Isobel Quinn and Sinead Stevenson in the South Eastern Trust, are just two of the dedicated Public Health School Nurses who make a difference to the lives of children across 45 primary schools in the Down area.
The role of Public Health School Nurses is crucial in providing a link between home, school and health.
They carry out routine health appraisals in both primary and secondary schools, helping to identify potential health issues at an early stage, ultimately improving outcomes for children and their families.
Public Health School Nurses are also a source of advice and support for schools and work closely with vulnerable families, including those seeking asylum.
With their focus very much on prevention, they run vaccination clinics, giving children the opportunity to receive their vaccinations in a safe and familiar school environment. The Trust’s School Nursing Team is proud to have achieved the highest Flu vaccination uptake in Northern Ireland.
Beyond schools, the School Nursing Service provides support through home visits, family health assessments and continence care, ensuring the needs of families are being fully met.
Explaining the importance of their role, Public Health School Nurse Isobel Quinn said, “Early intervention is key. Public health is about preventing rather than treating, so it is good to undertake assessments with P1 children in the early stages.
“We can pick up any vision problems early. If issues with eyesight are not identified in time, this could have a long term effect on their vision and if they cannot see the board, this could prevent them from learning efficiently. It is the same with hearing, if they cannot hear the teacher, they may be misjudged as difficult or distracted. By checking their hearing and vision early, we are giving them the best chance to learn.
“My background is in caring for sick children, so I love working with children, particularly at primary school age. I also have a role in continence and I really enjoy being able to help children resolve their issues and make a difference. I just love what I do!”
Specialist Community Public Health Nurse, Sinead Stevenson highlighted how varied the role can be, “The School Nursing role can be very much misunderstood. People do not always realise the amount of work involved in supporting children and families.
“We get brilliant feedback from the families we work with, it is about giving advice, support and signposting to relevant services so that the right intervention happens at the right time.
“We also carry out screening and surveillance as part of the Healthy Child, Healthy Future framework. Through the P1 health appraisal, we carry out height, weight, hearing and vision checks and we also deliver a Year 8 appraisal which is so important as young people transition into post-primary school.
“As another academic year commences, we are looking forward to the year ahead. The feedback from schools, families and parents makes our role so worthwhile.”
Highlighting the impact of the School Nursing Service the Principal of St Joseph’s Primary School in Crossgar, Maria Rogan, commented, “The School Nursing role is extremely vital. It is not just a health service, but an essential foundation for learning and safeguarding. The services provided by Public Health School Nurses strengthen connections between families, schools and health, making them a cornerstone of children’s education and wellbeing.
“Health appraisals provide timely advice for parents and teachers to act quickly, whether an issue is big or small, before it escalates and creates barriers to learning. It really is an invaluable service.”
