President's Message
I hope everyone is back in the swing for the new school year. How lucky we are that we get the opportunity to shape the lives of the leaders of tomorrow. The first few weeks of school went as fast as summer did. It will be Christmas break before we can blink our eyes.
There were several bills passed that will affect school health. As soon as TEA lets us know how they want us to proceed we will let you know. One is the requirement for parent notification if there is not a ‘Full Time School Nurse’ on the campus. If our parents take the time to read it they will be surprised. It is mind boggling how many people think there is a school nurse in every school building every hour of the school day.
If you have new school nurses in your district remember to invite them to become members of TSNO. There are so many benefits in membership. One of those is a reduced rate to our annual conference. This year it will be in San Antonio on the beautiful riverwalk. The brochure is on-line and registration is open. We have some excellent speakers lined up that you don’t want to miss.
This year the money we raise from Power of the Purse will go to start a fund to help other school nurses out when they experience a disaster. The money that was sent in to TSNO when Hurricane Harvey hit was from all over the United States and helped some of our nurses so much. We felt like we needed to be able to help others out so we will start a fund for this. Come to conference and bid on the purses and help support nurses across the nation.
As you go through the rest of the semester I want you to remember to smile, offer a kind word, give a hug when needed and just ‘be there’ for our children. Some of these little ones are so lost and don’t really know what love looks like.
Cheerfulness gives sweetness to life. – Philippine Proverb
Have a great month September and I hope you all register for the conference in November.
Lisa Formby
President TSNO
Innovation in School Nursing
NASN Position Statements are supported by evidence-based research, regulations, law or best practice that articulate an official stance of the organization on issues relevant to its mission and are intended as an instrument of change to promote a collective response to issues of importance. Position statements guide policy-shaping efforts. In June 2019, the NASN Board approved the following position statements. Share these with fellow nursing colleagues, school community leaders, and legislators. These and more can be found on the main NASN website by scrolling down to Resources & Publications.
· Nursing Delegation in the School Setting
· School-sponsored Before, After, and Extended School Year Programs – The Role of the School Nurse
· School-sponsored Trips – The Role of the School Nurse
I hope to inspire nurse leaders like yourself, toward innovation of change for the over 5.4 million students in Texas.
Best,
Francis Luna, MSN, RN, NCSN
NASN-TX Director
National Certification
To learn more visit https://www.nbcsn.org/
Do you have students who suffer with eczema? Consider collaborating with Allergy & Asthma Network in this impactful initiative by sharing their survey!
Want better treatment options than you have today?
Let us hear from you!
"More Than Skin Deep" is a patient-focused drug development (PFDD) initiative. On September 23, 2019 we'll have a meeting with representatives of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), pharmaceutical companies and research institutions.
Your treatment priorities are essential to the "More Than Skin Deep" initiative to bring patient perspectives into the development of new therapies for eczema.
Your input via a survey will inform that discussion and be part of the final report. Complete the survey and be entered into a drawing to win one of ten $50 Amazon gift cards.
The PFDD series began in 2013 as a way for FDA and clinical trial sponsors to understand more fully the burdens of living with a particular medical condition, what matters most to patients in terms of treatment benefits, and what risks and side effects they're willing to tolerate. Allergy & Asthma Network is collaborating with four other organizations to make the "More Than Skin Deep" initiative the most impactful yet.
Your voice and perspectives are essential for us to demonstrate that eczema is "more than skin deep." Please be part of this landmark effort by taking the survey today!
Congratulations to the 2019 School Nurse of the Year!
Leslie Shields from Region X – Leslie has been a school nurse for 12 years and is the 2019 Region X School Nurse of the Year. She currently works for Garland ISD on the South Garland High School campus. Her practice as a school nurse is an example to all school nurses of what an elevated standard of care should look like. Her commitment to her community and campus is evident by her “out of the box” approach to nursing. This is illustrated by her utilization of using technology to decrease medication errors on her campus. Or by using technology to work with special needs students to move the student towards independence. She is called upon yearly to act as mentor to new staff and students with budding medical careers. It is her ability to self-reflect and easily change her practice that makes her unique.
How School Nurses Can Help Principals Combat Student Vaping- Ed Week
Did you miss the recent Ed Week Blog Post about school nurses, principals, and working together to put an end to the vaping crisis featuring Laurie Combe? Check it out here!
Do You Have a Great Idea for a Poster Presentation??
Excellence in School Nursing Poster Showcase
Please share your best practices with your fellow nurses. We want to showcase the ideas and programs that our varied and talented nurses across the state use in their practice at our Annual Conference November in San Antonio. LVN abstracts must be co-authored by an RN.
View a presentation, What, Why and How To to learn more.
Poster Guidelines Download guidelines and application, due no later than October 15, 2019
Did you know...
REMINDER!!
Sunny Thomas Memorial Award deadline is coming up next month. All applications must be postmarked no later than October 15th. The purpose of this award is to promote continuing education for the school nurse. It provides up to $1000 stipend for one Texas school nurse to attend the NASN conference. Details can be found at Access Guidelines and Application Form.
TSNO Executive Committee
ELECTED OFFICERS:
PRESIDENT Lisa Formby - Region 16
PRESIDENT-ELECT Karen Schwind - Region 13
TREASURER Luisa Herrera- Region 19
Secretary Kara DeLay - Region 8
NASN DIRECTOR Francis Luna - Region X
NOMINATIONS COORDINATOR Laurie Smith - Region 8
STANDING COMMITTEE CHAIRS:
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT Lisa Sicilio- Region 6
ADVOCACY CHAIR Chanthini Thomas - Region IV
SCHOOL HEALTH ISSUES Adalia Del Bosque - Region 1
adaliadelbosque.tsno@gmail.com
MEMBER SERVICES Denise Kablaitis - Region 13
APPOINTED COORDINATORS:
Membership Coordinator Linda Howard - Region 8
REGION PRESIDENTS Coordinator Deana Bunting - Region 5 deanabunting.tsno@gmail.com
Communications Coordinator Brandy Bowlen - Region IV bbowlen1@kleinisd.net
EXHIBIT LIAISON Amy Huey - Region X ahuey.tsno@gmail.com
EXECUTIVE BOARD LIAISON/ WEBSITE & MARKETING COORDINATOR Kara DeLay - Region 8 kdelay@atlisd.net
