An Exploration of the Day to Day Professional Experiences of School Nurses Globally: A Narrative Review

Abstract

Abstract To explore school nurses roles globally through their own perceptions of what they do and how they do it and to compare the realities for the role its representation in professional literature. A comprehensive narrative literature review, using ENTREQ guidelines, with "qualitizing" of the quantitative literature, and athematic analysis was carried out. Findings were reviewed in relation to established theory. CINAHL, Medline, Cochrane Library, and Embase were systematically searched from 2000-2021. Included studies focused on school nurses perceptions of their own practice. Five themes: direct care, health promotion, collaboration, support from school and health authorities and promoting the school nurses role were found. These themes were closely aligned to the National Association for School Nurses' framework for 21st century practice. However, the school nurses signposted areas where they need support in carrying out their job to the highest standard. School nurses are important to support the health needs of students while at school. They also, particularly in areas like the United Arab Emirates where resources are being invested in the role, have a unique role to play in health promotion, leading to improved health literacy, as positive health behaviors tend to be learned young. However, worldwide, the potential for the school nursing role needs to be recognized and supported by health and education providers, by families and within the schools for its full potential to be achieved.