[MaineSchoolNurse] Welcome Back to School

[Poland, Emily]

Good afternoon school nurses,

I truly hope that you had time over the past couple of months to recharge. Even with the weird summer weather we had, I was able to get some relaxation in and hope you did too. I want to take a little bit of your time to give a brief overview of what to expect this year from me (and the entire team).  I have copied the team contact information at the end of this email. We are in a transition year, but are looking forward to supporting you the best we can. We will talk through the team structure at our first school nurse office hours.

School Nurse Office Hours <https://www.maine.gov/doe/calendar#calendar-6c6f22e1-033b-47cd-8ea3-0906acf8c9e4-event-llo8d0qu> will be monthly on the first Wednesday of the month from 3:15-4:00pm. The first office hours will be September 6. This will be an informal opportunity for sharing DOE announcements, upcoming opportunities, and ask questions related to school nursing practice in Maine. It will not be recorded and there will not be any contact hours offered for this time. I will send out a follow up email afterwards to share the major topics, information, and resources that were shared during office hours. Please register <https://mainestate.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0ud-6gpjovH9SPlYi0dYM0CNBIWSYdt_cI#/registration> in order to receive the zoom link. You only need to register once; the zoom link remains the same for all sessions.

New School Nurse Community of Practice (CoP)<https://www.maine.gov/doe/calendar#calendar-6c6f22e1-033b-47cd-8ea3-0906acf8c9e4-event-llo7xms8> This Community of Practice will meet semi-monthly through the school year. School nurses who are new to the specialty will be provided timely information that will assist them transition smoothly into a school setting. Each session will have a different focus with topics such as: Starting the school year, office set-up, FERPA, Individualized Health Plans, Data collection, Immunizations, health screenings, staff training resources, field trips, case presentations, and more. Please register<https://mainestate.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZArdOGrqjMrG9DhWK1fHDZaNXKe9kxlnJnn#/registration> in order to receive the zoom link. You only need to register once; the zoom link remains the same for all sessions. The first CoP is scheduled for September 21 at 3pm. We did hold an in-person new school nurse orientation earlier in August. If you missed it or want to access some/all of the information shared you can start with the attached "Virtual NSNO Agenda".

Our team will be hosting a monthly webinar educational series this fall. Each School Nurse Webinar Series event will be posted on the DOE Professional Development calendar<https://www.maine.gov/doe/calendar> and shared via email. You will need to register for each event separately. The first is titled, "Supporting Schools Implementation of Successful Oral Health Programs" and is scheduled for September 26, 3:30-4:30. Registration link will be coming soon. October's topic is on Eating Disorders, and November's is on Sickle Cell Disease.

The Guidelines for School Health Services <https://www.maine.gov/doe/schools/safeschools/healthed/nurseresources/guidelines> (previously called the School Health Manual) is being updated all the time -- it should be a place where you can find almost anything you need for your work within a school. If you haven't done it already, bookmark this page so it is easy to find. Within the collection of webpages, there is Communicable Disease—The Communicable Diseases Quick Guide for Schools and Childcare<https://www.maine.gov/doe/sites/maine.gov.doe/files/inline-files/Communicable%20Diseases%20Quick%20Guide%202023.pdf> has been updated by Maine CDC and MDOE for 2023. Be on the lookout for an email from Maine CDC staff who will be sharing great resources for you to have on hand throughout the year as well.

COVID-19 protocols are the same as last year. We point to the US CDC guidelines<https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/your-health/isolation.html#:~:text=If%20you%20had%20symptoms&text=If%20you%20test%20positive%20for,during%20these%20first%205%20days.> which say:

When you have COVID-19, isolation is counted in days, as follows:

If you had no symptoms

  *   Day 0 is the day you were tested (not the day you received your positive test result)
  *   Day 1 is the first full day following the day you were tested
  *   If you develop symptoms<https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/symptoms-testing/symptoms.html> within 10 days of when you were tested, the clock restarts at day 0 on the day of symptom onset

If you had symptoms

  *   Day 0 of isolation is the day of symptom onset, regardless of when you tested positive
  *   Day 1 is the first full day after the day your symptoms<https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/symptoms-testing/symptoms.html> started

Workforce Development Opportunities There will be opportunities for Pediatric Education for Prehospital Professionals (PEPP) trainings a few times this year in different locations, once we have a schedule ironed out, we will share with nurses statewide.
School Nurse Leadership development will be offered for a small group of nurses who are identified as the "lead nurse" within their districts. There will be more to come on this opportunity as well, but I'm giving you a heads up in order to plant the seed.






Emily Poland, MPH, RN, NCSN (she/her)
School Nurse Consultant
Coordinator – Coordinated School Health
Office of School and Student Supports
Maine Department of Education
23 State House Station
Augusta, Maine 04333-0023
Email: emily.poland at maine.gov<mailto:emily.poland at maine.gov>
Phone: 207-592-0387

Sarah DeCato, MSN, RN, NCSN (She/Her)
School Nurse Specialist-Coordinated School Health
Email: sarah.decato at maine.gov<mailto:sarah.decato at maine.gov>
Phone: 207-441-3812

Infectious Disease,

Early Care and Education,

Emergency Preparedness

Tammy Diaz, MPH, RN, NCSN (she/her)
School Nurse Specialist - Coordinated School Health
Email: tammy.diaz at maine.gov<mailto:tammy.diaz at maine.gov>
Phone: 207-446-8213
Chronic Disease Management,

School Based Health Centers.

Mental Health and Substance Use Prevention

School Nurse Regional Liaison-Northeast

to be determined

Interim contact: Emily Poland

School Nurse Regional Liaison-Central

to be determined

Interim contact: Tammy Diaz

School Nurse Regional Liaison-Western

to be determined

Interim contact: Sarah DeCato

Lori Huot, BSN, RN, NCSN

School Nurse Regional Liaison-Southern

Email: lori.huot at maine.gov<mailto:lori.huot at maine.gov>
Phone: 207-530-0374






________________________________________

Emily Poland, MPH, RN, NCSN (she/her)
School Nurse Consultant
Coordinator – Coordinated School Health
Office of School and Student Supports
Maine Department of Education
23 State House Station
Augusta, Maine 04333-0023
Email: emily.poland at maine.gov<mailto:emily.poland at maine.gov>
Phone: 207-592-0387
Maine DOE<http://www.maine.gov/doe> | Facebook<https://www.facebook.com/MaineDepartmentofEducation1/> | Twitter<https://twitter.com/mdoenews> | Instagram<https://www.instagram.com/mainedepted/?hl=en> | Maine DOE Newsroom<https://mainedoenews.net/> | School Health Services<https://www.maine.gov/doe/schools/safeschools/healthed/nurseresources/guidelines>


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