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Health Services

Philosophy

The students in AISD are our most important valuable resource and a healthy child in a safe and healthy environment is the best learner.  The school nurse has a multi-faceted role within the school setting, one that supports the physical, mental, emotional, and social health of students and their success in the learning process. It is the breadth of nursing activities contained within the role of the school nurse and the unique non-medical setting that differentiates school nursing from other nursing specialties.

The school nurse serves as a liaison between school personnel, family, community and healthcare providers for students’ health and a healthy environment.

School nursing is a nursing specialty that involves identification, assessment, prevention, and intervention to remedy or modify students’ health needs. The nurse’s goal is to promote the optimum health of students and the students’ abilities to achieve individual educational goals.

School nurses monitor required immunizations, perform mandated health screenings, track communicable diseases and provide direct nursing care to students for everyday and emergency needs.

 

 

Guiding Principle

We believe that:

  1. Every child is entitled to educational opportunities that will allow him/her to reach full capacity as an individual and prepare him/her for responsibility as a citizen.
  2. Every child is entitled to a level of health that permits maximum utilization of educational opportunities.
  3. Parents have the basic responsibility for the health of their children; school nurses work in partnership with parents in providing health services to their children while in school.
  4. The school health program, through the components of health services, health education, and concern for the environment, provides knowledge and understanding on which to base decisions for the promotion and protection of individual, family, and community health.
  5. The appropriate roles of the school nurse in the school health program include manager of school health care; delivery of health services; advocate for the rights of children; counselor for health concerns of children, families, and staff; and educator for school/community regarding health concerns.

Goals of School Nurse Practice are to:

  • Reduce students’ health-related absenteeism
  • Eliminate or minimize health problems that impair learning.
  • Reduce or prevent health problems through education.
  • Educate the community as to the health concerns of school-aged children.
  • Help students to achieve the highest degree of independent functioning.
  • Assist with referrals and screenings

The Abilene ISD Health Service Department would like to encourage students and staff to take the necessary precautions in reducing the transmission of communicable diseases.

  • Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze. Alcohol-based hand cleaners are also effective. (Parents, please encourage proper hand-washing techniques at home.)
  • Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you sneeze or cough. Throw the tissue in the trash after you use it. If tissues are not available, then cough in the crease of your arm.
  • Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs spread that way. As a school district, we are cleansing flat surfaces with an approved cleaning agent and continue to educate staff and students.
  • If your child has flu-like symptoms, seek care from your primary care physician.
  • Please keep your child home if they are sick for at least 24 hours after they no longer have a fever, or signs of a fever, without the use of fever-reducing medicines.

Please do your part in reducing the spread of communicable diseases. Contact your School Nurse if you have questions and/or concerns.

Motto:

“Healthy kids make better learners.”