Content Information
Health is a key factor in determination of services for federal program eligibility. When a learner’s health condition affects their ability to access, participate in, or benefit from their education or program, the school or program must consider health in the process of making an eligibility determination. The child’s health condition may adversely impact learning. The school nurse is an integral member of the team to help determine:
- How the learner’s health impacts learning
- Whether nursing services or delegated health services are already or will be required during their school or program
- What supports are required in accordance with licensed practice
The education or program teams can request the school nurse complete the Special Health Care Needs Assessment (SHCNA) Form. Sometimes when health is identified as a related factor, teams have to make a determination regarding related services. No one person or piece of data makes the determination for eligibility into federal programs, so the team must comprehensively pull information from various sources.
Teams may review the data provided by:
- the healthcare provider (notes brought in from parents),
- information provided by the parent (as an integral member of the team), and
- the school nurse (an integral member of the team and the licensed health personnel employed by the school or program responsible for delegation to personnel)
The SHCNA Form gives the team a piece of data on what the school nurse working under the auspices of the school or program may delegate within licensed practice to use in their comprehensive review.
Ultimately, regardless of any one individual data piece provided by the community provider or the school nurse, the team makes the final decision regarding the student's related service needs in any federal program decisions.
Additional Resources
Health Special Factor Considerations (Iowa IDEA Information)
Memorandum: Intersection of 504/ADA and Individual Health Plans