The Journal of school nursing : the official publication of the National Association of School Nurses
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This article presents data gathered between 1985 and 2000 from nine public schools in a Midwestern suburban school district. Data were compiled from routine documentation on health office logs and incident reports when students entered the health offices with a first-aid need. ⋯ Student injuries can cause absenteeism that interferes with student academic success. Whether the school nurse delegates or directly provides first aid, it is important to collect and analyze information about school injuries to plan injury prevention strategies when appropriate.
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Open-air schools were initiated in 1908 and maintained through the 1930s to treat children with tuberculosis while meeting their educational needs. During this period, treatment of tuberculosis was accomplished in sanitoriums where patients, both adults and children, were isolated and exposed to fresh air and rest. Isolating and institutionalizing children made it difficult for them to obtain schooling. ⋯ Some student health outcomes improved, but reports of academic outcomes were inconsistent, leading to their closure between 1938 and 1941. Nursing roles were limited, but nurses were well prepared to participate in the open-air schools by providing health education, maintaining health records, monitoring student health outcomes, and coordinating the services provided to the students. Nurses can learn from our history and hopefully avoid the missed opportunities of yesteryear.
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Playground accidents are the most common cause of injury to children in school. As the health professional who attends to these injured children, school nurses should be aware of safety practices that can help eliminate the risks that children encounter. ⋯ In addition, a comprehensive playground risk model is described, and suggestions for policy areas are outlined. Policy areas include assessment, education, and enforcement in relation to each of the risk factors.
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A descriptive, correlational study was conducted among school nurses to ascertain their knowledge of Advance Directives (ADs) and Do Not Resuscitate (DNR) orders, current AD and DNR practice in the school setting, and personal AD and DNR attitudes and plans of study respondents. A convenience sample of practicing school nurses was surveyed using an author-designed instrument. ⋯ Seventy-eight percent of respondents indicated they have no personal advance directives in place, but 76% would not wish to be resuscitated when facing terminal illness. These results suggest ambiguity regarding issues of death and dying.