Release Date: 11/11/2021
Expiration Date: 11/11/2024
Part of the NASN Lunch and Learn Series.

Cost: $20.00/Free for NASN members!

Programs in the Lunch and Learn Series include a discussion option. Scroll to the bottom of each program page to locate a discussion for the course. Program speakers are monitoring the discussion and will provide responses to your questions when needed.

Program Overview
Nearly 60% of children and adolescents worldwide report headache (Abu-Arafeh et al, 2010). Fewer than 50% have never been evaluated by a healthcare provider, given a headache diagnosis, or offered a management strategy (Lipton et al, 2013). Eight to 12% of youth with headache meet diagnostic criteria for migraine. Migraine is the leading cause of disability(YLD) among 15-49-year-olds worldwide (Steiner et al., 2018). Headache-related disability leads to school absenteeism, decreased self-esteem, declining school performance, and decreased QOL (Powers et al, 2003). The National Association of School Nurses (NASN) has noted that “physical and mental health problems such as asthma, allergies, diabetes, obesity, seizure disorders, anxiety, and attention deficit disorder rank high among the factors contributing to chronic absenteeism” (NASN, 2018). Despite their prevalence and disability burden, primary headache disorders have been largely absent from these discussions.
The school nurse is optimally positioned to change this trajectory for many of their students. In this presentation, we highlight the Headache Action Plan Project for Youth (HAPPY), a generalizable framework for system change that utilizes the school nurse as the cornerstone of a community-based public health intervention (Connelly et al, 2017). We describe the school nurse’s role as leader of a school-based public health initiative that rapidly identifies students with migraine, connects them with their primary care provider, and assures use of headache action plans to manage their headaches effectively while at school. Finally, we show how timely identification and effective management of childhood migraine could prevent chroncification and long-term disability.

Learning Outcomes
As a result of participating in this educational activity, learners will be able to: 

• Identify migraine as a highly prevalent and disabling condition among youth.
• Describe the role of the school nurse as a public health agent in primary, secondary, and tertiary levels of care.
• Develop strategies in identifying students with migraine, measuring their disability, facilitating PCP referrals, and creating/implementing headache action plans.
• Specify measures to monitor the current burden of headache among students and track headache disability outcomes over time.

Intended Audience
This continuing education program is a knowledge-based activity developed to meet the educational needs of registered nurses who are interested in child and adolescent health.

Faculty
The nurse planner, faculty and reviewers disclose the absence of personal financial relationships with commercial interests relevant to this educational activity within the past 12 months.

Accreditation Statement
National Association of School Nurses is accredited with distinction as a provider of nursing continuing professional development by the American Nurses Credentialing Center's Commission on Accreditation.

Accredited status does not imply endorsement by NASN or ANCC of any commercial products discussed in this learning activity.

Commercial Support or Grant Funding
This program did not receive commercial support or grant funding.

Instructions to Complete This CNE Activity
To receive a Certificate of Completion for this course, follow the steps below, and complete and view the full content of the program including the course evaluation.

NASN will conduct an outcome assessment of a sample of participants at a later date. Please be advised that, if you complete this course, you may be asked to participate in this outcome assessment.

Step 1: Enroll in the course through the e-commerce system. Select the Purchase button. You will be directed to the e-commerce system. The item should already be in your shopping cart (look for the shopping cart icon at the top of the e-commerce web page).  The cost for this course will be waived for NASN members during the checkout process.

Step 2: Complete and view the full content of the program. Content items are indexed at the bottom of this screen. After you enroll, you will return to this screen. The first content item will be “unlocked” so that you can begin completing the course. Subsequent items will “unlock” as you complete previous items.
 
Step 3: Print the certificate.