The future contribution of school nurses to the health of school age children

Abstract

Summarizes the difficulties facing today’s adolescents and data on the prevalence of risk‐taking behaviour which threatens their health. Describes how the school nurse is in a unique position to influence the health of school age children, and is often perceived by them as a caring, listening person whom they can trust. Suggests that school health services are in a rut, straddling the boundary between health and education services and failing to fit neatly into the primary health care team. Outlines how this is having a weakening effect, as providers and purchasers are unwilling to support a service which appears expensive and of questionable value. Deplores the lack of documented evidence on the effectiveness of school health services. Applauds authorities which have replaced routine medical examinations with more appropriate services. Urges the school health service to design services which recognize adolescents as a group with specific health needs. Makes a list of recommendations for achieving this aim.

School nurses as health counsellors in Finnish ENHPS schools

“…They are in a position to help pupils to process health information and to assist them in the framing of health and well-being messages within the school community. In practice, however, school nurses concentrate more on conventional activities, such as screening and immunisation, and their role as health promoters within the school community is often unclear and undefined (Bagnall, 1997;Bradley, 1997;Urjanheimo et al, 2000;Edwards, 2002).…”

“…Meeting childrens' and adolescents' changing health needs also requires the reorientation of school nurses' work and methods, including health counselling (Bagnall, 1997). This paper focuses on how school nurses estimated their goal attainment in relation to the contents and methods of health counselling in the context of the Finnish European Network of Health Promoting Schools, and how they judged their roles and possibilities as health promoters in the school community.…”

“…In order to implement a school health policy and to attain the health goals that school members consider important, it is essential that everyone concerned with the school should be committed to the attainment of these goals (Keirle and Thomas, 2000). Meeting childrens' and adolescents' changing health needs also requires the reorientation of school nurses' work and methods, including health counselling (Bagnall, 1997). This paper focuses on how school nurses estimated their goal attainment in relation to the contents and methods of health counselling in the context of the Finnish European Network of Health Promoting Schools, and how they judged their roles and possibilities as health promoters in the school community.…”

The health‐promoting school: what role for nursing?

“…It appears to be working towards a consensus on what it is and what it does, but faces a number of hurdles in demonstrating this against effective programme outcomes. Almost a decade ago, Bagnall (1997) suggested that school nursing was in a rut, in the sense that it was caught between the divisions of both health and education services and that it failed to fit in with the primary healthcare team. More recent studies still identify that the move towards creating the specialist role of school nurse, as a subset of the community or family nurse role, has left the discipline marginalized, in conflict and confusion and clouded by inconsistency (McKenna et al.…”

Administration of medicines in school: who is responsible?

“…School nurses are registered general nurses, who often also have specialist qualifications in sick children's nursing or school health. A key activity for them is the definition of a health profile for each school, which outlines the health needs of pupils and which is updated regularly 26. Sadly, the number of school nurses seems to have been reduced in many districts 27…”