An Excel Spreadsheet Model for States and Districts to Assess the Cost-Benefit of School Nursing Services

Abstract

This paper describes a user-friendly, Excel spreadsheet model and two data collection instruments constructed by the authors to help states and districts perform cost-benefit analyses of school nursing services delivered by full-time school nurses. Prior to applying the model, states or districts need to collect data using two forms: “Daily Nurse Data Collection Form” and the “Teacher Survey.” The former is used to record daily nursing activities, including number of student health encounters, number of medications administered, number of student early dismissals, and number of medical procedures performed. The latter is used to obtain estimates for the time teachers spend addressing student health issues. Once inputs are entered in the model, outputs are automatically calculated, including program costs, total benefits, net benefits, and benefit-cost ratio. The spreadsheet model, data collection tools, and instructions are available at the NASN website (http://www.nasn.org/The/CostBenefitAnalysis).