49420. (a) The department shall by January 1, 2022, appoint a state school nurse consultant to be housed within the office, as established pursuant to Section 49419. The state school nurse consultant shall be a school nurse with a services credential with a specialization in health for a school nurse issued by the Commission on Teacher Credentialing, who has a minimum of five years of experience in school health program management. The state school nurse consultant shall work with local educational agencies and school nurses to promote quality school nursing services and school health programs that address the broad health needs of pupils. The state school nurse consultant, in performing the duties of the position, shall collaborate with the State Department of Public Health, the State Department of Health Care Services, the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services, and the Board of Registered Nursing.
(b) The state school nurse consultant shall be responsible for all of the following:
(1) Serving as a liaison and resource expert in school nursing and school health program areas for local, regional, state, and national school health care providers and policy setting groups.
(2) Monitoring, interpreting, synthesizing, and working to ensure that the office disseminates relevant information associated with changes in health, nursing, and medical care, school nursing practice, legislation, and legal issues that impact schools and the pupils they serve.
(3) Fostering and promoting staff development for school nurses, which may include planning and providing orientation, coordinating or providing educational offerings, and networking with universities and other providers of continuing education to meet identified needs.
(4) Participating in state-level public interagency partnerships and private partnerships with statewide stakeholders to foster a coordinated school health program, representing school nurses in multidisciplinary collaborations.
(Added by Stats. 2021, Ch. 44, Sec. 61. (AB 130) Effective July 9, 2021.)