School Nurse

POSITION TITLE: SCHOOL NURSE

WORKING TITLE: SCHOOL HEALTH NURSE

SCHOOL/DEPARTMENT: Student Services

LOCATION:   Central Office (School Location to be Determined)

PAY GRADE: CERTIFIED STATUS       

FLSA STATUS: Non-Exempt

REPORTS TO: DIRECTOR OF STUDENT SUPPORT SERVICES

WORK WEEK SCHEDULE: 5 days per week   

WORK HOURS: 8 hours school specific ; occasional evening/weekend 

MONTHS/YR: 10

POSITION PURPOSE

The professional school nurse is responsible for planning, implementing, coordinating and evaluating school health services within the context of the Coordinated School Health Program Model.

The school nurse serves in nursing roles of program manager/ coordinator, case manager/direct care provider, educator and counselor, and collaborator/advocate for the Pender County Schools in assigned schools.

POSITION ANALYSIS

The school nurse will provide:

Standards of Care

Assessment: Collects comprehensive data pertinent to the student’s health or situation

Diagnosis: Analyzes the assessment data to determine the nursing diagnosis or barriers to learning

Outcomes Identification: Identifies expected outcomes for individual student or situation

Planning: Develops an individualized plan that prescribes strategies and/or accommodations toward attaining expected outcomes

Implementation: Implements the identified plan through coordination of care, teaching, ongoing assessment and evaluation  Evaluation: Evaluates progress towards attainment of outcomes

Standards of Professional Performance

Quality of Practice: Systematically enhances the quality and effectiveness of nursing practice

Education: Attains knowledge and competency that reflects current school nursing practice

Professional Practice Evaluation: Evaluates one’s own nursing practice in relation to professional practice standards and guidelines, relevant statutes, rules and regulations

Collegiality: Interacts with and contributes to the professional development of peers and school personnel as colleagues

Collaboration: Collaborates with the student, the family, school staff and others in the conduct of professional nursing practice

Ethics: Integrates ethical provisions in all areas of practice

Research: Integrates research findings into practice

Resource Utilization: Considers factors related to safety, effectiveness, cost, and impact on practice, in planning and delivering school nursing services

Leadership: Provides leadership in the professional practice setting and the profession

Program Management: Manages school health services

MINIMUM QUALIFICATION STANDARDS

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES

The complex role of the school nurse demands, but is not limited to, an understanding and knowledge of: 

• Community, including community as a system and aggregates as clients
• Pediatric/Adolescent Nursing
• Public Health/ Community Health Nursing
• Health education, counseling, mental health and crisis intervention for students, parents and staff
• Communicable Disease – preventing and responding to outbreaks
• Applicable laws, regulations and standards pertaining to school nursing practice
• (NC Nurse Practice Act, Standards of School Nursing Practice and the Eight Components of a Coordinated School Health Program)
• School Health law
• Special education legislation and services
• Case finding, case management and health advocacy
• Program management, including personnel supervision
• Family theory, assessment and intervention
• Leadership, networking and collaboration
• Ethnic and cultural sensitivity and competence
• Contemporary health and psychosocial issues that influence children, families and the community
• Health care delivery systems and the concepts of integrated health care
• Building student, staff and family capacity for adaptation, selfmanagement, self-advocacy and learning
• School as a non-traditional health care setting
• Development, management and evaluation of school health programs
• Environmental health within the school community

Skills related to this important role include the ability to:

• Plan, coordinate and supervise the work of others
• Deal tactfully with others and exercise good judgment in appraising situations
• Prioritize and triage to make independent and timely nursing decisions
• Secure the cooperation and respect of students, faculty and staff
• Elicit needed information and maintain effective working relationships
• Collect data to direct evidence based practice
• Record accurately services rendered and interpret and explain records, reports, activities, health care plans, accommodations and medical interventions
• Identify health related barriers to learning (i.e., at risk behaviors, financial, cultural, economic, etc.)
• Supervise specialized clinical services and associated health teaching for students with chronic conditions, other special health needs, and developmental disabilities
• Manage medication administration, including administering and delegating to other staff when appropriate, and providing associated health teaching
• Provide or arrange for routine health assessments, such as vision, hearing, or dental screenings and follow-up referrals as needed
• Help assure a safe, nurturing school environment

EDUCATION, TRAINING, AND EXPERIENCE

Required:

Registered nurse, currently licensed in North Carolina

Recommended:

A minimum of 3 years RN nursing experience in pediatric / adolescent health and/or community health nursing

CERTIFICATION AND LICENSE REQUIREMENTS REQUIRED

Acquire National Board Certification for School Nurses within 3 years of hire date

(which requires a Bachelor of Science in Nursing Degree) and maintain throughout employment

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES 

• This professional school nursing position within Pender County Schools is responsible for planning, implementing, coordinating and evaluating school health services that:
• Maximize the time and quality of in-class time by reducing the incidence of health related absenteeism,
• Eliminate or minimize health problems which impair learning 
• Promote the highest degree of independent functioning possible
• Promote student, staff and community awareness of and participation in healthy behaviors 

At a minimum, the school nurse will be expected to:

• Attend the New School Nurse Orientation and follow up session (new school nurses)
• Collect data for the NC DHHS School Health Nursing Survey and Program Summary (End of Year of Report)
• Attend Prevent Blindness of N.C. training every 2 years while employed
• Make home visits as necessary to reduce/eliminate academic related barriers

WORKING CONDITIONS

PHYSICAL DEMANDS

• Ability to work in a high-stressed environment
• Ability to stand 30% of the time without fatigue or discomfort
• Ability to walk 50% of the time without fatigue or discomfort
• Ability to sit 30 % of the time without fatigue or discomfort
• Ability to lift up to 50 lbs
• Ability to carry up to 15 lbs
• Ability to push up to 60 lbs
• Ability to pull up to 60 lbs

WORK ENVIRONMENT

Must be able to work in office and public school environments and come into direct contact with staff and students

Travel is required to schools and Central Services offices and to and from educational workshops within North Carolina

DISCLAIMER: The above statements are intended to describe the general purpose and responsibilities assigned to this position. They are not intended to contain or be interpreted as a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities, and skills that may be required of the employees assigned to this position. This description may be revised by the supervisor, with HR review and approval, at any time.

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