Date of Award
Fall 12-13-2023
Document Type
Scholarly Project
Degree Name
Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)
First Advisor
Dr. Mary Brann
Second Advisor
Dr. Bob Kentner
Abstract
Secondary-level education involves adolescent children aged 11-12 years to 18-19 with unique healthcare needs. Their healthcare is of significant importance as they are transitioning to adulthood, and a majority of them lack access to primary healthcare needs. Advanced Practice Registered Nurses/Nurse Practitioners (APRNs/NPs) provide high-quality, cost-effective, and evidence-based care to people across the lifespan, and there is minimal utilization of their services in meeting the primary care needs of adolescents at the secondary school level. The purpose of the policy project was to determine if current policies and practices related to school health services in three southeastern states of the United States are achieving the primary healthcare goals of adolescents and to make recommendations for policy revisions. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Policy Process (POLARIS) framework and the Johns Hopkins Evidence-Based Practice for Nurses and Healthcare Professionals Model (JHNEBP) were used to appraise literature and to guide policy evaluation. The review included the best practice recommendations from CDC, HHS, and School-Based Health Alliance (SBHA). The themes include SBHCs as a proven and accepted strategy, sponsorship for SBHCs, staffing structure for School-based health centers (SBHCs), Nurse practitioners as providers, the reproductive and sexual health of adolescents, the mental health of adolescents, and healthcare delivery models. School health services are provided through either traditional school health services with school nurses or SBHCs or in combination in all these three states and are at different stages. Based on the findings, policy briefs are developed for each of the three states to include Nurse Practitioners as primary healthcare providers.
Recommended Citation
Jacob, S. A. (2023). Policy Review and Recommendation for Secondary Education NP-Led Clinics in the Southeastern United States. [Doctoral project, University of St Augustine for Health Sciences]. SOAR @ USA: Student Scholarly Projects Collection. https://doi.org/10.46409/sr.ZUPU3670
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Included in
Community Health Commons, Community Health and Preventive Medicine Commons, Health Policy Commons, Other Mental and Social Health Commons, Public Health and Community Nursing Commons, Public Health Education and Promotion Commons, Public Policy Commons
Comments
Scholarly project submitted to the University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Nursing Practice