When you send your kids back to school this fall, you can rest assured the school nurse has the latest training.
More than 300 school nurses gathered in Mission on Wednesday to discuss how to better care for your students.
From suicide to immunizations, school nurses from Rio Grande City to Brownsville received the latest training on caring for students with asthma to ADHD.
Region One Education Service Center Prevention Specialist Clara Contreras shared how to recognize signs of suicidal tendencies.
"A lot of time people think nurse just put on band aids but they do so much more," Contreras said.
Suicide is the third leading cause of death among youth ages 15 to 24.
"Suicide, unfortunately is an event we have seen far too many times in our schools," Edinburg CISD R.N. Albert Lopez said.
Nurses also received instruction on new policies this year.
"We are now required to collect more information from parents who have students who are at risk for developing life threatening allergic reactions,” Lopez said.
"Sometimes the school nurses are the only health care professional that the child sees so to me the role of the school nurse is very critical,” Contreras said.
Another new requirement this year is a meningitis vaccination for college students.
"If the child is not well he cannot learn,” Contreras said.
If your child has any special medical needs contact the school nurse.
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