Question 1

Which of the following activities are included in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's school health program? (Select all that apply.)

Accepted Answer

The federal government, through the coordination of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, developed a plan that school health programs should follow, including health education, physical education, health services, nutrition services, counseling, psychological and social services, healthy school environment, health promotion for staff, and family/community involvement. Unfortunately schools cannot afford to give immunizations to everyone who might want such a benefit. Education in areas other than health is the responsibility of the teachers, not the nurse.

Question 2

A group of nursing students are scheduled to present a program on healthy hearts to various community groups, with a daycare center being the first location. What of the following advice should be given to them by their instructor?

Accepted Answer

For younger learners, it is important to keep the lesson to no more than 10 minutes in length; to use plenty of examples, pictures, and stuffed animals in the talk; and to remember the developmental stage of the children when teaching them.

Question 3

Which of the following supplies or equipment should a nurse have available in the school health office? (Select all that apply.)

Accepted Answer

The school nurse needs much equipment to deal with emergencies in the school. Basic necessary equipment includes full oxygen tanks with oxygen masks of different kinds, splints, cervical spine collars, sterile dressings, and an epinephrine autoinjector kit in case a child goes into anaphylactic shock after exposure to an allergen. A hospital-oriented emergency kit would become quickly outdated (medications) and extremely expensive.

Question 4

The mother of a high school student newly diagnosed with a condition that will require special health care services is concerned that the student will be required to be home-schooled away from the friends he has developed. Which of the following would be the most appropriate response by the school nurse?

Accepted Answer

Federal legislation specifies that children cannot be excluded from schools because of a disability. The school must provide health services that each child needs. Legislation further requires the school district's committee on the disabled to develop individualized education plans (IEPs) for children.

Question 5

Which of the following is most important for school nurses to master in order to prepare for health care delivery in the future?

Accepted Answer

In the future, school nursing will use telehealth and telecounseling to teach health education. School nurses will use the Internet to work with children and parents.

Question 6

The principal of a school was upset over a rumor that one of the children had engaged in a violent activity that injured a younger sibling. The principal asked the nurse who the children were so that the involved teachers could both support the injured child and guard other children from the violent child. Which of the following would be the best response by the nurse?

Accepted Answer

The school nurse is responsible for maintaining school health office policies, including privacy and safety of health records. The nurse must follow the HIPAA privacy rules while also ensuring the safety of children at school. When a rumor is involved, it is always wise to check its accuracy. If a child was indeed hurt, the nurse needs to make sure both children involved receive (or have already received) appropriate care. The question about having a school-wide program may be appropriate, but this behavior was apparently purposeful, not accidental.

Question 7

A child has multiple disabilities, and caring for the child has been both expensive and time consuming for the school. Once the child turns 16, which of the following actions should be taken by the nurse? (Select all that apply.)

Accepted Answer

Educational services must be offered by the schools for all disabled children from birth through age 22 years. Children cannot be excluded from activities because of a disability. The school must always develop an individualized education plan for each child and update it at appropriate intervals. Turning 16 does not make a child an adult.

Question 8

Which of the following best explains why the federal government is beginning to fund school-based health centers? (Select all that apply.)

Accepted Answer

The U.S. government began funding school-based health centers essentially because many school children may not receive health care services otherwise. These are family-centered, community-based clinics run within the schools. Certainly, avoiding pregnancy and drug addiction are among the goals of school-based health centers, but these are not reasons the government began funding them.

Question 9

A school nurse describes to teachers the characteristics of an adolescent who may be thinking about drastic violence. Which of the following behaviors would suggest the adolescent was having such problems? (Select all that apply.)

Accepted Answer

Six characteristics that can help identify a student who may be thinking about drastic violence are (1) Venting: having mood swings; (2) Vocalizing: threatening others; (3) Vandalizing: damaging property; (4) Victimizing: seeing himself or herself as a victim; (5) Vying: belonging to gangs; and (6) Viewing: witnessing the abuse of others. By helping to identify students who might be considering school violence, help may be obtained and violent actions may be prevented.

Question 10

A new student's parents had not yet submitted an immunization record, although the nurse had sent a reminder home with the student twice. Which of the following actions should be taken by the nurse to keep the child in school? (Select all that apply.)

Accepted Answer

There are many problems with children not being immunized or having incomplete vaccination records, especially in families who have moved many times or who may not have a regular physician. The parents may have no idea whether the child has received the required shots. Families may also be without health care insurance to pay for the immunizations, or they may have insurance that does not pay for preventive care. In these cases, they may lack the resources to pay for the immunizations themselves. Therefore, the nurse's role is to be sure parents are aware of the problem, to help them obtain the records if they have been misplaced, and to suggest ways to obtain the injections without charge, even if there is no obvious evidence that lack of funds is the problem. Telling the teacher or principal won't resolve the problem and it is illegal, immoral, and unprofessional to enter false information in a student's record.

Quiz 31: The Nurse in the Schools