ODESSA, Texas (KOSA) -As the nation faces a critical shortage of nurses affecting hospitals, healthcare facilities, as well as schools, Ector County ISD says the shortage isn’t impacting them at all.
The Director of Nursing and Health Services at ECISD says right now the district currently has zero nursing positions opened and that’s because they say it’s all about planning ahead.
Inside ECISD, Director of Nursing and Health Services Becky Rhodes says its meeting the needs of nurses with substitutes and fill-ins.
“We have sub nurses that help fill-in when nurses are absent and then we also been able to hire several float nurses that help with covid,” Rhodes said.
Those float nurses were brought on through the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Grant, but their positions are only temporary through the school year.
Rhodes says prior to the pandemic, the workload for some ECISD school nurses are to oversee 2 campuses with a thousand kids.
“ It’s about 1000. One to about 1000,” Rhodes said. “ The high school is about one to about 2000. Because both OHS and Permian have 4000 students and their two nurses on both of those campuses.”
And with carrying the weight of the pandemic on top of keeping up with everyday medical needs for students Rhodes says it can be a challenge.
We’re tired, you know,” Rhodes said. “From the demands that covid has placed on top of all of the demands that we normally so it’s just this extra on top. Like let’s pile this on back on you and so yeah we’re tired.”
The Director of Nursing and Health Services says by the end of the school year in may float nurses will know if their positions will remain temporary or become permanent into the next school year if approved by administration.
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