May 11, 2022 -- One hundred years ago on October 1, 1902, the first school nurse, Lina Rogers, was employed in the New York City School system to prevent absenteeism by consulting with students and families regarding healthcare requirements related to infectious diseases. In her first month, Rogers treated 893 students, made 137 home visits, and helped 25 children who had received no medical attention recover and eventually returned to school.
Rogers led the adoption of evidence-based nursing practices across New York City. In addition, she was a pioneer and trailblazer in controlling infectious diseases in the school system.
School Nursing Today
School nursing, a specialized practice of nursing, protects and promotes student health, facilitates optimal development, and advances academic success. School nurses, grounded in ethical and evidence-based practice, are the leaders who bridge health care and education. School nurses coordinate care, advocate for quality student-centered care, and collaborate to design systems that allow individuals and communities to develop their full potential.
The National Association of School Nurses (NASN) position that all students should have access to school nursing care by a registered, professional school nurse all day, every day. For students who face barriers to accessing healthcare, especially those living in predominantly low-income, rural, and minority communities, a school nurse may serve as their only regular healthcare provider. School nurses provide students, staff, and school communities with quality healthcare critical for health promotion, disease prevention, health maintenance, and health equity.
Columbus City Schools Nurses
School nurses at Columbus City Schools work every day to advance the well-being, academic success, and life-long achievement and health of students, families, staff, and our community.
“Their expertise is unique and essential to the success of our students and families,” said Jacqueline Broderick Patton, MA, BSN, RN, and Wellness Initiative Coordinator at CCS. “School nursing is rooted in public health, and CCS school nurses have advanced education that qualifies them as leaders in school health.”
The profession is dynamic, and the care school nurses provide is continually transforming and shifting. Columbus City Schools employs 122 school nurses, 38 of them hired during the 2020-2021 school year. Always, but especially during the last 2 ½ years of the pandemic, CCS School Nurses have kept staff safe and our students healthy, safe, and ready to learn!
Thank you, school nurses at CCS, for all you do!
