Weekly Digest

NASN news & updates

August 13, 2020

President's Message

The mental health of our students and our fellow school nurses is critical as we begin the 2020-21 school year under very unique circumstances.

NASN offers several resources to help you manage this for your students:

The Emotion Management K-6 course presents an interdisciplinary approach to managing somatization in our schools. Given the attention of emotional health in children leading to academic success and the importance of attending to the whole child, this program has been developed to increase K-6 students’ abilities to cope with school stress in healthy and effective ways. The participant will leave with a better understanding of the "frequent flyer," and tools to utilize in their health suites to assist the students they serve.

NASN's mental health resources page also has a number of articles and other materials to help students. Next week, I will share ideas to help fellow school nurses manage mental health and stress.

Laurie Combe, MN, RN, NCSN

NASN President

BETTER HEALTH. BETTER LEARNING. ™

NASN News and Highlights

To Collect or Not To Collect:

Data and COVID-19

This school year is unique and there is already a lot of stress and concern for school nurses. Should we collect data?

The reality is although the activities you do and the data you collect may be a bit different this year, you should still collect data.

DATA COLLECTION

Vision Screening Guidance During the COIVD-19 Pandemic

American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus Vision Screening Committee has developed a new resource for school nurses: Vision Screening Guidance During the COIVD-19 Pandemic. This document includes reviews from other national organizations, including NASN, that served as a member of the work group that developed the considerations and FAQs around specific vision screening questions during the pandemic. A more detailed document with considerations for vision screening is coming later this month from the National Center for Children’s Vison and Eye Health.

LEARN MORE

Immunization Transition Toolkit Offers Tips For All Ages

August is National Immunization Awareness Month, and NASN's Immunization Transition Toolkit was developed for use at the times of student transitions within the school systems including between elementary school and middle or intermediate school; between middle or intermediate school and high school; and between high school and college or career. These specific time periods can be stressful for students and families as they prepare for the next change in their educational setting and are a great opportunity for the school nurse to lessen the stress by giving specific health directives.

IMMUNIZATION TOOLKIT

COVID-19 Updates

Infographics Highlight Role of School Nurses and Preparedness

To support school nurses in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, NASN has released several new resources. The two infographics below are based on a NASN survey conducted this past spring about school nurse activities during the COVID-19 pandemic and how prepared schools are for another outbreak in the fall:

COVID-19 Vaccine Resource

A resource for school nurses to monitor updates on vaccines for COVID-19 is available at the Vaccine Education Center (VEC) at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.

CovidVaccineAnswers.org points to a page on the VEC site where school nurses can get answers or submit questions.

Managing Chronic Health Conditions

Out-of-School Time (OST) and Chronic Health Conditions

Is your school opening its after-school program? Have you thought about students that need to manage a chronic health condition in this setting? This recently released tool, developed by NASN and the Alliance for a Healthier Generation, is a resource you can share with OST staff to support these students: Healthy Out-of-School Time Roadmap – Chronic Health Conditions Management.

LEARN MORE

Improving School Community and Student Health

NASSNC Releases Statement on Racism

The National Association of State School Nurse Consultants (NASSNC) recognizes the impact of racism and white supremacy on children, youth, and families and has released a statement with action steps. The document also seeks to encourage state and national government leaders to support the reallocation of resources to mitigate years of white privilege and racism’s impact on health and education

LEARN MORE

Opportunities & Networking

Submit Your Abstract Submissions Now for NASN2021

The NASN2021 Oral and Poster abstract submission form is officially open. Please note these important updates.

Your submission will now include Knowledge Questions and Rationale.
You will be asked about the possibility of presenting virtually.
There will be ONE call for submissions instead of separate calls for oral and poster abstracts.

The detailed guidelines in the submission form will explain these updates.

If you have an abstract for a breakout, general or poster session, please consider submitting.

Begin with the call for abstract submission details on NASN.org. NASN looks forward to receiving a diverse group of submissions to fill out the conference schedule.

NOTE: If you were selected to present at NASN2020 but deferred to NASN2021, you will need to enter the submission platform to answer updated questions. Please also take this time to update the entire submission if needed.

Mark Your Calendar

NASN Calendar of Events

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

NASN CALENDAR

National Health Observances Calendar

This calendar lists special days, weeks, or months dedicated to raising awareness about important health topics. Access the 2020 calendar.

OBSERVANCES CALENDAR

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