December 1, 2022

Menstruation is receiving increasing attention as a critical global public health and gender equality issue. School nurses are uniquely positioned to support the health and well-being of adolescents in the school setting and can advocate for school environments supportive of menstruation.

In The Journal of School Nursing (JOSN) December Podcast, JOSN editor Martha Dewey Bergren interviews author Molly Secor-Turner to discuss the article "Menstruation Experiences of Middle and High School Students in the Midwest: A Pilot Study."

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Schools decide to carry naloxone based on perceived drug usage at the school. Schools also need administrators to champion securing access to naloxone in their schools. 

NASN President Linda Mendonça said that lack of awareness is the number one reason why schools do not keep naloxone on campus. NASN advocates for naloxone to be in all schools as part of their school emergency preparedness and response plans. Read the article.

• NASN Resources: See NASN's Position Statement: Naloxone in the School Setting.

As states legalize medical cannabis, school nurses face increased parent/caregiver questions about administration at school. This open-access JOSN article, School Nurse Perspectives of Medical Cannabis Policy in K-12 Schools: An Exploratory Descriptive Study, explores school nurse perceptions of barriers to school-based medical cannabis administration.

• NASN Resources: See Medical Cannabis: What School Nurses Need to Know in the NASN Learning Center.

The 2022-2023 NASN President's Endowment Challenge theme is Transform Student Health Equity. The money raised will be used for research on student health and furthering school nursing practice, as well as scholarships for school nurses. Learn more and donate.

School nurses play a vital role in enhancing vaccine uptake by providing strong vaccine recommendations. The Building Family Confidence in the COVID-19 Vaccine Toolkit - Framing Strategies for School Nurses offers evidence-based tips and techniques to support more productive communication about getting children vaccinated. The toolkit is offered by NASN as part of the Champions for School Health (CSH) project, aiming to increase confidence in and access to pediatric COVID-19 vaccinations.

• Explore NASN's Public Resource Library to find free CSH resources for school nurses interested in hosting SLVs, building vaccine confidence, keeping our communities safe, and more.

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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.

• How Sick Is Too Sick for School? RSV, Flu and Colds Strain Parents and School Nurses (Source:wsj.com)
• O’Connell nurse awarded School Nurse of the Year (Source: catholicherald.com)
• Wisconsin DHS puts $8.2 million toward school nurse work force. But is it enough? (Source: jsonline.com)
• Moriches Elementary School Nurse Wins Prestigious Award (Source: patch.com)
• Virginia Association of School Nurses’ Nurse of the Year Honors William Ramsay Nurse (Source: acps.k12.va.us)
• Expected shortage of 20,000 school nurses by 2035 (Source: tmj4.com)

As members of interdisciplinary teams, school nurses provide supports to students experiencing behavioral health emergencies. The course School Nurses Respond to Behavioral Health Emergencies: Findings From a Statewide School Nurse Workforce Survey explores the frequency of school nursing involvement in caring for students with behavioral health emergencies in school settings. Participants will learn common pediatric behavioral health emergencies encountered by school nurses, trends in adolescent suicide rates in the U.S., and potential school and community collaborators for student behavioral health supports. This research session was initially presented at Virtual NASN2021 and is now available in the NASN Learning Center.

During this time of increased federal funding and an opportunity to address the mental health needs of students, the National Association of State Boards of Education, NASBE, published a two-page policy brief on Enhancing School-Based Health Services. School nurses can share this with school leaders to advocate for funding and expansion of school health services. View the full policy brief.

• NASN Resources: School nurses are frontline healthcare professionals in schools identifying and supporting students in crisis. See NASN's Mental Health resource page.

Diabetes Management at School 

The Safe at School^® Working Group of the American Diabetes Association^® (ADA) now offers the updated school guide, Helping the Student with Diabetes Succeed: A Guide for School Personnel, that reflects important changes in diabetes technology and treatment in the school setting. The ADA has taken on leadership of this project to align with best practices in the school setting and legal protections for students with diabetes. This critical resource for school nurses and staff, diabetes providers, families, and policymakers can also be adapted to other settings such as childcare, camp, and recreational programs. 

• NASN Resources: NASN’s Diabetes in Children page contains resources to assist school nurses in providing evidence-based quality care to students with Type 1 diabetes.

Medication Administration in Schools

NASN’s School Nursing Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guideline: Medication Administration in Schools, provides a uniform guideline for administering medication in schools, including evidence-based recommendations for the safe care of Pre-K-12 students who receive medications during the day. The School Nursing Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guideline: Medication Administration in Schools Implementation Toolkit includes sample policies, training and delegation forms and templates, checklists and protocols, and more and will help school nurses implement those recommendations.

• See NASN's Skills-based Approach to Managing Chronic Health Conditions in Schools, an interactive program geared toward helping school nurses apply the NASN Framework for 21st Century School Nursing Practice™ to the management of chronic health conditions in schools.

CDC released a resource for administrators and staff members of schools and early care and education programs related to mpox: Mpox Toolkit for Schools and Early Care and Education Programs. This toolkit provides a new, user-friendly format for existing mpox considerations in schools and early care and education. In addition, a Mpox Toolkit for Institutions of Higher Education is also available.

A recent CDC press release details the steady decline in measles vaccination coverage, a significant setback in global progress toward achieving and maintaining measles elimination, and leaves millions of children susceptible to infection. "Measles anywhere is a threat everywhere, as the virus can quickly spread to multiple communities and across international borders." Read the full press release.

• NASN Resources: Immunizations are essential from infancy through adulthood, and childhood vaccinations effectively prevent serious childhood illnesses. See NASN's Immunizations resource page.

The course, Daddy Hurt My Neck & Then I Talked Like a Duck; Recognizing Strangulation in Children, reviews the unique challenges faced by healthcare and social services professionals when evaluating the occurrence of strangulation in the pediatric population. You'll learn differences in anatomy, the mechanism of injury, as well as signs and symptoms that can be present in a child or adolescent who may have experienced strangulation. This session, first presented at Virtual NASN2021, now available in the NASN Learning Center, highlights a case study and current clinical tools and resources for evaluation and documentation.

CDC surveillance has shown an increase in respiratory illnesses (influenza, COVID-19, and RSV) with associated ER visits and hospitalizations across the U.S. School nurses can promote a safe school environment by identifying symptoms, educating the school community and caregivers, and encouraging vaccination for flu and COVID-19.

The annual observance of the IDPD on December 3 aims to promote an understanding of disability issues and mobilize support for the dignity, rights, and well-being of persons with disabilities. This year's theme is Transformative solutions for inclusive development: the role of innovation in fuelling an accessible and equitable world. The 2022 global observance to commemorate IDPD will be held Monday, 5 December 2022. Learn more.

• NASN Resources: See NASN's Position Statement: IDEIA and Section 504 Teams - The School Nurse as an Essential Team Member.

• Annual North Carolina School Nurse Conference - School Health: A Time to Reflect, Celebrate, and Refocus - December 8-9, 2022 - Learn more and Register

• California School Nurses Organization: 73rd CSNO Conference - Moving Forward REJUVENATED AND RESILIENT - February 17-19, 2023 - Learn more and Register

• Maryland Association of School Health Nurses Annual Conference - School Nurse-Navigators "Remember the Past, Navigate the Present, and Prepare for the Future" - March 4, 2023 - Learn more

• Vermont State School Nurses Association Spring Conference - March 24 - Save the Date

• Overseas School Health Nurse Association Spring Conference 2023 - March 26-27, 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 2022 calendar. 

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