title: Child Maltreatment: Optimizing Recognition and Reporting by School Nurses.
abstract: School nurses perform a crucial role in the prevention, identification, intervention, and reporting of child maltreatment. The purpose of this article is to share the highlights of a research project conducted to (a) examine the effectiveness of an educational intervention program in increasing the knowledge, confidence, and self-efficacy in school nurses regarding children at risk of maltreatment; and (b) discover issues surrounding the comfort level engaging with children, communicating with teachers and other personnel, and ethical issues. The study consisted of two phases. Phase 1 was a face-to-face evidenced-based educational intervention. Focus groups implemented in Phase 2 discovered specific concerns of school nurses. Results indicate a significant increase in school nurse knowledge, confidence, and self-efficacy related to children at risk. Five themes were identified from the focus groups: the importance of interprofessional collaboration, identifiers of children at risk of maltreatment, the role of the school nurse as a mentor and leader, the importance of advancing one's knowledge and skill set, and constraints faced by school nurses.
authors.affiliation: Clinical Assistant Professor, School of Nursing, University of North Carolina, Charlotte.
authors.forename: Kathleen S
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Jordan
authors.affiliation: Lecturer in Pediatric Nursing, School of Nursing, University of North Carolina, Charlotte.
authors.forename: Peggy
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: MacKay
authors.affiliation: Professor and Carol Grotnes Belk Endowed Chair, School of Nursing, University of North Carolina, Charlotte.
authors.forename: Stephanie J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Woods
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D002649:Child Abuse / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006801:Humans; D024802:Nurse's Role; D012573:School Nursing
keywords: child maltreatment and school health; child maltreatment and school nursing; child maltreatment risk factors; child maltreatment screening and reporting; mandatory reporting