SN Screenings
School Nursing
Screenings
School screenings serve as a secondary prevention measure to identify students who may have conditions which affect their ability to learn. These screenings, led by school nurses, can be conducted either individually or as mass screenings, and parents should be notified in advance. A key responsibility of school nurses is to follow up on results and help families access care.
The Utah Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) provides guidelines for school screenings under 53G-9-402 (1) (a). Each local school board shall implement policies as prescribed by the Department of Health and Human Services for vision, dental, abnormal spinal curvature, and hearing examinations for students who attend the district's schools.
A child's ability to see is crucial to their learning, and school vision screening programs provide a cost-effective way to identify serious vision problems early. It’s important to detect and address vision issues, as certain problems, if not corrected before the age of nine, can result in permanent blindness in one or both eyes.
In Utah, UCA 53G-9-404 and Rule R384-201 require all public schools to conduct vision screenings for students in pre-K, kindergarten, 1st, 3rd, 5th, 7th or 8th, and 9th or 10th grades. Schools are also required to use a vision symptoms questionnaire to identify students who may need further screening.
While school vision screenings are valuable to identify potential issues, parents should understand that these screenings are not a substitute for a comprehensive eye exam by an eye care professional.
Additionally, all districts and charter schools must report their vision screening data annually to the Department of Health and Human Services. This data should also be included in the School health workload report, which is required from all districts and charter schools each year.
Documents
- Utah school vision screening policy 2023
- Vision screening follow-up 2023
- Outside entity application for tier 1 screening
Forms
- Vision symptoms questionnaire 2024 (English)
- Vision referral to eye care professional 2023 (English)
- Certificate of vision screening (English)
- Sample vision opt-out form (English)
Training
- Training for vision screening (2019)—for school nurses
- Training for vision screening for designated vision point person (2019)—for schools without a nurse
- Vision screening module A: Basics
- Vision screening module B: Training for volunteers
- Vision screening Module C: Training for tier 2 (school nurses only)
- Vision screening module D: Training for approved outside entities (requires prior approval)
Implementation
- Checklist for Planning a tier 1 vision screening
- Tier 2 for schools without a school nurse- Follow back of vision symptoms questionnaire form.
- Screening skills: Distance vision
- Screening skills: Near vision
- Screening skills: Students with special needs
- Screening skills: Color screening (for school nurse only, Lay staff should not attempt)
- Screening skills: Eye tracking (for school nurse only, Lay staff should not attempt)
- Screening skills: Near point convergence (for school nurse only, Lay staff should not attempt)
Hearing screenings may be conducted by a school nurse or school audiologist. Check with your LEA/charter school policy on health screenings.
Hearing screenings in Utah schools are conducted to identify students who may be deaf or hard of hearing. This screening is required by law (Utah Code 53G-9-402) and applies to students in grades K-3, 7, and 11, as well as new entrants and students in special education programs. Early identification of hearing loss is crucial as it impacts language development, academic achievement, and social-emotional growth
Contact [email protected] if you have questions.
Recent studies have cast controversy on the effectiveness of routine scoliosis screening in the school setting. Previous studies have both supported and discouraged routine screening. Districts have the option to perform hands-on scoliosis screening or make parent screening instructions available to all students in grades 5 through 8 grades annually. School nurses oversee the spinal curvature screening. Physical education teachers can help with the initial screening process once they are trained by a school nurse or medical professional, on the use of a scoliometer, a tool used to help determine the severity of spinal curvature.
The school nurse may contact a local dentist to conduct oral health screenings, apply sealants, and provide restorative care. Several oral health in school programs have been approved through the DHHS Oral Health Program. Dental health education is also important and can be done by the school nurse, a dental hygienist, or students in a dental hygiene program. February is National Dental Health month.
For information on in school programs and resources contact the DHHS Oral Health Program at (801) 273-2995
The DHHS HEAL Program works with school nurses, districts, and local health departments to conduct a bi-annual height and weight measurement project. This initiative allows the DHHS to monitor the prevalence of overweight and obesity among elementary students across Utah. Data collected helps track rates of overweight students by grade and sex, understand the impacts of childhood obesity, and develop prevention strategies.
The most recent study, conducted in 2018, found that 22.1% of students were at an unhealthy weight, and 10.6% were classified as obese. This study has not been conducted in recent years.