The Student Athlete Injury Toolkit was developed to help student athletes and their caretakers make informed decisions about prescription opioid use and pain management after a sports injury, and to holistically support students in their recovery. School nurses can play a critical role in the recovery process by helping students understand the risks of misusing prescription opioids, suggesting alternative pain management strategies, identifying students who may need intervention to prevent or address opioid misuse, and weighing in on post-injury “return to school” and “return to play” plans. Nurses can also download and share the Toolkit’s Opioid Fast Facts with students. Click here for more information, to download the Toolkit, and to take “tours” of each Toolkit resource.

As schools continue transitioning to in-person instruction, school nurses will help prepare and implement COVID-19 prevention strategies. Kaiser Permanente has collaborated with over 30 national school health organizations to create the “Planning for the Next Normal at School: Keeping Students, Staff, and Families Safe and Healthy” playbook, which provides evidence-based guidance to adapting to school life after the COVID-19 pandemic. This resource suggests various ways school nurses can work toward decreasing the likelihood of disease transmission. Learn more.

The 2021 Children’s Environmental Health Series: Seeking Equity in Environmental Health Outcomes for Disadvantaged Populations on June 22nd is a free virtual event focused on the impact of environmental factors on children’s health and well-being. Hosted by the National Environmental Education Foundation (NEEF), this collaborative event will address health equity, social determinants of health, and provide important information about environmental impacts on children's health.

Health and wellness are important topics that will be front and center at NASN2021. Two of the General Sessions will tackle wellness, starting with Dr. Marc Brackett's session at 11 a.m. EST Tuesday, June 22.

In the General Session at 11 a.m. Wednesday, June 23, Personal Branding in the Digital Era, speaker Baldwin Cunningham will share his vast expertise, the benefits of digital marketing and social media, and the impact on connecting with a community. He will share the importance of utilizing different social media platforms and show how the exposure created can help stimulate a communities’ understanding of the school nurse, their area of expertise, and build trust between the school nurse and their community. Read a Q-and-A with Cunningham here.

Dr. Sarah Vinson, Dr. Jill Bohnenkamp, Eileen Gavin, and Suzan Norton, will take part in a Mental Health Symposium Panel Discussion with moderator Kathy Reiner at 11 a.m. Thursday, June 24. In this symposium panel discussion, participants will get an opportunity to hear from various perspectives about the mental health issues and challenges facing today’s students, parents, and school communities.

Dr. Byron McClure has 9 Disrupter Principles for School Nurses: A Strength-Based Approach to Leadership & Disrupting Inequities in his General Session at 1:50 p.m. Friday, June 25.

After this session, attendees will:

Listen to this NASN School Nurse Chat podcast as NASN Executive Director Donna Mazyck and Dr. McClure discuss the impacts of Social Emotional Learning (SEL) and restorative justice practices to connect and address today’s students.

Acceptance of advertising on the ad banner in this newsletter or resource information listed within in no way implies endorsement of advertised or listed products or services by NASN. No endorsement is intended or implied.