School Nurse Roles and Responsibilities Practice Guidelines
School Nurse Roles and Responsibilities Practice Guidelines
School Nurse Roles and Responsibilities Practice Guidelines
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<strong>School</strong> <strong>Nurse</strong> Role DescriptionThe school nurse is required to fulfill many functions within the school setting. The followingrole descriptions are adapted from <strong>School</strong> Nursing: A Comprehensive Text (Wolfe, 2006).1. Clinician: 1) The Registered <strong>Nurse</strong> is a skilled clinician providing daily nursing care <strong>and</strong>case management during school hours. Assessing, making effective nursing diagnoses,choosing appropriate interventions, <strong>and</strong> identifying outcomes are essential skills all schoolnurses must possess. <strong>School</strong> nurses develop individual health plans, administer medications<strong>and</strong> treatments <strong>and</strong> monitor for compliance or attainment of expected outcomes. 2) Under thedirection of an RN, APN, licensed physician or licensed dentist the Licensed Practical <strong>Nurse</strong>implements the individual health plan, administers medications <strong>and</strong> treatments <strong>and</strong> monitorsthe student or staff for compliance or meeting expected outcomes.2. Advocate: Providing a physically <strong>and</strong> emotionally safe environment is the primary goal inmeeting the needs of the students <strong>and</strong> staff. This is accomplished through advocacy <strong>and</strong>negotiating skills. The nurse may also advocate for system changes to meet the health needsof the students <strong>and</strong> staff.3. Collaborator: <strong>School</strong> nurses help families navigate complex medical systems <strong>and</strong> identifyresources for healthcare services, financial resources, shelter, food <strong>and</strong> health promotion.4 Health Educator: The school nurse collaborates with administrators <strong>and</strong> teachers inproviding health education opportunities <strong>and</strong> experiences for school age children, families,school personnel <strong>and</strong> the community that will lead to health behavior change.5. Liaison: As the health liaison to the community, the school nurse is a translator ofeducational <strong>and</strong> medical goals <strong>and</strong> a coordinator between the school <strong>and</strong> medicalcommunities. It is necessary for the school nurse to possess the ability to communicateeffectively with practitioners from education <strong>and</strong> healthcare while taking every opportunityto promote <strong>and</strong> clarify the role of the school nurse as an influential <strong>and</strong> effective partner.8
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