School Nurses’ Experiences of Managing Young People With Mental Health Problems

Abstract

Prevalence of mental health disorder is increasing among young people. It is recognized that early intervention is essential in supporting young people, and care provided within schools to support emotional well-being is recommended as part of this process. A scoping review was undertaken examining school nurses' experiences of supporting the mental health of schoolchildren. Findings suggest that school nurses have a central role in supporting young peoples' mental health, although a number of barriers exist which impact on school nurses' preparedness for this aspect of their role. While there are inconsistencies in the provision of mental health training available to support school nurses, when training is implemented it has positive outcomes for service provision and quality of care. A number of challenges for school nurses were also identified, and recommendations for practice are suggested in the article.

Mental health work in school health services and school nurses’ involvement and attitudes, in a Norwegian context

“…The survey shows that school nurses are more satisfied with the competence they have in primary prevention work/health promotion than with their competence in the field of mental health (Wessel Andersson, Osborg Ose, & Norvoll, ). This lack of confidence regarding mental health issues is also described in UK studies (Haddad, Butler, & Tylee, ; Pryjmachuk et al., ; Ravenna & Cleaver, ).…”

“…& Norvoll, 2006). This lack of confidence regarding mental health issues is also described in UK studies (Haddad, Butler, & Tylee, 2010;Pryjmachuk et al, 2012;Ravenna & Cleaver, 2016 among adolescents .…”

School-level factors associated with teacher connectedness: a multilevel analysis of the structural and relational school determinants of young people’s health

“…More broadly, the attention to TC as an important determinant of health calls for greater collaboration between the public health and educational sectors. With the potential of student–teacher interactions as protective for risk behaviours 15 – 17 and the emerging concerns about mental health among youth, 49 , 50 the role of education systems as public health institutions and as sites for public health interventions become vitally important. It is therefore fundamental that public health adopts a more nuanced understanding of the elements within schools that operate as determinants of health and the links between them.…”

Gender-based generalisations in school nurses’ appraisals of and interventions addressing students’ mental health

“…However, their general responses indicated that they paid most attention to those in most need of their help, due to their heavy workloads. If so, the nurses’ prioritization, which may be influenced by gender stereotypes, may exacerbate problems associated with resource limitations and the organization of health services [23, 42]. …”