We have all been there, a steady stream of student visits, many stemming from recess incidents during the lunchtime rush. I call it a chaotic ballet, with students coming in droves to see the school nurse for a wide variety of needs. But what happens when a visit is much more emergent? What catches our attention? What can we miss from the sheer volume of students running in and out of our offices? Did you know that nearly 80% of playground injuries are caused by falls?
I am sharing this article as a reminder that we can only see one student at a time. Our students and staff can WAIT so that we can give our FULL attention to who is right in front of us. My heart goes out to this family, their child, and also the school nurse who I can only imagine was doing their best.
Family sues Uintah School District, claims fall left 8-year-old with lifelong injuries
The Johnsons have a strong case against the Utah School District and other defendants, including the school nurse, for their son Treyson’s life-changing injuries sustained in a fall from the monkey bars at Discovery Elementary School in Vernal, Utah. The lawsuit alleges several key points:
- The school failed to properly supervise Treyson when he fell and was unable to stand up or walk without help.
- The school kept important injury information from the Johnsons and did not provide them with an injury checklist that would have prompted a referral to a healthcare professional to evaluate Treyson’s concussion symptoms.
- The school administrators knew the playground’s ground cover was too hard and had two chances to fix it before Treyson’s fall, but did not do so.
- The delay in recognizing Treyson’s serious injuries and getting him proper medical care likely worsened his prognosis. He had to undergo emergency surgery at Primary Children’s Hospital in Salt Lake City and suffered a stroke, leaving him with life-changing injuries requiring lifelong care.
The Johnsons are seeking policy changes to improve staff training on school injuries and require immediate and complete notification of parents when their child is injured at school. Given the school’s alleged negligence in failing to provide adequate supervision, maintain safe playground equipment, and promptly address Treyson’s injuries, the Johnsons have a strong case for recovering damages to help cover their son’s extensive medical costs and care.
What constitutes “complete notification” by the school nurse? How can we all do better in both assessing and communicating our findings with families? These are the hard questions we should all be asking ourselves, our school health services departments, and board attorneys. So many questions arise from this incident that can serve as a wake-up call for all of us who care for other people’s children…
Resources:
CDC Heads Up for School Nurses – Resources for Traumatic Brain Injury Assessment
American Academy of Pediatrics webpage on playground safety
Staying Safe on Playgrounds
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Published by Robin Cogan, MEd, RN, NCSN, FNASN, FAAN
Robin Cogan, MEd, RN, NCSN, FNASN, FAAN, is a Nationally Certified School Nurse (NCSN), currently in her 22nd year as a New Jersey school nurse in the Camden City School District. Robin is the Director for New Jersey to the National Association of School Nurses (NASN) Board. She is proud to be a Johnson & Johnson School Health Leadership Fellow and past Program Mentor. Robin is the honored recipient of multiple awards for her work in school nursing and population health. These awards include, 2019 and 2020 National Association of School Nurses President’s Award, 2018 NCSN School Nurse of the Year, 2017 Johnson & Johnson School Nurse of the Year, and the New Jersey Department of Health 2017 Population Health Hero Award. Robin serves as faculty in the School Nurse Certificate Program at Rutgers University-Camden School of Nursing, where she teaches the next generation of school nurses. She was presented the 2018 Rutgers University – Camden Chancellor’s Teaching Excellence Award for Part-time Faculty. Robin writes a weekly blog called The Relentless School Nurse. She also writes a monthly column in My American Nurse, the official journal of the American Nurses Association. Robin’s work is included as a case study in The Future of Nursing Report 2020-2030. You can follow Robin on Twitter at @RobinCogan.
View all posts by Robin Cogan, MEd, RN, NCSN, FNASN, FAAN
I believe that the first step is utilizing the technology that we have available now. Making EHR’s a standard of care and communication in public school districts should be a must. Parents will get automatic notifications when a student is seen and evaluated by an RN and then the parent has the right to make the continuing medical decision for the child.
So true, but so many school nurses do not have access. The technology issue is HUGE!