Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/939681
Cuevas manages the Nurse-Family Partnership Program in Los Ange- les Unified School District, and her territory includes South Los Angeles, where Perez lives. e program was created by Dr. David Olds, whose research found that helping women early in pregnancy prevented their babies from being born prematurely due to factors such as smoking, drugs, malnutrition or abnormalities caused by fetal alcohol syndrome. "My goal is to help teens deliver healthy babies, see them graduate from high school and become self-sufficient," says Cuevas, a member of United Teachers Los Angeles. "We try to prevent high-risk behavior through education for pregnant students who range in age from 11 to 19, enrolled in LAUSD. at includes students who dropped out. We assist in bringing them back to school." L AUSD is the only school district in the nation with this pro- gram. It is an expansion of the Los Angeles County Nurse-Family Partnership (NFP) Program and is funded by the California Home Visiting Program. There are 4.5 positions devoted to the program, says Cuevas, and referrals are made by school nurses, counselors, teachers and administrators. "We don't tell students what to do. We provide them with information and explain that school nurses are mandated reporters, but everything is kept confidential. Sometimes we meet before they have told their parents. We encourage participation in the sessions by parents or the father of the child — if they are comfortable doing so, and willing. "e NFP model is a home visitation program, but we accommodate students and meet with them at school on occasion or sometimes in a park. Our nurses are flexible and nonjudgmental. We don't know what these students have gone through." For the first month, nurses meet with the pregnant teen weekly, to assure she has a doctor, is keeping prenatal appointments, taking pre- natal vitamins, making healthy choices, and staying in school. Later, 1.4 million Approximately 1.4 million school-age children in California are considered to have a special health care need, which includes chronic conditions such as allergies, heart problems, seizure disorders or diabetes. Many of these children do not have access to minimal health services during the school day. 43% 43 percent of California school districts employ school nurses. 1.2 million There are 1.2 million students in the 57 per- cent of state school districts without a nurse. Source: SRI International 2015 study visits drop to twice monthly. After delivery there are weekly visits for six weeks, which continue until the baby is 2. Nurses help the young moms with birth con- trol and sexual health. "It is rewarding to see these young girls mature," says Cuevas. "We have had 65 girls since this program started in 2012, and about 96 percent of them graduate high school and go on to college and vocational school. ey want to do well, for their children." Perez plans to go to college and would like to become a nurse, like her mentor. "It's hard being a young mom," she says. "But it's been much easier having someone like nurse Yolanda to sup- port me." 30 cta.org Feature Yolanda Cuevas with Ana Perez and daughter Adamary. Cuevas helped Perez have a healthy pregnancy and stay in school. n e e d a n u r s e ?