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Hillsborough School Nurses Say Strain Is Unhealthy

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By MARILYN BROWN

mbrown@tampatrib.com

Published: October 6, 2008

TAMPA - A year ago, Hillsborough County school nurses warned that a cutback in nurses and other health professionals in schools posed a threat to student health. The district had reduced by 66 the 316 health care professionals for its more than 191,000 students by not filling positions to save money.

The district also ended its Healthy Student program that allowed parents to approve dispending over-the-counter drugs such as Tylenol or Motrin to their children when needed.

Parental concerns resulted in the district bringing back a modified version of the Healthy Student program this year at some high schools.

But staffing remains a problem, particularly with the Healthy Student program bringing even more students into the clinics.

When she has a clinic filled with students and there is an emergency, C.J. Copney, the registered nurse at Spoto High School, has no one to cover for her. "It's very, very hard; it's almost impossible," she said.

Clinic services remain about the same as last school year, said Deputy Superintendent Ken Otero. Every school is assigned at least one health professional. Registered nurses are assigned to oversee the schools that do not have a registered nurse. They may have as many as six schools to cover.

"It's not better" than last year when nurses were concerned for student safety, said Karen Tanski, the registered nurse at Brandon High, which does not have the Healthy Student program. "I see 60 to 80 students a day. Yesterday, I started with a student who was in a car accident in the morning and called EMS at 2:30 in the afternoon when a student went into a diabetic-type coma."

Modified Healthy Student Program

This year schools could choose to provide a modified version of the Healthy Student program that allows nurses to dispense medicine to students with parental permission. A signed doctor's order to administer prescription or over-the-counter drugs is honored. Participating schools:

• Ferrell Middle

• Waters Career Center

• Bloomingdale High

• Gaither High

• Plant High

• Riverview High

• Robinson High

• Spoto High

• Wharton High

Reporter Marilyn Brown can be reached at (813) 259-8069.

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