Minnesota school nurses are in short supply
Minnesota school nurses are in short supply
The shortage is hurting the education of children, according to a report released Monday at a news conference in St. Paul.
September 22, 2008
By EMILY JOHNS
Star Tribune
There is a shortage of school nurses in Minnesota, and the Legislature needs to do its part to make sure children get adequate health care in school, according to a study released on Monday by the School Nurse Organization of Minnesota and a St. Paul think tank.
According to the study, which was based on a survey of 131 Minnesota school nurses, eight of 10 school nurses in the state think there is a shortage of school nurses and three of four believe school-nurse staffing levels are inadequate to meet the needs of some or most students.
"Our school nurses know that their numbers are not where they should be," said Matt Entenza, a former DFL legislator who now heads a St. Paul think tank called Minnesota 2020, which authored the report. "Minnesota needs to step up."
The school nurses' organization suggests putting a one-cent tax on each 12-ounce carbonated beverage sold in the state, which could raise as much as $29 million annually. The money, to be held in trust to maintain school nurses and health care programs, would allow the hiring of 600 additional school nurses.
"Whatever children are getting seen for in nurses' or doctor's offices is coming to school," said Sue Will, a career-long Minnesota school nurse and the past president of the National Association of School Nurses. She said that children's health care in Minnesota is being "relegated to secretaries."
Kids without insurance
In Minnesota, there is an average of one school nurse assigned to each 1,400 students, compared to the 1 per 750 healthy students recommended by the National Association of School Nurses. That ranks the state 30th in the nation.
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