School Nurse Symposium – Pediatric Potpourri

Barb Bancroft’s Clinical Topics for Faculty, Nurses and Students
Barb Bancroft, RN, MSN, PNP

A Live Virtual Event. 9:20 AM – 2:15 PM

Vitamins, Minerals, and other dietary supplements used in school-aged children
Barb will cover vitamins, iron, zinc, melatonin, anabolic steroids, omega-3 fatty acids, gotu-cola…is there evidence, and if so, what is it? What is the role of iron deficiency in sleep disorders? What type of omega-3 fatty acid works best for ADHD and Bipolar disease? Can you safely recommend melatonin to children/adolescents with sleep disorders? How can you recognize the clinical signs and symptoms of adolescent boys and girls on anabolic steroids? Do prescription drugs interact with supplements taken by children? If so, what should you look for with side effects? What is the latest trend with CBD and children? Cannabis and teenagers?

The Power and Promise of Childhood Vaccination? Facts vs. Fiction.
It has been calculated that “routine childhood immunization among members of the 2009 Ubirth cohort will prevent approximately 42,000 early deaths and 20 million cases of infectious disease and cancer, with net savings of $13.5 billion in direct costs and $68.8 billion in total societal costs, respectively.” WOW. Achieving high levels of vaccination is aided by state policies that make many immunizations mandatory for childcare and school entry. Barb will discuss “vaccinology” — how vaccines work to boost the immune system–T cell immunity vs. B cell immunity and herd immunity; why we need boosters; why vaccines are given at specific ages; the newest data on the HPV vaccine, the newest COVID-19 vaccines, how the pneumococcal vaccines in kids have impacted adult infectious disease rates, the meningococcal vaccine, and how to be a vaccine advocate when talking to anti-vaxxer parents, families, and friends.