NASN Election Results Announced

The 2023 NASN election results have been tallied, and the following individuals have been elected: 

• President-Elect Designee – Lynn Nelson, MSN, RN, NCSN 
• Secretary/Treasurer Designee – Constance Griffin, BSN, RN, AE-C, NCSN 
• Nominating Committee Member – Cheryl Peiffer, MBA, BS, RN, CSN 

Lynn and Connie will be installed at the NASN Annual Meeting in Orlando, Florida, on July 2, 2023. NASN congratulates these leaders and looks forward to the impact they will have in their new roles. 

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National School Nurse Day 2023

Thank you to all the school nurses who submitted photos and helped take #SND2023 to the next level! We will continue to share your photo submissions throughout the month. You are the leaders who bridge health care and education, provide care coordination, advocate for quality student-centered care, and collaborate to design systems that allow individuals and communities to develop their full potential, and we honor you!

School Health Services Are Key in Health Promotion

Physical activity (PA) is crucial for children's health and well-being. Physical activity on prescription (PAP) is an individually written recommendation of PA. The open-access Journal of School Nursing (JOSN) research article, PAP “Not a Quick Fix”: School Nurses’ Experiences of Promoting and Tailoring PA to Children in Swedish Compulsory School, aimed to explore school nurses’ experience of using PAP with children in Swedish compulsory school. The results suggest that school nurses perceive PAP as a useful tool in the school context when tailored to each individual child.

• Sign up for New Content alerts for JOSN.

JOSN Meet the Editor Recordings Available 

Are you interested in learning how to write a manuscript abstract, craft a title, or publish your DNP project? These are just a few topics that JOSN editor Dr. Martha Dewey Bergren discusses in these presentations. Check them out, along with a list of other talking points from the free interactive web meetings.

Addressing Vaccine Hesitancy Among Students and Families

Vaccine compliance among schoolchildren is essential to the health of an entire community, but promoting vaccine compliance as a matter of public health can be challenging for school nurses. In the NASN School Nurse May Podcast, Cynthia Galemore, NASN School Nurse Editor, interviews Olivia Wilson and Brenna Morse about the article "Addressing Vaccine Hesitancy Among Students and Families: Interventions for School Nurses." Listen here.

NASN Represented at National Disability Forum 

On May 17, 2023, the Social Security Administration will host the 23rd National Disability Forum (NDF), Focusing on Aspects of Childhood Disability and Childhood SSI – Part II. The panel will include NASN’s Elizabeth Clark and focus on the failure to follow medically necessary or prescribed treatment and problems receiving medically necessary treatment for SSI child recipients, transitioning out of childhood disability, and the reality of provision of services for potentially disabled children. Register by Monday, May 15, 2023.

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This section highlights news stories featuring NASN and school nurses. If you have a story about school nurses you'd like us to consider including, please send it to us.

• School nurses who make a difference (Source: stltoday.com)
• Nurse honored by American Red Cross after saving teacher who had heart attack in 2021 (Source: wsvn.com)
• Lexington District Three’s Lead Nurse named South Carolina’s School Nurse Administrator of the Year (Source: swlexledger.com)
• Washington school nurse stocks toiletries for students in need (Source: post-gazette.com)
• Nurses: The critical, yet ‘unrequired,’ staff at your child’s school (Source: cdispatch.com)
• Stomachaches: Is It Clinical or Emotional? (Source: naesp.org)
• Hannibal school nurses to get Narcan in the fall (Source: wgem.com)
• Piedmont Triad schools in need of nurses (Source: caledonianrecord.com)
• Russellville Independent Schools employee named finalist for 2023 Fred Award (Source: wbko.com)

Implement Wellness Policies and Sustain Chronic Health Condition Management in Schools

The free NCPD program Using the WSCC Model to Implement Wellness Policies and Sustain Chronic Health Condition Management in Schools offers information on the ‘gold standard’ model school wellness policy developed by the Alliance for a Healthier Generation that includes recommended language to address all 10 components of the Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child (WSCC) Model and the (2020) NASN supplemental language to address chronic health condition management – positioning the school nurse to be able to fully participate when schools review and refresh current school wellness policies. 

• See also Managing Chronic Health Conditions in Schools: Model School Wellness Policy Supplement, which provides additional supplemental language that you can include in Local School Wellness Policies to address chronic health condition management in schools. The language, developed through the alignment of NASN's Framework for 21st Century School Nursing Practice™, addresses components of the WSCC model as they relate to students with chronic health conditions.

This week, NASN and the CDC offered a webinar highlighting Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) findings and making the connection to the report’s impact on school nursing. In April, the CDC released the full report and results. Review and consider what role you can play at your school to address the same issues in your community. 

• YRBS Data Summary & Trends
• Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS)
• Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance MMWR Supplements

Listen to this CDC podcast providing an overview of Myalgic encephalomyelitis, chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) in children and young people, the diagnosis, symptoms, treatments, challenges, and the current resources for healthcare professionals and families.

• See NASN's free program on ME/CFS and Long-COVID to learn more about ME/CFS and Post-COVID Conditions, your role, and the resources available to support your students and earn 1.0 NCPD contact hour.

The National Association of School Psychologists, the National Association of School Resource Officers, and Safe and Sound Schools have partnered to provide updated guidance on Best Practice Considerations for Armed Assailant Drills in Schools. The updated document provides guidance on the important factors that schools must take into account when considering and conducting armed assailant drills.

National Adolescent Health Month™ (NAHM™), hosted by the HHS Office of Population Affairs, emphasizes the importance of building on young people’s strengths and potential, encouraging meaningful youth engagement in adolescent health activities, and highlighting key topics in adolescent health.

Adolescent health involves many aspects of health and well-being, including sexual and reproductive health, mental health, and the role of caring adults. Check out NASN's Health and Practices Topics page for tools and resources that cover this and more.

• 2023 Mississippi School Nurse Association Conference - Transformation Through Adversity: The Resilient School Nurse - May 31-June 2, 2023 - Learn more and Register

• South Carolina Association of School Nurses 21st Annual School Nurse Summer Conference - Riding the Wave of Resiliency - June 11-13, 2023 - Learn more

• School Nurses of Arizona 34th Annual School Health Conference - Back to Basics: The ABC's of School Nursing - June 12-13, 2023 - Learn more and Register

• 2023 Georgia Association of School Nurses Annual School Nurse Conference - Restore our Light - June 13-16, 2023 - Learn more and Register

• The 34th Annual Statewide Summer Conference for Kansas School Nurses - Strengthening the Essentials: Foundations for Student Health - July 17-20, 2023 - Learn more and Register

• 2023 South Dakota School Nurse Association Summer Conference - Building the Future of School Nursing in South Dakota - July 18-20, 2023 - Learn more and Register

NASN Calendar of Events

This calendar includes upcoming events hosted by NASN and NASN affiliate school nurse organizations. Access the calendar.

National Health Observances Calendar

This calendar lists special days, weeks, or months dedicated to raising awareness about important health topics. Access the 2023 calendar. 

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