School Health Services Program Public Roundtable

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA NURSES ASSOCIATION

TESTIMONY, October 25, 2016

Good Afternoon

Let me begin by introducing myself. My name is Viktoria Holley-Trimmer and I am a nurse. Yes, I like many of my colleaguesin the School Health Program, we are college prepared nurses with Bachelor andMaster's degrees. We have chosen to work in the schools of the District of Columbia to provide these children, of this city, with the benefit of our skills in the art of nursing. We are men and women who have published scholarly literature in nursing journals, we have work in the acute care setting where we cared for open heart surgery patients, burn patients, neonatal and adult intensive care patients. We have work and trained on organ transplant units and delivery rooms. We have worked in major healthcare facilities within our city and around the country. Yes, we are nurses and we have been trained to astutely assess, implement, plan and execute plans of care for children presenting to the Health Suites of your schools. Children with physical and mental health problems which may or may not be apparent upon presentation. Yes, we do see our fair share of bumps bruises and tummy aches, but, dare I say it takes a professionally educated nurse in the school 5 day a week 8 hours a day in the schools to assess the extent of the presenting problem and the potential sequelae of those presenting problem. No, we don't diagnose but we do assess and evaluate the need for care available within the scope of our practice, to better serve these children in a timely and might I add, a cost effective manner.

So please understand, School Nurses on a daily basis care for children who are diabetic, asthmatics andsuffering from chronic seizure disorders. We also assume the care of children who are recovering from childhood cancers and undergoing chemotherapy. Do you ladies and gentlemen believe those children would best be serves by paraprofessionals? I don't think so. It is imperative that a program and process such as the Whole Child, Whole School, and Whole Community not be co-opted with a process that removes the glue from the framework. You see the nurse is the glue. I believe that the creators of this extremely positive program hoped it would be an adjunct to the school nurse not the substitute.

Thank you