The Journal of School Nursing

The nurse manager can assess students’ needs in a school system and devise programs that will eliminate duplication of effort and promote collaboration of health-related services. The nurse manager can also accurately evaluate job performance of the nursing staff with an eye toward risk reduction and improved program outcomes. The work of a school nurse manager can facilitate the provision of excellent health care services by school health programs in an era of high expectations and fiscal accountability. This article examines the role of the nurse manager in the school setting and urges school nurses to develop managerial skills to enhance the delivery of care in their schools.

Life transitions are periods in time when individuals experience major changes. Transitions may occur during periods between two relatively stable states of human development. The associated changes with the transition bring instability as the person passes through the period. During this period, the individual is typically required to make major adjustments, to develop new skills, or to learn to cope with new experiences. One major life transition begins during the final year or years of high school. This transition, unlike childhood transitions, for many individuals will include a move from one’s childhood home and away from their family of origin and from an established network of friends. A successful transition to young adulthood will form a foundation for the individual in future stages of development and transitions. Three frameworks of transition, developmental psychology, counseling, and nursing, are described.

This article gives a brief history and background of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in childhood. A review of the medical model, including the diagnostic criteria and recommended protocols for treatment, is presented. An educational cultural model based on a holistic approach in assessing causes of hyperactivity and inattention is described. The Educational Cultural Model (ECM) synthesizes the effects of significant extrinsic factors in the life of the child, such as family dynamics, societal influences, and the educational system, and intrinsic factors, such as individual temperament, energy levels, learning style, giftedness, and personal interests. In addition to the primary purpose of comparing the medical model of ADHD to the conceptual ECM, this article is designed to stimulate thinking about different ways to view ADHD.

The passage of laws requiring that all children receive appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment means children with special health care needs who are at increased risk for health emergencies have entered regular public classrooms. Therefore, teachers must deal not only with health emergencies of normal children, but with emergencies of children with special health care needs. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a nurse-led educational intervention for 324 teachers on their knowledge of and anxiety about management of children having health emergencies. The intervention resulted in increased knowledge and decreased anxiety about emergency response. This study demonstrated the feasibility and value of nurses educating teachers about school emergencies and in placing the individual health care plan into action.

The increasing number of children with asthma in the nation’s schools necessitates an examination of the preparedness of teachers in the care and management of children with asthma. This article reports the findings of a random sample of 291 public elementary school teachers regarding the knowledge and perception of the training they have received on asthma and its management. Data from this study suggest that teachers are not adequately prepared to assist children with the management of asthma in the classroom. Implications for school nurses on assisting teachers with asthma management are provided.

School nurses often provide supportive services to pregnant and parenting teens. This study aims to describe the relationship between female secondary students’ attendance and achievement before and after childbirth. Among female students in the Minneapolis Public Schools who had a birth in 1994, there was a strong correlation between school achievement before and after the giving birth. Of those students not academically successful before the birth, over half were not successful afterward. Among those academically successful before the birth, 72% were successful after the birth. However, in the almost 40% with different academic success before, compared with after the birth, two thirds demonstrated greater academic success following the birth. Results show that attendance declines for adolescent female parents 1 year after a birth compared with 1 year before. Programs need to be examined to maximize each student’s potential and opportunities.

The privacy and security provisions of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) are changing the standards for how identifiable health information is handled. This article explains HIPAA and how it interacts with the Family Educational Right to Privacy Act. The advent of HIPAA and the attention given to privacy and security of identifiable health information provides the opportunity for school nurses, school districts, and administrators to revisit and update how they handle student health information. Resources to assist in establishing policies, procedures, and practices that protect student and family health information are identified.

Between recruitment and retention or resignation lie the often-slippery slopes of job comprehension, job performance, and job satisfaction. Job comprehension and performance are continuously addressed and evaluated, but job satisfaction is all too often assumed and undervalued. This article proposes that retention of school nurses may be significantly enhanced, particularly during times of critical nursing shortages, by the appropriate and timely use of affirmation for excellence, innovation, improvement, educational advancement, determination, and perseverance. More simply stated, affirmation is a form of applause for a job well done.

The American Association of Nurse Attorneys recommends that all nurses engaged in the practice of nursing insure themselves against liability to third parties arising out of that practice. To make an informed decision whether to purchase individual insurance and how much to purchase, each school nurse must personally evaluate a multitude of factors. Each school nurse should also understand the various types of insurance policies available and how an individual policy is affected by coverage provided through the school district policy or self-insurance program. In certain states, school nurses also may be protected by the legal doctrine of sovereign immunity. This article provides answers to some of the questions frequently posed by school nurses about individual professional liability insurance.