http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-ci-school-cuts-reax-story-20100416,0,491054.story
As reported in the Sun this morning, the City has reported that they are going to make as much as 6 cuts to school's health centers, with maybe more to follow. The mayor is reporting that the reason for the cuts is to cut down the ginormous Baltimore budget ($121 million).
This article got me to thinking: at my school (grades 6-8), all I ever see the nurse doing ALL day is reading her People magazine. I think the only thing she is qualified to do is give students ice packs and band aids. Beyond that, I don't think there is anything she could legally do if a child was in a real state of emergency. The kids at my school use the nurse as an excuse to get out of classwork. I'm not saying that school health facilities aren't important, because they obviously are. What I am saying is that the city needs to look at what health centers are being effective and which ones aren't and then get rid of the less effective ones. Seems like an easy fix, right?
The article goes on to mention that the Mayor is going to look at a number of factors in deciding which health centers to close, with student population being one of the main one. Health center closures probably means that overall attendance at some schools could go down because the students who need daily medical attention will not be receiving it. Thoughts?
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I would agree with you, 100%. My understanding is that school nurses are provided by the city health department; I believe that they are certified nursing assistants which are not allowed to provide an extensive amount of care to our students. Larger schools probably need nurse practitioners which are expensive and smaller schools probably need licensed practical nurses. It is important to understand that so many students are living on line of poverty and have parents that do not use the city’s clinics to take their children to the doctor on a regular basis. So it may be a better idea to staff the city’s schools with more qualified nurses.
I would agree with you, 100%. My understanding is that school nurses are provided by the city health department; I believe that they are certified nursing assistants which are not allowed to provide an extensive amount of care to our students. Larger schools probably need nurse practitioners which are expensive and smaller schools probably need licensed practical nurses. It is important to understand that so many students are living on line of poverty and have parents that do not use the city’s clinics to take their children to the doctor on a regular basis. So it may be a better idea to staff the city’s schools with more qualified nurses.
The health center at my school serves two high schools which share the same facilities. It is my understanding that our health center is a fully certified clinic and can provide students with a variety of medical assistance such as pregnancy tests, immunization, and basic treatments. I know that for my students, while it is sometimes used with the intention of just getting out of classwork, it has provided them with a lot of medical attention that they may not have gotten otherwise.
I believe that our school's health center is one of the centers being cut next year. I understand that the budget needs to be managed, but I also wonder what kind of impact this may have on my students' health. It is concerning to me that this cut was made, because their health definitely impacts their ability to be in class, focus, and learn.
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