School Nurses

School Nurses are one of the most pivital partners

in the care of children with asthma!

Therfore, RCAN is dedicated to supporting the school health offices across our region in a number of ways...

Free Materials: Asthma Action Plans, brocures, etc :  We send out school mailings to fullfill your needs, but please feel free to reach out to RCAN whenever your needs arise. 

School Nurse Asthma Management Program (SNAMP)

RCAN has partnered up with the National Association of School Nurses (NASN) to provide a new program on Asthma: School Nurse Asthma Management Program (SNAMP). This program assists professional school nurses to provide comprehensive asthma management approaches that include monitoring, managing effectiv medication regimes and controlling exposures. The program includes chapters on Asthma Essentials, Individual Student Asthma Management, Tools and Devices, School Nurse's role in the school-wide asthma management, and Tips for increasing asthma awareness in the school setting. Lecture slides, workbooks, hands-on demonstrations, case scenarios, small group activity, discussion, question/ answers, 8 continuing education credits will be provided during the course.  For more information on the program or scheduling, please go to www.nasn.org.

RCAN will also train your district's School Health professionals by request and outside of the SNAMP program.

School Staff Education- Asthma 101

Many times the Asthma education for staff and faculty in a school falls on the shoulders of the School Health office. to help you with this, RCAN has a presentation and supportive materials ready and waiting. This was developed by the RCAN School Committee, a group of dedicated School health professionals that meet to address local school asthma issues. It is easy to use for any audience, time slot or venue...

Open Airways for Schools Open Airways for Schools (www.alany.org)

Asthma 911 & Athletics (Winning with Asthma Coaches Clipboard program)

(www.winningwithasthma.org)

RCAN developed a program several years ago to reach out and inform the Physical Educators and Coaching staff at schools about the proper asthma management in Athletics. A "Coaches Clipboard", basically a nice clipboard with all the Asthma Information you need for Emergency Response- handy and at your finger tips... this was developed based on a program in Minnesota.  In Early 2010, the Winning with Asthma program (the original program for the Coaches Clipboard) became available to our NYS population for FREE! It is a 30 minute online presentation about Asthma & Athletics. Upon completion of this continuing education program, a clipboard will be sent directly to the particpant to reinforce lessons learned. The coalition supports this program and welcomes any questions or needs from our area Athletics staff.

For more information, please go to www.winningwithasthma.org  

Tools for Schools: an EPA Indoor Air Quality toolkit that is free and facilitate's a building and classroom assessments for the quality of air in your schools as well as strategies for remediation. www.epa.gov; technical assistance is available through the coalition

RECRUITMENT: We are in need of dedicated and helpful volunteers to develop and continue our mission to support the school health office asthma needs across our area. If you or someone you know is interested in joining our School Committe, please contact Cindy Trubisky @ ctrubisky@alanys.org 

School Health Resources (please contact the coalition for these materials)

• Emergency Response Poster for classrooms
• School health Materials Order form
• Care Coordination REFERRAL FORM: Pre- Intervention Case Management Referral form " Better Asthma Control" * Rochester City, Wayne & Livingston Counties

A great resource for information on disease and health conditions can be found on the NYS Department of Health website at: http://www.health.state.ny.us/disease/ 

The facts and information sheets can be very useful as a school health resource, especially for use in teaching the faculty, staff, and parents about specific health issues such as asthma. They can be used as a template for letters or can be posted in faculty rooms to inform staff about health concerns that come up in your building or district.

Statewide School Health Services Center:  www.schoolhealthservices.org ; Real time technical assistance for your school health office on a variety of topics, Asthma included.  

The Starlight Starbright foundation presents: www.asthma.starlightprograms.org

The Quest for the Code:  a FREE CD Rom/ online video game about Asthma & how to control it. (designed for children from grades 2-5, also in Spanish)- great for your office & during neb treatments or sit out time for PE Teachers

"Cyrus has chosen YOU to help him battle a team of asthma villians who are trying to convince kids that asthma can't be managed. 

Throughout the game, Cyrus teaches you when and how to use different medications, how asthma affects the lungs, and how to talk to your friends about asthma. You'll need this knowledge in order to outsmart the villains... and win back the pieces of the code. "

Carry & Use "Inhaler Law"
New York State Consolidated Laws: Education
S 916. Pupils afflicted with asthma. The board of education or trustees of each school district and board of cooperative educational services shall allow pupils who have been diagnosed by a physician or other duly authorized health care provider with a severe asthmatic condition to carry and use a prescribed inhaler during the school day, with the written permission of a physician or other duly authorized health care provider, and parental consent, based on such physician's or provider’s determination that such pupil is subject to sudden asthmatic attacks severe enough to debilitate such pupil. A record of such permission shall be maintained in the school office.