For students with chronic health conditions, school nurses and other health care providers play a large role in the daily management of their conditions. Pediatricians can ask school-related questions, including about health problems contributing to chronic absenteeism, at each visit and provide relevant information directly to the school. ", In addition, with increased awareness recently about such issues as head injuries, the school nurse is poised to offer on-site assessment of the student’s postconcussion progress and adaptations required in the educational plan.13, School nurses are also participants in public health arenas, such as immunization, obesity prevention, substance abuse assessment, tobacco control, and asthma education. This role includes providing preventive and screening services, health education and assistance with decision-making about health, and immunization against preventable diseases. As a leader of the school health team, the school nurse must assess the student's health status, identify health problems that may create a barrier to educational progress, and develop a health care plan for management of the problems in the school setting. These policies include health promotion and protection, chronic disease management, coordinated school health programs, school wellness policies, crisis/disaster management, emergency medical condition management, mental health protection and intervention, acute illness management, and infectious disease prevention and management.16. Practice-based care coordination: a medical home essential. School nurses work with parents to educate, facilitate, and expedite necessary communication between schools and the medical home. However, myths and misunderstanding among parents, pediatricians, and school nurses about these laws can inadvertently hinder efficient, efficacious, and cost-effective case management of student health care needs. The AAP supports having a full-time school nurse in every school as the best means of ensuring a strong connection with each student's medical home. Children with special health needs are included in the regular school classroom setting as authorized by federal and state laws. Improved student outcomes result where schools have a full-time school nurse.3 Inadequate staffing threatens the school nurse's role as medical home extender. The role of the school nurse in providing school health services. Initiatives such as chronic disease management, early detection of behavioral health issues, and obesity prevention are just a few examples of how school nurses contribute to significant cost savings for the health care system. scope of practice issues in the delivery of pediatric health care. Communication and collaboration will also aid in the development of Individualized Health Care Plans, care coordination, and planning for transition from pediatric to adult health care. Role of the school nurse in providing school health services Breena Welch Holmes, Mandy Allison, Richard Ancona, Elliott Attisha, Nathaniel Beers, Cheryl De Pinto, Peter Gorski, Chris Kjolhede, Marc Lerner, Adrienne Weiss-Harrison, Thomas Young role of the school nurse in providing school health services. The AAP supports the goal of professional preparation for all school nurses and recommends the use of appropriately educated and selected school nurses to provide school health services. School nurses, working with pediatric patient-centered medical homes, school physicians, and families, are in a critical position to identify unmet health needs of large populations of children and adolescents in the school setting. During the past few decades, major legal, medical, and societal changes have critically influenced the need for registered professional nurses (hereafter referred to as school nurse) in the school setting. Social attitudes that promote inclusion, as well as state and federal laws such as the Individuals With Disabilities Act (Pub L No. The first school nurse, Lina Rogers, was appointed in 1902 to tend to the health of 8671 students in 4 separate schools in New York City. Position Statement: Education, Licensure, and Certification of School Nurses, Healthy People 2010: Understanding and Improving Health, Pediatrician Guidance in Supporting Families of Children Who Are Adopted, Fostered, or in Kinship Care, Evaluation and Management of the Infant Exposed to HIV in the United States, Routine Neuroimaging of the Preterm Brain, Follow American Academy of Pediatrics on Instagram, Visit American Academy of Pediatrics on Facebook, Follow American Academy of Pediatrics on Twitter, Follow American Academy of Pediatrics on Youtube, www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/publications/PromisingPractices/pdfs/PromisingPractices.pdf, www.aasa.org/publications/saarticledetail.cfm?ItemNumber=3138&snItemNumber=950&tnItemNumber=951, PROFESSIONAL PREPARATION FOR SCHOOL NURSES, Copyright © 2008 by the American Academy of Pediatrics. Within 1 year, medical exclusions decreased by 99%.1. Outcomes of preterm infants: morbidity replaces mortality. The school nurse promotes health.13 The school nurse provides health education by providing health information to individual students and groups of students through health education, science, and other classes. The school nurse serves in a leadership role for health policies and programs. The school nurse provides screening and referral for health conditions.13 Health screenings can decrease the negative effects of health problems on education by identifying students with potential underlying medical problems early and referring them for treatment as appropriate. The presence of a coordinated school health program, often led by school nurses, contributes to both educational achievement and the educational system. Provides Leadership for Promotes Healthy School Environment Provision of Health Services Monitors immunizations Plans for responding to emergencies and disasters Implements precautions for blood borne pathogens Assesses, trains, supervises, and evaluates staff and infectious diseases Increasing numbers of students enter schools with chronic health conditions that require management during the school day. However, the use of a ratio for workload determination in school nursing is inadequate to fill the increasingly complex health needs of students.27,28. As a health care expert within the school system, the school nurse is a leader in the development and evaluation of school health policies. Pediatricians should establish a working relationship with the school nurses who care for their patients with chronic conditions to ensure that individual patients' health plans are executed effectively within the school. Clinical report: returning to learning following a concussion.