Blogs - News

Data Collection during COVID

By Erin Maughan, PhD, MS, RN, PHNA-BC, FNASN, FAAN posted 08-10-2020
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COVID has put the health of students front and center and has thrust school nurses into the spotlight. School nurses are being asked to do the near impossible, without adequate personal protective equipment needed to protect yourself or your students. Your administration may or may not be hearing your expertise and concerns. As schools scramble to put physical distancing in place, and other learning going virtual, many school nurses have asked if they should bother collecting data. The reality is although the activities you do and the data you collect may be a bit different this year- you should still collect data . Some of the activities you did in the past ...

Vaping Health Crisis an Opportunity for School Nurses

By Louise Wilson, MS, BSN, RN, LSN, NCSN posted 09-25-2019
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T he following was included in the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction's recent School Nurse Update. Every other week I create a newsletter and include a section entilted "Practice Points." During the past month, I have had the opportunity to listen to two excellent webinars on the topic of vaping and e-cigarettes. I have included the links to the recorded webinars at the end of these Practice Points. I highly recommend taking a couple of hours to listen to them! What struck me as I listened is just how acute and how severe this public health crisis is. Yes, the use of e-cigarettes and the exponential increase in the number of teens using these products ...

The Loss of an Investment in School Nursing: #JJSHLPstillhere

By Eileen Gavin, MSN, NCSN, FNP-BC, FNASN posted 07-03-2019
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I am overcome with a heavy heart and a deep sense of sadness as I arrive home from the National Association of School Nurses Conference from Colorado. It was not the exceptional NASN conferences that brought about this profound sense of melancholy. It is the time of year and visiting with professionals that I share a mutual allegiance. So, let me acknowledge what these gloomy emotions truly are, pure grief. I do not grieve for the loss of a loved one, colleague or friend. No, this grief is simply for the loss of my beloved Johnson & Johnson School Health Leadership Program (JJSHLP). This is the third national conference, that I have had to repeatedly respond ...

Colorado Association of School Nurses, Supporting Students with 21st Century School Nurses

By Kathy Reiner, MPH, BSN, RN, AE-C, FNASN posted 06-28-2019
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We are proud to recount the history and strong current position of the Colorado Association of School Nurses, (CASN). Formed in 1981 with the motto, “Strength in Membership, Unity, and Commitment”, our organization wasted no time exerting a strong voice in support of students and school nurses. Just a few short months after CASN came into existence, a large school district was about to eliminate 20 school nurse positions. CASN composed a letter to the district Superintendent and collaborated with the state nurse and state education associations in support of the nurses. We've been an advocacy and educational organization from the outset. Our very first meeting ...

Anniversary Gift to NASN from Margaret and IASN

By Cameron Traut, MS, BSN, RN, PEL-IL, NCSN posted 06-23-2019
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I must begin with special recognition of a former member, Margaret Winters. She collected the history of the Illinois Association of School Nurses (IASN) from its inception until 2007, and wrote a book for us! She was, and is still remembered as an icon in Illinois school nursing. Known for her fierce advocacy as DSN director(1975-77), IASN president (1977-78), IASN executive secretary (1989-2002), and NASN fellow, Margaret’s memory lives on in the legacy of Illinois school nursing. Because of her passion and dedication to school nursing in Illinois, we can appreciate IASN’s role in preserving and advancing school health and nursing in Illinois. What a gift ...

The Maryland Association of School Health Nurses- Happy 50th NASN!

By Mary Nasuta, MS, BSN, RN, NCSN posted 06-10-2019
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​ Happy 50th NASN! The Maryland Association of School Health Nurses (MASHN) has a rich tradition of school health leadership. We are the home of early school leaders like Shirley Steele and our current leader Donna Mazyck. The success of any affiliate is a team effort and we are grateful to the many professional school nurses who work tirelessly to advocate for students. As I finish my term as President, I have been reflective about what contributes to the success of affiliates and I wanted to share our strengths. Contributions of past leaders . We have been fortunate to have the continuing help of our past president, Nancy Mattucci to provide continuity ...

Delaware School Nursing History

By Megan Fioravanti, BSN, RN, NCSN posted 06-08-2019
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The first mention of school nurses in Delaware was in 1919 when there was a notation in public records of two school nurses, Elizabeth MacLaughlin, RN and Elizabeth Rogers, RN who served in Wilmington Public Schools. Both were public health nurses who were assigned to the schools. In 1930 another nurse, Mary Miller, RN, was added to cover the northern Claymont area, with Ruth Webb, RN to follow in 1931. By early 1940 several other nurses were added to the schools throughout Delaware. In 1946, Title 14 of the Delaware Legislative Code passed requiring every school district in Delaware to have a full-time school nurse and in the 1949-50 school year regulations ...

Greetings from the Bluegrass State

By Karen Elliott posted 06-08-2019
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Thanks for joining me! It’s been quite a school year! Greetings from the Bluegrass State (or a Commonwealth whichever you prefer). This is my “freshman year” as a NASN director and Denver will be my first NASN conference! I’d like to take a moment to refresh your memory of where my state is in this great country of ours. Kentucky borders seven states, Tennessee, Illinois, Missouri, Ohio, Indiana, Virginia, and West Virginia. I live in the western end of the state where the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers join so I truly live in the Midwest. Kentucky School Nurse Association or KYSNA formed in 1973 which member, Lucille Ross was instrumental ...

Nevada, The Silver State, the Past to the Future

By Tina Miller, BSN, RN, NCSN posted 06-07-2019
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1917 Nevada, the Silver State, laid the foundation for School Nursing in 1917 with passing an Act requiring all school children be screened for vision, hearing, dental and mouth breathing. 1928-1930 Between 1928 to 1930, Nevada budgeted $7,500 for three public health nurses to provide school and home health services to 10 of the 17 Nevada counties. 1932 Clark County gained its first two public school nurses in 1932. 1956 In 1956, Nevada directed that there be one school district in each of its 17 counties and Genevieve Arensdorf became the first Clark County School District Chief Nurse. 1960's Special schools were built for the mentally and ...

The Relentless School Nurse: Amplify the Voice of School Nursing Through Blogging & Social Media

By Robin Cogan, MEd, RN, NCSN, FNASN, FAAN posted 06-01-2019
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In July 2017, I took a blogging workshop at the NASN Conference in San Francisco with Margaret Cellucci, NASN's former Director of Communication. It was like a moon shot for me because it freed me to do something that I had hoped to do for years, become a blogger. The workshop was a nuts and bolts approach to blogging made easy and it gave me the tools I needed to start writing. The purpose of my blog, the Relentless School Nurse , is to amplify the voice of school nursing through storytelling. My blog will celebrate its 2nd birthday on July 4, 2019. That was the day I wrote my very first blog. Since that day, I have published a new post weekly. In fact, ...

Iowa Celebrates 50 years with NASN

By MaryAnn Strawhacker, MPH, BSN, RN, Sigma Theta Tau posted 05-22-2019
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Iowa has a long and proud history with NASN. Here are some FUN FAST FACTS : Iowa was one of the original 17 states organized in 1968. We became affiliated with NASN in 1994. Ruby Wheatly from Iowa was the second president of NASN. After retirement from the University of Iowa, Dr. Jan Denehy went on to serve NASN as the editor of JOSN for 14 years. Dr. Sharon Guthrie PhD, ARNP, CPNP, NCSN, RN-BC, a former past president of ISNO, now serves as our part-time executive director. Our proud legislative accomplishments include, but are not limited to the following: Students allowed to carry MDI for self treatment of asthma symptoms when needed. ...

Looking Back Moves Us Forward--Florida Association of School Nurses: FASN

By Janie Sailors, BSN, RN, NCSN-E posted 05-17-2019
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FASN—Florida Association of School Nursing It seems like only yesterday…..it seems like an eon ago…. You see, there was a determined group of Florida nurses who came together in the mid 1990’s to create a state nursing organization for those of us who had chosen a little known, independent, isolated nursing profession—School Nursing… Those early days were ones of trying to determine exactly how could we link nurses in the schools across the state—nurses who often had caseloads numbering into the 1000’s as well as multiple schools of varied types separated by distances that were extensive. Two Gulf coastal counties-- Lee and Charlotte-- took the initial ...

Idaho School Nursing - Small beginnings, great impact

By Suzi Morgan, NCSN, RN posted 04-07-2019
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In the fall of 1977, the Meridian, Idaho School District hired 4 registered nurses. Soon after, the 4 of us attended the School Nurse Conference group. They were made up of School Nurses from Boise, Nampa, Moscow and Idaho Falls. This small group had been together for several years at that time, meeting once a year in the fall. In the summer of 1978, the Meridian School District sent two school nurses to Denver for an NASN conference at the University of Colorado School of Medicine campus. We were overwhelmed by the size of the group and were delighted when we announced that we were new school nurses and needed help in getting started. During the late summer ...

The Relentless School Nurse: Kathy Reiner - Champion of Climate Justice

By Robin Cogan, MEd, RN, NCSN, FNASN, FAAN posted 03-21-2019
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Kathy Reiner is a Colorado school nurse who champions climate justice. She is clear that the science is irrefutable and what is needed is immediate action. I learned of her passion for saving our planet through her tweets. Kathy showed me why climate change is an issue for school nurses. Follow Kathy Reiner on Twitter and you will learn to view the issue of climate justice through a nursing lens. One example is Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments, an organization I learned about through her Twitter feed. While I have always believed in recycling, minimizing waste, and limiting my carbon footprint, I never connected it to my nursing practice, until ...

The Story of Indiana School Nursing

By Chris Amidon, MSN, NCSN, APRN, FNP-C posted 03-18-2019
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Nurses have served in Indiana schools since at least the early 1950s.The nurse in the school district accompanied the school doctor to classrooms to give immunizations in some city schools. Rural schools were served by the county health nurse. In the 1960s, school nurses in Indiana were hired with Title I federal money, at least one per district, meaning there were at least 290 school nurses. Many of these nurses, one per district, had a BS degree in Nursing. Some of those school nurses attained an Indiana Student Services Educator’s License, which remains an option to this day. The Indiana Department of Health was a liaison to school nurses hired by ...

The Relentless School Nurse: What Happened at School Today? - Liz Pray MSN-Ed RN NCSN

By Robin Cogan, MEd, RN, NCSN, FNASN, FAAN posted 03-07-2019
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Welcome to a new feature on the Relentless School Nurse website : "What Happened at School Today?" The idea for this view from different health offices is the result of discussions with school nurses across the country who wanted to share their practice settings. Last year, Abby I shared pictures taken from our perspective health offices. I am in an urban NJ school and she is in rural NH, so the differences were quite distinct. "What Happened at School Today?" will feature pictures in and out of the office and a brief write up of a day in the life of a school nurse. It should be quite fun to hear about our school day and to view the variety of practice ...

Concussions - Where to Start in Your District?

By Kate Fatica posted 02-27-2019
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Does your district have a protocol or guidelines for concussion management in students? States are required to have a plan for returning to organized physical activity after a concussion, but not many districts provide guidelines on what should be done in the time immediately following a concussion and through the recovery process. Furthermore, there are wide variations in how some physicians treat and guide follow-up care for a concussion diagnosis, which can lead to confusing and unclear expectations for management from the school. Having a solid district protocol for concussion management can therefore help to address common challenges and provide a clearer ...

More Than Band-Aids and Ice-packs: LSNO Anniversary Blog

By Jessica Hanemann, RN, ADN-RN posted 02-25-2019
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“What does a School Nurse actually do?” “Are you a REAL nurse?” “You have the best job, it must be SO easy.” “What do you actually do all day?” How many times has someone said something like this to you? Often times our roles / responsibilities are not well understood by teachers, administrators, parents or even other nurses. How do you explain to everyone that your responsibilities include more than putting on Band-Aids and giving out icepacks? Before becoming a School Nurse, I had no idea what School Nursing was really like. Nothing in my nursing education or career had prepared me for this. Being a nurse is HARD; being a School Nurse is a different ...

Nebraska School Nurses Association Anniversary Blog

By Kay Duncan, MAA, RN, BSN, CPN posted 02-22-2019
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The Nebraska School Nurses Association (NSNA) was formed in 1973, initially as an affiliate of the Nebraska State Education Association (NSEA). We became affiliated with NASN in the same year and have been affiliated ever since. Today we have 150 members and celebrated our 45th anniversary last year! .It was our honor to have Nina Fekaris at our celebration. While Nebraska was not involved in the creation of NASN, we are proud of the fact that in 1981, one of our members, Helen Weber, RN was the Chair of the Professional Standards Guidelines Committee and authored a booklet for NASN called “Guidelines for a Model School Nurse Services Program.” Mrs. Weber is ...

The Relentless School Nurse: Precepting Nursing's Future

By Robin Cogan, MEd, RN, NCSN, FNASN, FAAN posted 02-21-2019
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Preceptorship is an opportunity that must not be underestimated. As a nurse, one of our professional obligations is shepherding the next generation of nurses through their clinical training. It is an opportunity to model the heights of our profession, but it often dissolves into a much different experience for the students. As a school nurse and clinical faculty at Rutgers University-Camden, I have a great appreciation for preceptors and the importance of the student experience. This month, I have had the privilege of precepting a senior undergraduate nursing student who is completing her community health rotation in my school health office. It is an opportunity ...