Collaboration Background
It is estimated that one in four students in United States schools may have a chronic health condition (Jackson, Vann, Kotch, Pahel, & Lee, 2011; Van Cleave, Gortmaker, & Perrin, 2010). Approximately 6% of those students have multiple chronic conditions leading to challenges with treatment adherence, disease acceptance, lifestyle modification, care coordination, increased exposure to chronic condition risk factors, and difficulties transitioning to adult healthcare settings (Anderson, 2010; Rezaee & Pollock, 2015). Children with chronic conditions are at risk for high absentee rates, low student engagement, dropping-out of school, exposure to bullying, disruptive behaviors, poor grades, and below-average performance on standardized achievement tests (Forrest, Bevans, Riley, Crespo, & Louis, 2011; Bethell et al., 2012).
The school nurse is well positioned to support the health and academic success of students with chronic health conditions by providing direct care and facilitating the many practice components of care coordination (Bargeron et al., 2015; Brook et al., 2015; NASN 2015). School nurse advocacy helps students and families to access needed resources in support of academic achievement (CDC, 2017). School nurses are leaders who provide care coordination, health education and promotion, quality improvement, and critical thinking skills that benefit schools, families, the healthcare system, and most importantly children with chronic health conditions.
The key resources here support the school nurse leadership role in building school communities through collaboration with state and local health and education leaders. Advancing the leadership role of school nurses optimizes the health and learning of students with chronic health conditions. Please share your feedback using the comment area below. You may also contact NASN's Director of Nursing Education Nichole Bobo at nbobo@nasn.org.
Professional Practice Evidence
National Association of School Nurses
Framework for 21st Century School Nursing PracticeTM
Position Statement: Chronic Absenteeism, School Nurses - An Integral Member of the School Team Addressing
Position Statement: Diabetes Management in the School Setting
Position Statement: Individualized Healthcare Plans: The Role of the School Nurse
Position Statement: Nursing Delegation to Unlicensed Assistive Personnel in the School Setting
Position Statement: Role of the 21st Century School Nurse
Position Statement: The Role of the School Nurse in Telehealth
Position Statement: Students with Chronic Health Conditions: The Role of the School Nurse
Position Statement: Transition Planning for Students with Chronic Health Conditions
Position Statement: The Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child: Implications for 21st Century School Nurses
American Academy of Pediatrics
Position Statement: Role of the School Nurse in Providing School Health Services
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Research Brief: Addressing the Needs of Students with Chronic Health Conditions: Strategies for Schools
Research Brief: Chronic Health Conditions and Academic Achievement
Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child Model
Resources and Continuing Education
National Association of School Nurses
Skills-Based Approach to Managing Chronic Health Conditions: Materials from a training-of-trainers event.
Students with Chronic Health Conditions - The Importance of Parents and School Nurses: Podcast
National Association of School Nurses. (2019). School nurse-led care coordination: Proceedings from the national strategy to action roundtable. NASN School Nurse, 34(4), 229-234.
Principles for Practice: The Role of IHPs in Care Coordination for Students with Chronic Health Conditions
Principles for Practice: Nursing Delegation to Unlicensed Assistive Personnel in the School Setting
Evidence-based Practice Tips
Presentation Tips for Using Data
Tips for Data Use
Partnership Building to Support Students Manage Chronic Health Conditions: 1.0 CNE
Care Coordination for Students with Diabetes: 1.0 CNE
Focus on the Framework-Care Coordination live program: 6.5 CNE
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
School Health Index
Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Survey (YRBSS)
School Health Profiles
Parents for Healthy Schools
National Association of Chronic Disease Directors
School Health Publications