What to teach your student clinic helpers

[clsimmons]

I want to develop a program to teach basic medical 'stuff' to student clinic helpers. These are students that are in the clinic one entire class. They are slightly academically challenged. What would you suggest?
C simmons

Depending on the student's cognitive level, I would start with confidentiality. It would be good to have them understand the role of the school nurse vs. the role of the health support technician, medication administration principles, standard first aid, health education topics such as handwashing, communicable diseases, sun safety, use of seat belts, hygiene, dental care, STD's (depending on age of student), etc. It could be explained that these are issues that school nurses deal with daily. Maybe you could also cover some of the applicable laws associated with school nursing such as FERPA, HIPAA, IDEA, and Section 504.