School Health Nursing: Framework for the Future, Part I

Abstract

Society has an emerging respect for the impact that school health nursing programs have on both the health and the education of school-age children. School nurses need to capture current opportunities by building on the richness of the past in order to remain viable, to advance the value of the specialty, and to meet increasing demands for health-related services in schools. Thriving in an increasingly complex and outcome-driven health and educational environment will require a broadening of perspectives, a modifying of paradigms, and an adjustment of attitudes and practices. This will involve building stronger program support, influencing external societal forces, forging new and expanded partnerships, and solidifying program infrastructures while addressing the specialty’s professional and practice issues. Such changes will allow school nursing services to remain available and relevant to the needs of the students and communities they serve. This is Part I of a two-part series on the future of school nursing.