotion within the college.
“At this blood sugar level, the risk is to go into a coma”
“We were called to tell us that our child was in crisis and that we had to come, testify the parents. When we arrived at school, our son was sitting, but when I saw his empty look and that he was trembling, I understood that he was not doing well. We took his blood sugar level, his level was close to 5, when it should have been between 0.7 and 1.5 gr/liter of blood,” he emphasizes. the couple who talks about a serious situation. “At this level of blood sugar, the risk is to go into a coma, so we immediately gave him another insulin injection. The principal speaks to us about safety, the fear and the shock they felt facing to this violence; we have the feeling that no one took into account our son's illness and the danger he would face.”
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“Illness does not excuse everything, when several people are affected”
“When a teenager of almost 1.90 meters shows such violence, we must be able to stop him and calm him down. This was the first thing to do so that none of his comrades, nor himself be injured. Faced with the emergency, the time was not to ask him if he had controlled his diabetes but to stop it”, declares Annie Vidal, principal of the private college of Cahors.
Intending to take his state of health into account in the decisions that will be made for this student, the establishment warns, however, that “illness does not excuse everything, when several people are affected and the facts are serious. The other student was very scared, his parents were worried and he didn’t come to class the next day.”
She continues: “The psychologist is present this Thursday afternoon in Saint-Étienne. Staff and 6 students have asked to meet her. The disciplinary council will meet at the end of next week to decide”
For parents, there was a serious failure within the establishment
There was no question of his family condoning the aggressive behavior of their child that day, but no question of making him feel more guilty either. “We apologized, our son too, but we had people who didn't understand anything about the medical situation. Besides, our son no longer remembers everything. This is the first time he has been violent like that, that he is having a crisis”, assure his relatives who immediately requested an appointment with his diabetologist at the Purpan hospital where he is being monitored. This Thursday, the Toulouse children's hospital sent a certificate specifying: “Hyperglycemia can lead to a change in behavior in children, such as anger, nervousness, violence that they cannot control, due to the action of the blood sugar level. sugar on the brain However, this young patient had a very high blood sugar level of 4.59 g/l, which means that he was not aware of his behavior which, at that time, was not appropriate. its fact”, notes Dr Maëla Talvard.
According to the young person's family, there was a serious failure within the school. “At the start of each school year, they have a PAI, an individualized reception plan established by the hospital, which provides in particular the measures to be taken in the event of symptoms, such as calling the firefighters. However, nothing has been done,” denounce – they, while specifying that their lawyer will send a request to the college, pleading the non-responsibility of this diabetic student who is currently suspended, but who risks exclusion. The family assures that he is a good student and that this 4th year of schooling in Saint-Étienne was going well until then.
