WHY JOIN SWOSNA?
Here are TOP TEN Reasons to Join:

1. Stay connected with other school nurses in your area. You will have the opportunity to network and meet other school nurses outside your district or county.
2. Receive up-to-date information you can use today to better perform your job.
3. Receive notifications about upcoming events in your area, including continuing education opportunities to stay current in the field of school nursing and job opportunities.
4. Receive up-to-date information on legislative issues at both the State and Federal level.
5. Receive member alerts(FDA recalls, etc) to maintain a safe environment in your school.
6. Provide a support system where you can solicit help or ideas from other school nurses about what they are doing or have done.
7. Receive local, State and National conference discounts just for being a member.
8. Form lifelong friendships with other school nurses.
9. Maintain professional growth in your specialty and meet your professional standards of Leadership.
10. Get a night out or a weekend away to spend with fellow school nurses!

Our Mission is to elevate the quality of school nursing and provide leadership for the delivery of quality health programs for all Southwestern Ohio school children.

Membership: SWOSNA was founded in 1968. School nurses certified through the Ohio Department of Education, the National Association of School Nurses or the American Nurses Association as well as school nurses working on their certification are eligible for membership. SWOSNA encompasses 17 counties: Mercer, Auglaize, Shelby, Darke, Miami, Clark, Preble, Montgomery, Greene, Butler, Warren, Clinton, Hamilton, Clermont, Brown, Highland and Adams.

Affiliates: SWOSNA has both state and national affiliates: The Ohio Association of School Nurses (OASN) and The National Association of School Nurses (NASN).

Governance: The Executive Board of Directors meet at least four times a year. SWOSNA has three general membership meetings each year providing professional growth opportunities and nursing contact hours.

Our Profession: is based on the premise that optimal learning requires good health. School nurses play a critical role in children's primary and preventative health care. The school nurse assists students and staff to attain a high level of wellness. School nurses develop, implement and monitor health care plans for students with special care needs and chronic illnesses.

Now you know why to join! We would love to have you on board. We need you and your ideas as they relate to school nursing. And besides that, we have FUN when we're together!

HERE you will find the link to sign up for membership. We are looking forward to meeting you!

Membership Drive Contest:

Do you know a school nurse that is not a member to SWOSNA?  If so, she could be your first recruit to win our new membership drive contest.  The school nurse who recruits the most new members to SWOSNA will win a $50.00 Outback gift certificate! 

Rules: 

• Starting January 28-March 10, 2010, the school nurse who signs up the most recruits to SWOSNA will win the gift certificate.  If a tie, we will randomly draw a name.
• Winner will be announced at the OASN Conference in Dayton March 12, 2010.

Contest participants can click here for the membership form to use for new recruits. Complete the membership form below and mail to: Judy Ganguly, SWOSNA membership chair, at the address provided.

Breaking news

New immunization requirements announced for 2010-2011
Schools will have new immunization requirements for the 2010-2011 school year from the Ohio Department of Health (ODH). As you may remember, the Ohio Revised Code (ORC) 3313.67 and 3313.671 indicate that schools are responsible for ensuring that students who enroll in school have immunizations required by ODH. The statute also states that schools are to keep records of the immunizations.

The requirements do not include new immunizations; rather, the schedule for when students receive them has been changed. Please integrate the new requirements into your Fall enrollment information and prepare to share this information with families. The changes in requirements are:


* The addition of a diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis (Tdap) booster for seventh grade students;

* The addition of a second dose of varicella (a progressive requirement starting with kindergarten for 2010); and

* The fourth dose of polio being administered on or after the fourth birthday.


The most significant change is the Tdap booster for seventh-grade students, because currently only 30 percent of these students have received this inoculation. For more information, call the Ohio Department of Health (ODH) Immunization Program hotline at (800) 282-0546. Further information, including a summary of all required immunizations, can be found on the ODH Web site by clicking here.

H1N1 Resources for School Nurses

As Flu Vaccine Arrives for the Season, Some Questions and Answers

• CDC H1N1 Website
• CDC "Flu View" Website
• CDC K-12 Schools Resources Website
  NASN H1N1 Information website
  
  In addition to the website listed above School Nurses should be in working together with their local health department to manage the spread of the H1N1 virus
  
   

Thanks for visiting-please stop back soon!

The information on this site was last updated on:

  May 20, 2009