After learning about The Woodhull Study Revisited, which revealed the alarming lack of nurses voices as primary sources for health related news stories, I started collecting  news headlines about school nursing.  Unfortunately, they typically included bandaids and icepacks as descriptors in the title. My, how these headlines have changed!  While I am relieved that it is no longer the case, I can’t help but think, “did it really have to take a pandemic to understand the importance and value of having a school nurse in every building every day?”

Here is a collection of news stories from the past few months. It did take a pandemic, but here we are. Let’s keep the momentum going in terms of school nursing using our voices to speak out about the urgency, necessity and role we play in keeping our students and staff healthy and safe.

• The New COVID-19 First Responders? School Nurses | Opinion
• How to Reopen Schools: What Science and Other Countries Teach Us – NY Times 7-11-20
• How Medicine Is Clearing Up Mixed Messages on Masks
• With one nurse for 750 runny-nosed kids, or partying teens, the front line of COVID is now schools | Editorial Posted Aug 02, 2020
• Will N.J. schools shut down when teachers or kids test positive? State guidelines are ‘vague,’ officials say. July 30, 2020
• You need to ‘mask train’ your kids before schools reopen, N.J. districts say. Here’s how to do it. Jul 20, 2020
• School nurses prepare for the return of students TN
• Wisconsin school nurses in short supply, but more needed than ever
• Upcoming school year presents important job role for school nurses-GA
• CCSD school nurses prepare for challenging year ahead- SC
• Lowcountry school nurses preparing for busy year, expanding role-SC
• TN educator advocates calling for nurses in all schools as reopening draws near
• ‘Overwhelmed and afraid’: School nurses rally in Boston over reopening plans
• School nurses will be calling the shots when Kansas City students go back to class
• New Back to School: How the role of school nurses is changing-VA
• School nurses strive to protect students and staff as COVID-19 surges-TX
• Road to school re-openings filled with anxiety, concern-MA
• Maine school nurses prepared for uncertain school year
• School nurses will take on more responsibilities in reopening plans- VT
• Busy to begin with, NC School nurses get ready for students to return amid pandemic
• Utah school nurse shortage alarming in age of coronavirus
• School nurse shortage could pose new obstacle amid pandemic in Arizona
• The Daunting Role of School Nurses in the Pandemic
• Overwhelmed, Stressed, Scared: School Nurses Brace for the Fall Semester
• Push for new school nurses amid shortage as school year starts
• As new academic year looms, public school nurses call for more funding to battle the coronavirus
• Could COVID-19 Make A School Nurse Requirement In Virginia A Reality?

Robin Cogan, MEd, RN, NCSN is a Nationally Certified School Nurse (NCSN), currently in her 19th year as a New Jersey school nurse in the Camden City School District. She serves on several national boards including The American Foundation for Firearm Injury Reduction in Medicine (AFFIRM), a gun violence prevention research non-profit organization and the National Board of Certification for School Nurses (NBCSN). Robin is the Legislative Chair for the New Jersey State School Nurses Association (NJSSNA). She is proud to be a Johnson & Johnson School Health Leadership Fellow and past Program Mentor.

She has been recognized in her home state of New Jersey and nationally for her community-based initiative called “The Community Café: A Conversation That Matters.” Robin is the honored recipient of multiple awards for her work in school nursing and population health. These awards include 2019 National Association of School Nurses (NASN) President’s Award; 2018 NCSN School Nurse of the Year; 2017 Johnson & Johnson School Nurse of the Year; and the New Jersey Department of Health 2017 Population Health Hero Award. Robin serves as faculty in the School Nurse Certificate Program at Rutgers University-Camden School of Nursing, where she teaches the next generation of school nurses. She was presented the 2018 Rutgers University – Camden Chancellor’s Teaching Excellence Award for Part-time Faculty.

Robin writes a weekly blog called The Relentless School Nurse. You can also follow her on Twitter at @RobinCogan.