After a long school year, there’s nothing sweeter than summer vacation. Before you head out for a well-deserved break, take some time to set yourself up for success in the future. By getting ahead on a few simple things, you can focus on enjoying your time off — not stressing about immunization compliance.  

Keep reading for five things you can do now to prepare your health office for the hustle and bustle of back-to-school season. 

Review your emergency plan  

Every school should have a detailed emergency plan. This document outlines what procedures to follow in case of an event like a tornado, fire, life-threatening injury, or security incident.  

Summer is the perfect time to review your school’s emergency plan and make any required updates. Work with your administrative team, teaching staff, and other required personnel to update the plan and make sure everyone is aligned with the proper protocols. This will also give you plenty of time to educate your community about any changes or additions to the plan.  

If your school uses Magnus Health to manage student health records, you also have access to Magnus911. This emergency response tool helps schools act faster during emergencies with access to life-saving information and action plans for asthma, allergies, and more. Take some time to review Magnus911 over the summer and train faculty and staff on proper use of the platform.  

Assess your medical equipment 

From inhalers to EpiPens, AEDs and Narcan, your health office is responsible for carrying various medications and equipment. Use your downtime in the summer to take stock of your inventory, throw out expired medicine, and re-up on anything that’s running low.  

Now is also a good time to review your medication administration policy. What worked well? What was challenging? Did any supplies go missing after sharing with another department? Identify areas for improvement and update any associated paperwork to communicate the changes to faculty, staff, and families. 

Prepare family communications 

Form compliance is the number one headache for school nurses, especially during back-to-school season. While families are enjoying the end of their summer vacations, health staff are scrambling to collect required health forms and contact parents about missing information. One school estimates that this process takes over 1,600 hours to complete each summer.   

A little preparation can go a long way and help you reduce this administrative burden. Draft communication ahead of time to notify parents of any health requirements for the upcoming year, reminders, and follow up details. This includes enrollment forms, allergy information, medication prescriptions, immunizations, and athletic forms.  

With Magnus Health, you can go a step further and set up automated emails. These communications will only go to families with outstanding health requirements and help you track down their missing forms quicker and with less effort. Magnus Health also has a mobile app that makes it even easier for families to submit their health forms. Be sure to remind families about this perk and instruct them on how to use it! Schools that use Magnus Health see an average compliance increase of 31% by the first day of school.  

Coordinate with athletics and counseling 

During the school year, you likely communicate often with the athletic department and counseling team. Each of your departments works to support students on their health journeys, whether physical or mental. Take some time at the end of the year or during summer break to connect and identify ways to collaborate more often and more effectively. 

If your school uses Magnus Health, it’s easy to share treatment notes directly within the platform and keep each other updated about student progress. You can also create custom treatment notes based on school trends or your unique workflows. Consider a working session between health, athletics, and counseling personnel to organize your treatment note library and optimize your use of the EHR platform. Student care works best when departments are aligned! 

Level up your knowledge 

Summer is also a great time to refresh your skills and learn something new. Magnus Health offers a variety of educational webinars and content for school health professionals.  

If you’re a current customer, catch up on our Webinar Wednesday series to learn about new features or ways to maximize your use of the EHR. Not using Magnus Health? Explore our resource center or get in touch to learn how our EHR software can help you streamline back-to-school season.  

Wherever this summer takes you, we hope you’re able to relax and unwind! Use these tips to prepare for the autumn rush and best of luck in the new year.