As rural school districts begin to reopen during the pandemic, many find themselves without school nurses. Statistics from the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) on school nurses are not comprehensive, but Louise Wilson, a health care professional at DPI, confirmed the lack of school nurses in districts around the state in an interview with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “Realistically, most school districts in Wisconsin don’t have a full-time nurse,” Wilson said. “We don’t really have a good handle on how many school districts do not have school nursing services or have one school nurse that serves multiple buildings or only works part-time during the week.”
According to Wisconsin state statues, school districts are required to provide emergency nursing services, but districts are not required to hire a nurse. Often, it’s the rural and suburban schools that lack nurses or have nurses that handle hundreds of students. DPI is working with the Department of Health Services to develop an algorithm for school districts to use this year if they have students or staff infected with the coronavirus.