The Massachusetts Organization of Educational Collaboratives thanked and recognized school nurses across its 25 collaboratives as part of School Nurse Day.

School Nurse Day is celebrated annually on the Wednesday of National Nurse Week. This year, the day was commemorated Wednesday, May 11.

The day was established to foster a better understanding of the role of school nurses in the educational setting, and to recognize the hard work and dedication of school nurses nationwide. The theme of this year's School Nurse Day is: "School Nurses: Bridging Healthcare and Education."

"For collaboratives, nurses are pivotal in ensuring that students thrive at school, particularly when serving students who are medically fragile and require specialized health care programs. They have always been a key part of what we do, but we needed them more than ever during the last two years,’’ Massachusetts Organization of Educational Collaboratives Executive Director Joanne Haley Sullivan said. "Our nurses poured their time and effort into keeping some of the most vulnerable students in the Commonwealth safe and healthy throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, and they deserve recognition for all that they have done and continue to do."

Nurses play a critical role in collaboratives across the Commonwealth, she said. Collaboratives support students with a range of needs, including those with chronic conditions, mobility challenges, or who are medically fragile. In addition to performing tasks like basic first aid, administering medication, and providing health education, collaborative nurses provide personalized care to support the specific needs of students.

Many collaborative nurses work in individual classrooms or with individual students who require specialized medical procedures. Such nurses may monitor equipment such as G-tubes, catheters, ventilators, and tracheal tubes.

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, collaborative nurses worked diligently to help alleviate anxiety, educate community members about the pandemic, and coordinate COVID-19 testing and response, according to the organization. They also provided personalized support for students during transitions from in-person to remote learning.

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