School Nurses: Important Member of a Child's Medical Team | Patient Centered Care and Trauma Informed Care for Pediatric Patients

Pediatric Medical Traumatic Stress

Gone are the days when the school nurse put a bandage on a child’s skinned knee or gave Tylenol for a headache.

Gone are the days when the school nurse put a bandage on a child’s skinned knee or gave Tylenol for a headache. More children with complex medical needs enter the school system each year and with this increase comes more responsibility for school nurses. With more children suffering with chronic illness and an increase in children surviving premature births, the complexity of medical care provided in schools is changing. When these children enter the school system, they may be suffering with medical trauma and in need of continued care. A child’s school nurse may be the first person to see changes related to medical traumatic stress.

When caring for a patient in the hospital or outpatient setting do you consider the school nurse a part of their medical team? Are there materials you could provide for the school health team to better care for your patient?

Pediatric Medical Traumatic Stress

Patient Education

Screening & Assessment

Intervention

Trauma-Informed Care

COVID-19

Resources