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Board hears detailed update on school nursing: 32.5 FTE nurses, 2,300 care plans and 20,277 parent contacts reported
Summary
District health services staff reviewed nursing workloads, specialized medical care provided in schools, partnerships with community health providers and key statistics including FTE nursing staff, care plans, and counts of students with chronic conditions.
Molly Satter, presenting an update on district health services, told the Sioux Falls School District 49-5 board that school nurses “support student success by keeping students healthy, safe, in school, and ready to learn.”
Satter reported that the district employs 32.5 full-time-equivalent school nurses serving 38 buildings. Nurses created more than 2,300 individualized care plans in the past year and made 20,277 parent contacts to communicate health needs, provide education, and arrange referrals, she said.
District data cited by Satter included 93 students with diabetes (an increase of 32 over five years), 253 students with seizure disorders (an increase of 26 over five years), 416 students with life‑threatening allergies and 1,304 students with asthma. Nurses administer about 280 scheduled daily treatments such as catheterizations, tube feedings and respiratory therapies; the figure excludes routine oral medications and as‑needed treatments. The district also reported providing 759 staff flu shots and 476 student flu shots; school nurses assisted with hepatitis B vaccine series for staff as well.
Satter described school-based health services provided through partnerships: Falls Community Health operates school-based clinics at Hawthorne, Terry Redlin and Hayward elementary schools (staffed by physician assistants or nurse practitioners with parental consent) and Dakota Dental Mobile provides on-site dental care. The district reported Dakota Dental Mobile delivered care to 386 students with an estimated direct-services value of $394,882.
Board members thanked nursing staff and asked follow-up questions about the school-based clinics and how nurses coordinate care. The board moved to acknowledge the health services update; the motion passed by voice vote with no roll-call tally provided in the transcript.
