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Sen. Judy Burges, Distirct 22, Department of Health and Human Services
700 W. Washington Room 302
Phoenix, AZ 85007
Re: SB1469
The implications are sobering. Having no school nurse can mean that kids who have or develop a
serious health problem may not receive immediate diagnosis or treatment. Those who depend on
daily medications may receive them from staff who have no medical training. Physical or
emotional problems may go unnoticed. Healthy kids may miss out on lessons in hygiene and
nutrition. Everyone loses.
School nursing has since evolved over time to include such services as case management,
providing health education to students and staff, health promotion, first aid and emergency
services, medication administration, advocacy, initiating emergency and individualized health
plans for students with chronic medical conditions, and tracking immunizations. Other services
include reporting cases of child abuse; providing assessment for and attending Individualized
Education Plan (IEP) meetings for students with special educational needs; conducting and
supervising state mandated screenings, such as vision, hearing and scoliosis screenings; referring
students to appropriate agencies after screening; and providing families with information on
available resources for procuring free or low-cost services.
I strongly suggest that you amend SB1469 because ultimately, it costs more to actually cut a
school nurse position than to keep the school nurse. School nurses keep children in school.
Children cannot learn if they are not in school. Poor attendance can directly affect the test results
of statewide educational assessment tools. School nurses can also save the school district money
by providing staff training programs such as cardiopulmonary resuscitation, blood borne
pathogens, first aid, universal precautions and signs and symptoms and emergency treatment of
disease specific conditions (such as asthma, allergic reactions, diabetes, seizure disorders, etc.)
thereby reducing legal liability for the school district.
Sincerely,