Alberta’s Education Minister recently announced a pilot project reinstituting the concept of the school nurse.
Currently in Ontario, nursing services are provided by the Ministry of Health through Community Care Access Centers to students who require such medical assistance to attend school. Pursuant to this process nurses attend intermittently during the school day, except in the most severe cases when they are needed constantly.
While the concept of the school nurse was once common (the author remembers a nurse’s room in her elementary school), the itinerant CCAC model has been predominant for some time, despite the increasing complexity of student medical profiles. Modern medicine has enabled students, who in the past might not have been able to attend school, to be active participants in school, provided that they have access to the medications and other medical services that they require.
The current model in Ontario however, limits access to school nurses to only those students who cannot be serviced by Educational Assistants or other staff. In recent years, school boards have also had complaints from parents that, due to CCAC spending priorities, they are required to provide for their child’s medical needs while their child is in school.
In Alberta, the pilot project is expected to provide nurses to assist teachers to instruct students about health, nutrition and sex education. The Education Minister in Alberta also indicated that nurses could be a tool to assist with issues regarding bullying.
Specific plans for the Alberta pilot project have not yet been announced. It will be interesting to see whether or not having a school nurse available in the school reduces costs and increases student health and well-being. Perhaps Ontario should follow Alberta’s lead and try a pilot project of its own.
Avis de non-responsabilité
Les renseignements affichés sur ce blogue contiennent des points de droit variés fournis uniquement à des fins informatives et non commerciales. Ces renseignements ne constituent pas un avis juridique de la part de l’auteur. Nous mettons en garde les lecteurs de ne pas prendre de décision particulière sans avoir préalablement obtenu l’avis juridique d’un professionnel qualifié. Toute personne qui décide de prendre une décision en s’appuyant sur ces renseignements le fait à ses propres risques.