141st APHA Annual Meeting

In This section

291165
School and public health nurses: Partners in population-based school health data and programs

Wednesday, November 6, 2013 : 12:50 PM - 1:10 PM

Erin Maughan, PhD, MS, RN, APHN-BC , National Association of School Nurses, Silver Spring, MD
School nurses already work with 95 percent of school-aged children in the United States. These nurses are the daily eyes and ears of public health. They observe the social determinants and health disparities of their communities on a firsthand basis. In addition, as part of their role and responsibilities, school nurses keep records of the health services they provide. These records include information about students who are well (those who receive screenings, immunizations, episodic health room care); and students with chronic health conditions (emergency care planning; daily treatment and response data for students with conditions such as asthma, severe allergies, seizure disorders, and type I diabetes). School nurses also maintain health records for students who do not receive care in the typical health care provider systems and whose only access to care may be the school nurse. Some of the data that school nurses collect is shared with maternal and child health programs at the local and state level. However, this is not a universal practice. This presentation will share several successful examples from around the nation of how school nurses have partnered with public health nurses and even health care providers in the sharing of data electronically and in coordinating efforts to use resources more efficiently. With continued threats to public health budgets and the responsibilities of public health nurses being stretched thinner it is critical to look at new ways to accomplish and outreach to populations.

Learning Areas:
Epidemiology
Public health or related nursing
Public health or related research
Systems thinking models (conceptual and theoretical models), applications related to public health

Learning Objectives:
Identify ways public health nurses can work with school nurses can partner. Define data that is collected by school nurses and can be used for public health initiatives.

Keywords: Public Health Nursing, School Health

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I have worked in school nursing for over 15 years as a provider, consultant, and researcher. I currently serve as the Director of Research for that National Association of School Nurses and have spoken nationally regarding public health nursing and school nursing. I also am a reviewer for both Public Health Nursing and the Journal of School Nursing, and worked as both a school nurse and public health nurse.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

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