The Health Services Department provides assistance to students and staff in the areas of health services, health education, and a healthful environment. The role of the school nurse within this program is to strengthen the educational process of children and youth by assisting them to improve or adapt to their health status. The school nurse will promote wellness and disease prevention by early intervention and identification of health problems that interfere with learning. Registered Nurses are responsible for supervising the Licensed Practical Nurses that are employed with the school system to ensure the healthy outcomes for children.
The school nurse is responsible for the following areas:
Health Assessment
Vision screening
Hearing Screening
Dental screening
Scoliosis screening
Blood pressure screening
Growth and development education
Illness and injury assessment and interventions
Nursing procedures such as: tracheostomy care, gastrostomy feeding, catheterizations, blood sugar testing, nebulizer treatments, medication administration, etc.
Chronic disease management and education
Identification, assessment, intervention and evaluation of student health concerns
Individual health care plans and emergency action plans for students with chronic health conditions
Physical exams
Referrals to parents, agencies and medical providers as needed
Assessment, intervention and referrals for students with mental health needs
Medication administration training for Unlicensed Medication Assistants.
First Aid and Safety
First aid room inspection
First aid and CPR training
Identification of health and safety concerns in the school environment
First aid support for ROTC activities
Accident reporting
Communicable Disease Control
Distribution of regulations for communicable disease control to all schools
Screening, assessment and intervention for communicable diseases
Communicable disease weekly reporting
Liaison between the school system, Mobile County Health Department, parents, and health care providers
Monitoring of compliance with the State of Alabama immunization law
Health Education
Communicable disease prevention
Hand washing
Hygiene
Growth and development
Dental health
Standard precautions
HIV/AIDS
Scoliosis
Nutrition
Other health related topics as needed on request
Crisis Intervention
Accidents
Child abuse
Threatened suicide
Threatened violence
Medication overdose
Serious illness
Grief counseling
Special Education Support
Vision and hearing clearance before psychological testing
IEP meeting participation and consultation
OHI participation and consultation
504 meeting participation and consultation
Special Olympics: first aid support
Special procedures
Bus transportation and field trips with medically fragile students
Recommended Screenings
Vision Research- Kindergarten, 2nd, and 4th grades
