From Esthetician to Surgical Nurse to School Nurse

How this nurse changed up her career as an esthetician to become a school nurse

Welcome to Nurse Ascent, a twice-weekly newsletter created by nurses for nurses. This week, one nurse talks about all the schooling that brought her from esthetician to public health nurse working with high schoolers. We also discuss how 30% of adults use AI chatbot for health information, why the White House is still not Sready to nominate a CDC director, and how traditional therapies for knee pain might work better than drugs.

But first, when “can you quickly see this patient?” isn’t actually quick….

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Nurse Spotlight: Shara Hannah RN, BSN, PHN, CSN

What I do for work

I work for a school district as a school nurse where I am the dedicated RN for a specific high school. I oversee all kids with health conditions including medical, mental health and special education. We are a district that is 98% low income so I also work a lot with referrals for families needs additional resources. I also used to run my own business as an esthetician and still take clients here and there too.

How I got here

My first year as a nurse I worked in the operating room of a plastic surgery center. During that time, I was attending school to get my BSN and during my rotation for public health certification I worked at the school district and found myself really enjoying it. It was more in line with the kind of nursing I wanted to do with preventative care and nursing education. An opening became available by the time I got my BSN and I’ve been here ever since.

Headlines in Healthcare

1 in 3 Adults are Turning to AI Chatbots for Health Info

Nearly a third of adults in the US say they have turned to artificial intelligence chatbots in the past year for health information, according to a new poll from KFF. They found that those facing challenges to afford and access health care are driving some (19%) to rely on AI, particularly for younger adults and those with lower incomes. The poll also found that many people who consult AI for health information say they did not follow up with a health professional afterward, including most (58%) for mental health, and 42% for physical health.

White House Unready to Nominate new CDC Director

The Trump administration had been expected to nominate a new director for the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention this week, but has stated they are not yet ready, CNN reports. The CDC has been without a Senate-confirmed director since August following the firing of newly appointed Susan Monarez, who served only one month. A federal law called the Vacancies Act limits the amount of time an acting officer can serve in place of a Senate-confirmed official to 210 days, which was surpassed last Thursday.

Simple Therapies Outperform Drugs for Knee Pain

A meta-analysis of nearly 10,000 patients shows that non-drug therapies including knee braces, hydrotherapy, and exercise are highly effective for treating knee osteoarthritis, sciencedaily.com reports. The analysis, published in PLOS One, noted that these therapies frequently outperformed common pain medications by offering superior pain relief and improved mobility with fewer risks than drugs, prompting a shift toward non-pharmacological and non-surgical interventions.

More on Shara

A day in my life

My work days are different every day, but in general I start the day by checking my emails to make sure there’s nothing urgent I need to focus on first. I perform vision and hearing tests for new students to the district. We build individualized education plans based on how health impacts the student’s education. This involves asking questions about their diagnoses, looking for barriers and what accommodations we can provide. We also create emergency care plans to send to the teachers of students with health conditions such as asthma, allergies, or seizures disorders. I also manage the LVN at the health office who sees the kids who come in day to day to the nurse’s office.

What I do for fun & to relax

On my days off, I try to spend a lot of time with my friends. One of the benefits of switching to this job is getting 13 paid weeks off per year when I can travel and spend quality time with friends and family. In my free time I love hiking, yoga, getting massages and sometimes pedicures. I spend a lot of time after work winding down with TV at home with a rom-com or a feel-good TV show.

Share your story & be entered to win

As part of our effort to spotlight nurses, we’d love to feature you in an upcoming issue of Nurse Ascent! Share your story by filling out our quick interview form, and you’ll be entered into a raffle to win a $50 gift card.

An image of author Katie Scoggins is pictured.

Meet the author:
Katie Scoggins
(RN, BSN & Writer)

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