School Health Partnership (SHP)

© Nova Scotia Department of Education and Early Childhood Development

The School Health Partnership (SHP) is an integrated partnership among:

• Department of Education and Early Childhood Development (EECD)
• Regional Centres for Education (RCEs)
• Conseil scolaire acadien provincial (CSAP)
• Nova Scotia Health (NSH)
• IWK Health (IWK)

The SHP Program will help ensure that students with healthcare needs have access to an equitable and high-quality education, using an integrated approach to students’ healthcare needs in alignment with the EECD Inclusive Education Policy. The objective of the SHP Program is to support students with health conditions so they can attend school and grow in their independence. This support may include school staff:

• helping students manage their health conditions.
• providing emergency care for their health conditions.

School Health Partnership (SHP) Nurses are Nova Scotia Health or IWK employees who work in partnership with the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development (EECD), Regional Centres for Education (RCEs), Conseil scolaire acadien provincial (CSAP), Nova Scotia Health and IWK Health. They support students with healthcare needs by working with:

• students and their parents/guardians
• school administrators
• teachers
• school staff
• other health system partners

Based on a broad understanding of health and education systems, SHP nurses address barriers, and challenges to support the EECD Inclusive Education Policy.

Pictured above are IWK/Nova Scotia Health nurses, leaders and administrative support staff. (Photo provided by SHP)

The Role of School Health Partnership Nurses

The SHP nurse supports school staff to provide necessary healthcare tasks to support students' inclusion in an educational setting. The SHP nurse will facilitate any necessary teaching or training for school staff so they can appropriately support the student. SHP Nurses are not located in schools and do not provide direct nursing care. Their role includes: 

Coordinating resources to enable students to attend school.

Advising on the need for school-based health services and evidence-informed practices.

Developing plans of care, teaching resources and tools.

Educating school staff through training and professional development to:

• perform/support healthcare tasks as outlined in the plan(s) of care.
• create safe, accessible, and equitable environments.

Facilitating program planning for students with healthcare needs.

Liaising with students, families, school staff, healthcare partners, and community supports.

A plan of care (POC) is an individualized document that outlines the necessary procedures when:

• a student requires support to manage specific healthcare need(s) and/or
• school staff must respond to life-threatening symptoms related to a student's medical diagnosis.

POCs are stored in TIENET and are readily available to the school staff supporting the student. Plans of care are developed collaboratively and reviewed annually. They support students' independence in managing their health conditions to the maximum extent possible.

Healthcare professionals can refer directly to School Health Partnership Program.

Contact our Clinical Leaders below to connect with the SHP nurse for your student's school, or if you have any other questions regarding the SHP program.

For students in the Halifax Regional Centre for Education or Conseil scolaire acadien provincial schools, contact:

Cathy Younker, RN, MN
IWK Clinical Leader
Cathy.Younker@iwk.nshealth.ca
(902) 717-7774

For students in all other Regional Centres for Education schools, contact:

Karen Noiles, RN, MN
Nova Scotia Health Clinical Leader
Karen.Noiles@nshealth.ca
(902) 679-7726