January 10, 2017

Dear Colleagues,

Hope you are staying warm and dry from the winter weather!   We look forward to seeing you (or a representative of your school district nursing staff) at the upcoming Regional Meetings!  The winter meetings for each Region are scheduled over the next few weeks and we hope as many of  you as possible will be able to attend.

Please see below for several important updates! We’re hoping to keep the attachments to a minimum to avoid multiple emails having to be sent…..this email has only one!

Thank you for all you do every day to support the health and learning of our students!

Mary Ann, Janet and Carol

“When you get into a tight place, and everything goes against you till it seems as if you couldn’t hold on a minute longer, never give up then, for that’s just the place and time that the tide will turn.” – – Harriet Beecher Stowe, abolitionist and writer

School Nurses in the News!

Congratulations to school nurses in MA who were recently awarded national certification!!  This list includes: Jenny Auerr and Diane Williams!  Please let me know if you have recently received your national certification in school nursing!

From the MDPH Bureau of Substance Abuse Services:
Opioid Misuse Prevention: Student Athletes Fact Sheet Packet can now be ordered as a packet and as individual sheets at the MASS Clearinghouse at no charge!   Here is the link: http://massclearinghouse.ehs.state.ma.us/BSASPRO/SA3571.html  Recent legislation in Massachusetts requires that parents of middle and high school athletes and other adults such as coaches, athletic directors, athletic trainers, and school nurses receive educational materials on the potential dangers of opioid use and misuse. The educational materials shall also be distributed in written form to all students participating in an extracurricular athletic activity prior to the commencement of their athletic seasons. 

From the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE):

Special Education Professional Development Survey:   The Office of Special Education Planning and Policy is in the process of identifying special education professional development activities based on a comprehensive survey of the field. The Department is interested in educators’ opinions about how ESE can best help educators achieve their professional development goals and hopes educators will take 10 minutes to complete a survey on special education professional development.  We encourage school nurses to complete it and fill in information that is inclusive of school nursing practice.

The survey is open for responses until January 31, 2017. It is anonymous and completely voluntary. The findings will be available online at www.doe.mass.edu/sped in February and will be used to inform and enhance ESE programming to meet the field’s interests and needs. Please share the survey link, http://bit.ly/esespedpd  with individuals who would be interested in special education professional development, including special education administrators, special education teachers, general education teachers, paraeducators, support staff, and related service providers.

From the US Department of Education (US DOE):

U.S. Department of Education Releases Guidance on Civil Rights of Students with Disabilities: The U.S. Department of Education released three new sets of guidance today to assist the public in understanding how the Department interprets and enforces federal civil rights laws protecting the rights of students with disabilities. These guidance documents clarify the rights of students with disabilities and the responsibilities of educational institutions in ensuring that all students have the opportunity to learn.

The guidance released on December 28, 2017 includes a parent and educator resource guide; a Dear Colleague letter (DCL) and question and answer document on the use of restraint and seclusion in public schools; and a DCL and question and answer documents on the rights of students with disabilities in public charter schools.

The Parent and Educator Resource Guide to Section 504 in Public Elementary and Secondary Schools, issued by the Department’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR), provides a broad overview of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Section 504). The guidance describes school districts’ nondiscrimination responsibilities, including obligations to provide educational services to students with disabilities, and outlines the steps parents can take to ensure that their children secure all of the services they are entitled to receive.

Read more here.

From the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE)

As part of Restraint and Seclusion Prevention Training Calendar, a training entitled “Using PBIS in Alternative School Settings” is being held.  This training is presented by DESE and will be held on Friday, January 20th, 2017 at the Department of Mental Health Office, Hadley Building, 167 Lyman Street Westborough, MA 01581.  To register please visit: www.surveygizmo.com/s3/3223283/daf3486010f0

From the MDPH Immunization Bureau:
MDPH and MCAAP are pleased to announce four upcoming Immunization Initiative Webinars

Continuing Education Credit is available for participating in the live webinars!

  •  Thursday, January 12, 2017, 12:00-1:00 p.m.: 2017 HPV Vaccination Update*

–Review of ACIP Recommendation Regarding 2-Dose HPV Schedule and MA HPV Vaccination Uptake

Click here to register for the webinar on January 12, 2017.

  •  Thursday, February 9, 2017, 12:00-1:00 p.m.: Vaccine Storage and Handling and VFC Compliance Training*

Click here to register for the webinar on February 9, 2017.

  • Thursday, March 9, 2017, 12:00-1:00 p.m.: You Are the Key to HPV Cancer Prevention: Strategies for Raising HPV Vaccination Rates*

–Communicating about HPV vaccination: Lessons learned from physicians and parents

Click here to register for the webinar on March 9, 2017.

  • Thursday, April 6, 2017, 12:00-1:00 p.m.: 2017 Childhood Immunization Schedule Review; MDPH Vaccine Update

Click here to register for the webinar on April 6, 2017.

Registration for the one-hour webinars is free.  Webinar participants will receive a CME/CEU Activity Award Certificate by email after the webinar.  Participants in the February webinar also will receive VFC Compliance Training Certificates by email after the webinar.

Questions?  If you have any questions or need additional information, please contact Cynthia McReynolds (cmcreynolds@mms.org; 781.895.9850).

From Boston Medical Center (BMC) CATALYST Clinic:

BMC has expanded the addiction treatment services offered for adolescents, young adults, and their families. In the CATALYST Clinic, our interdisciplinary team provides comprehensive wrap-around care in a general health setting for patients 25 years old and younger. The team offers assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of substance use disorders as well as a transition from adolescent to adult care when appropriate.  Please see the attached flyer for more information.  Currently patients who come to CATALYST will need to receive (or be willing to receive) primary care at BMC.  The CATALYST team would be happy to discuss any potential referral by phone (p: 617-414-6655) and/or any other questions about our clinic with school nurses, students or families.

From The Children’s Behavioral Health Knowledge Center Webinar Series:

Register Today!

Facts and Fantasies About Bullying and Cyberbullying 

Wednesday, January 18th, 2017
11:00am- 12:00pm 
Professionals working with children tend to hear about “bullying” and “cyberbullying” problems continuously, but how often do children and parents use these terms accurately?  What behaviors are used to bully, and how often do online behaviors intersect with what happens in school?  Are bullying and cyberbullying always the result of emotional disorders, or can they be attributed to lack of knowledge and cognitive misperceptions?  Recent research investigating the more effective ways of discussing and addressing these issues with children and adolescents will be reviewed, and resources discussed.

Presenter:  Elizabeth K. Englander, Ph.D., Director, Massachusetts Aggression Reduction Center, Professor of Psychology, Bridgewater State University