Student-to-School Nurse Ratio Improvement Act of 2012

The American Academy of Pediatrics emphasizes the crucial role school nurses have in the seamless provision of comprehensive health services to children and youth, as well as in the development of a coordinated school health program.

The school nurse functions as a leader and the coordinator of the school health services team, facilitating access to a medical home for each child and supporting school achievement.

Recent national data indicates 45 percent of public schools have a school nurse all day, every day, while another 30 percent of schools have a school nurse who works part time in 1 or more schools.

The American Nurses Association has reported that when there is no registered nurse on the school premises, the responsibility to administer the necessary medications and treatments and appropriate monitoring of the children falls on the shoulders of administrators, educators, and staff who are ill-prepared to perform these tasks.

Statistics from the National Center for Education Statistics indicate that of the 52,000,000 children who currently spend their day in schools, 16 percent have chronic physical, emotional, or other health problems.

A recent study indicated that from 2002 to 2008 the percentage of children in special education classes with health impairments, due to chronic or acute health problems, increased 60 percent. Within this group, the rate of autism has doubled since 2002.

In the past 10 years, the prevalence of asthma has increased 40 percent and the incidence of diabetes has increased nearly 50 percent.

According to a 2008 report by the American Academy of Pediatrics, students face increased social issues as well as the need for preventative services and interventions for acute and chronic health issues.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that, in 2008, 8.9 percent of children were without health insurance, and with more than 1,300,000 homeless children in the United States, schools have become the only source of health care for many children and adolescents.

Communicable and infectious diseases account for millions of school days lost each year. There is reported evidence that school nurses have a positive impact on immunization rates, resulting in fewer parent-requested exemptions.

A recent study showed that students with health concerns attended to by school nurses were able to return to class 95 percent of the time, while students attended to by non-licensed staff were only able to return to class 82 percent of the time.

Using a formula-based approach for determining a balanced student-to-school nurse ratio offers a reasonable means for achieving better student outcomes.