Step Up and Be Counted! Update

Abstract

There is a significant gap in meaningful school health data in the current national education and health data sets. Current data sets do not sufficiently capture the number and credentials of school health providers, the health of students who receive care at school, or the outcomes of school nurse interventions. Since 2014, school nurses across the United States have embraced Step Up and Be Counted!: A National Standardized School Nurse Data Set. The goal of Step Up is to collect school nurse data in a standardized, uniform format. Prior to the project, no data were recorded in a uniform manner across states and health services delivery models. Data have been reported for two years on who is delivering health care in school, selected student chronic conditions, and the disposition of students once they leave the school health office. Professional development sessions have been conducted at the national conferences of both the NASN and the NASSNC and at the state level. As the project matures, steps are being taken to increase the number of school nurses and states participating and to assure data accuracy and validity.