School Health

School Health services are provided for students to appraise, protect, and promote health. These services are designed to ensure access or referral to primary health care services or both, foster appropriate use of primary health care services, prevent and control communicable disease and other health problems, provide emergency care for illness or injury, promote and provide optimum sanitary conditions for a safe school facility and school environment, and provide educational and counseling opportunities for promoting and maintaining individual, family, and community health. Qualified professionals such as physicians, nurses, dentists, health educators, and other allied health personnel provide these services.

The primary providers of School Health Services are Credentialed School Nurses. School Nurses have the professional education and skills to function successfully in the complex system of education and health. Their educational preparation prepares them to identify and care for the health problems of today.

The School Nurse assists students to attain a high level of wellness. The School Nurse is a liaison between education and health care, providing a link between the school, home, and community.

The role of the School Nurse:

     As a link to the home is:

  • As a liaison between home and school regarding health concerns.
  • Making home visits.
  • Taking health histories.
  • Assessing long-term illnesses.
  • Participating in parent-nurse conferences.
  • Providing information for community resources.
  • Involving self with parent groups.
  • Providing promotional activities for health care.

     In the school is:

  • Conducting health screenings: vision, hearing, dental, scoliosis, diabetes, blood pressure, health problems, and others.
  • Conducting Nursing assessments for growth, health, and development.
  • Explores health-related attendance problems.
  • Evaluating and assessing health needs of students, staff, and parents.
  • Providing health counseling regarding chronic illness, nutrition, disease prevention, positive lifestyles, and others.
  • Implementing and monitoring students' compliance with state immunization laws.
  • Education team member providing health assessments, interpretation of medical data, right objectives for health components of the Individualized Education Plan, 504 Plan, or Individualized Health Care Plan.
  • Teaching health education and promoting wellness activities.
  • Being a member of the School Site Intervention Teams.
  • Being a member of the School Attendance Review Board.
  • Provides for students with special health care needs and chronic illnesses to be in school safely and with their health needs met.  
  • Being a resource person for health related issues and health education.
  • Detecting, planning, treating, referring and following up on the health problems interfering with children's learning.
  • Communicable disease control.
  • Providing emergency first aid.

     In the community is:

  • Participating in Parent and Community Involvement opportunities.
  • Acting as a liaison between home, school, health care provider, and community resources.
  • Making referrals to appropriate community agencies.
  • Participating in professional conferences.
  • Serving as a resource person for community agencies.
  • Being a member of the Community Inter-disciplinary Teams.
  • Provides expertise as a liaison to community service organizations.
  • Serves as a liaison for recording and reporting child abuse to appropriate department of social services.
  • Collaborates with appropriate caregivers, local, state, and national service professionals to provide a seamless system of health care.

 

Return to Coordinated School Health Program page.

Return to School Health Home page.


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