Texas School Nurses Organization

President's Message

Every day is a good day to count our Blessings! If you haven't done that in a while, November is the perfect time to pause and give thanks. This year, I am feeling waves of nostalgia as I think of the countless blessings I have been afforded these past ten years serving you on the TSNO Executive Committee. Our personal and professional lives can never be truly separate and both parts of my life have been enriched. Four little humans have entered the world, my heart and call me Bella. This is the most precious of Blessings! Professionally, inspiring school nurse leaders motivated me and saw something in me that I could not yet see. These amazing nurses became my mentors, friends, and family. I have grown professionally with each new role I accepted and with each school nurse I have had the privilege of meeting.

It has been an honor serving you,

Sláinte (health) to you,

Lisa Sicilio, MEd, BSN, RN, NCSN

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National Certification

The Nationally Certified School Nurse credential reflects competence and professionalism. To earn the NCSN a nurse must demonstrate a high level of education, clinical practice experience and knowledge.

To learn more visit https://www.nbcsn.org/

Nurse Delegation in the School-Setting

Healthcare is constantly changing in the school-setting and this includes the roles and responsibilities of licensed health care providers. The delegation process is multifaceted. It is imperative that the delegation process and the Texas Nurse Practice Act be clearly understood so that it is safely and effectively carried out.

TSNO collaborated recently with the Texas Board of Nursing and Ms. Anita Wheeler with the Texas Department of State Health Services in developing a decision-making algorithm with scenarios specifically for School Nurse Delegation.

Texas Administrative Codes:

· Rules 224.1- 224.11 provide guidance for delegation when patients have acute health conditions or in acute care environments

· Rules 225.1 - 225.11 provide guidance for independent living environments for patients whose health is stable and predictable

The Texas Board of Nursing (BON) also provides a Delegation Resource Packet.

Keeping these resources handy will help the school nurse to delegate care according to the legal standard of acting as a reasonable prudent nurse in the decision-making process of delegation.

In your service,

Francis Luna, BSN, RN, NCSN

The Calm Schools Initiative

Through The Calm Schools Initiative, Calm is offering every teacher in the world free access to Calm, the mindfulness app that hundreds of thousands of people all over the world use everyday. Our aim is to empower teachers with mindfulness tools and resources they can use to help kids learn this new skill.

Atlanta ISD Distinguished Service Award

Atlanta Education Foundation’s Distinguished Alumni and Distinguished Service Award recipients includes Linda Radford Howard as this year’s recipient of the Distinguished Service Award for her outstanding service of 34 years to Atlanta ISD. Prior to her recent retirement, she served as the Coordinator of School Health Services since 2008 and as a school nurse for the district since 1982. She is a Registered Nurse, a Nationally Certified School Nurse, and holds a Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing from Texas A&M, Texarkana, and an Associate Degree in Nursing from Texarkana College. Howard is a graduate of the AHS Class of 1974.

Linda has also served on TSNO Executive Committee for the last 8 years as Member Services Chair and currently Membership Coordinator. Congratulations, Linda!

Children's Health LIVE (Learning through Interactive Video Education)

Children’s Health LIVE is an accredited, web-based Continuing Education series that enables the review and exchange of ideas between pediatric providers. The goal of this recurring series is to bridge the gap between the presentation of symptoms, diagnosis and referral.

Research Participation Opportunity: Youth Sex Trafficking

School nurses are invited to participate in a research study to understand school nurses’ perceptions and role related to commercial sexual exploitation of children. The survey takes about 10-20 minutes to complete. Upon completion of the survey, a separate link will allow you to enter a raffle to win an Apple iPad 9.7” (version 3). Contact Hannah Fraley PhD, RN, CNE at 657-278-7335 with questions. For more information and to access the survey please click the link below:

School Nurses Perceptions of Students At Risk Survey

Great things to remember to bring to the conference:

Peel & stick address labels for time with Vendors (great time saver!)
$5 bills to buy your Sparkle Tickets (6 for $5) for a chance to win a $500 gift card on Sunday.
Power of the Purse Silent Auction (Anyone can donate a purse) All proceeds benefit City House in Plano.
Other items that would be helpful for the homeless youth served by City House: (See Attached)

Deodorant
Body Wipes (try the Dollar Store)
Socks
Feminine Hygiene Products
Toothbrushes
Toothpaste (small size)
Cup O' Noodles
Soft Granola or Breakfast Bars
$5-$10 gift cards to fast food locations
Walmart or Target Gift Cards - Any Size

Power of the Purse

Power of the Purse is TSNO's state conference community fundraiser in which all proceeds will benefit City House.

The mission of City House is to provide emergency shelter and transitional residential services to at-risk children and young adults who are in need due to abuse, neglect or homelessness.

Purse Donation:To make the silent auction process run smoothly, we will be collecting information electronically on your donations. Buy your purse, go to Power of the Purse "Sign up". You will have the opportunity to give a description and value of each purse. Please indicate if you are mailing or bringing to conference your donation.

Please bring your purse for donation to the conference registration desk by Friday, Nov 9th or mail them along with your name, value and description of the purse to:

Texas School Nurses Organization, Inc.

819 W. Arapaho Rd., Suite 24B, #345

Richardson, TX 75080

TSNO 16th Annual Conference School Nurses: Practice with Purpose, Professionalism, & Passion

When

Saturday, Nov. 10th, 8am to Sunday, Nov. 11th, 2pm

Where

7121 Bishop Road

Plano, TX

More information

This CNE activity is being jointly provided by Children’s Health collaboratively with Texas School Nurses Organization.

Children’s Health is an approved provider of continuing nursing education by the Texas Nurses Association - Approver, an accredited approver with distinction, by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation.

Contact hours will be awarded.

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