Legal Issues: Advocacy by and Disabilities of School Nurses

Abstract

This article summarizes the facts and rulings of a recent representative federal appeals court decision concerning the legal claims of two school nurses who lost their positions after advocating on behalf of students with diabetes. Their primary claim was the anti-retaliation protection under the pair of federal laws prohibiting disability discrimination—Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act. The second of the two nurses additionally asserted protection under this pair of laws based on her own asserted disabilities. The discussion reveals the sometimes significant difference between legal requirements, as determined by appellate courts, and professional norms, as perceived by practitioners and professors in school nursing.

Keywords

law advocacy disability section 504 ADA ethics whistleblowing

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References

DeBord v. Board of Education of Ferguson-Florissant School District, 126 F.3d 1102 (8th Cir. 1997).

Kirilenko-Ison v. Board of Education of Danville Independent Schools, 974 F.3d 652 (6th Cir. 2020).

National Association of School Nurses (2016). Code of ethics. https://www.nasn.org/nasn-resources/professional-topics/codeofethics.

Zirkel

P. A.

(2018). School nurse advocacy: The dilemma of ethical interpretation versus legal protection. NASN School Nurse, 33(5), 288–290. https://doi.org/10.1177/1942602X18784564.

Zirkel

P. A.

Granthom

Lovato

(2012). Section 504 and students with health problems: The pivotal position of the school nurse. Journal of School Nursing, 28(6), 423–432. https://doi.org/10.1177/1059840512449358.