Questions
1. What common health problems should Nurse Georgia and the task force be aware of when planning health services to be provided at the new shelter?
2. What effects of poverty on the health of children should Nurse Georgia and the task force be aware of when planning appropriate services?
3. After the shelter opens, Nurse Georgia becomes one of the nurses who works in the clinic. What strategies are important for Nurse Georgia to implement when working with this population?
CASE # 8: ABOUT THE NURSE LEADER IN THE COMMUNITY
Ann T. is the state school nurse consultant. Nurse Ann provides guidance for school nurses across the state and organizes policy development for school nursing. Many of Nurse Ann’s hours are spent communicating by phone, face-to-face, or by e-mail with nurses and families who have questions regarding health services in the schools.
Terry L. contacts Nurse Ann. This is Terry’s first year as a school nurse, and she is working in a rural high school. She is worried about delegating medication administration to unlicensed personnel. “What exactly can be delegated, to whom, and how should I document it?” asks Nurse Terry.
Nurse Ann explains to Terry that some state laws specify who may delegate tasks, and the State Board of Nursing gives advice on which nursing tasks can be delegated. Nurse Ann tells Terry where on the Internet she can find these laws along with advisory opinions, and she e-mails copies to Terry. Nurse Ann shows Terry how to use the delegation decision tree and discusses some of Nurse Terry’s more challenging delegation issues. Nurse Terry must then use the materials to decide what she is comfortable delegating. Nurse Ann also gives Nurse Terry some sample training materials and documentation forms that other nurses in the state are currently using.
