Last summer, Encopresis Expert, Nurse Shelly Dean, was invited to present information regarding encopresis to attendees of the Summer Institute for School Nursing sponsored by the Virginia Department of Education.
Interestingly, one of the most pressing questions was, “After how many bowel accidents should a school nurse be concerned about the possibility of encopresis and contact the child’s parents or caregiver?” According to medical guidelines, having at least one accident a month over a period of three months is one of the criteria for encopresis. Typically, children are fully potty-trained before coming to school and just one accident is enough to warrant concern about possible encopresis. Click here to view video excerpts from her presentation.
During the presentation, the research article, Managing Encopresis in the Elementary School Setting: The School Nurses Role, was referenced. As stated in the article, school nurses play a vital role in assisting children and their families with managing encopresis. It is a school nurse’s responsibility, according to the Individual’s with Disabilities Act (IDEA) of 1975, to intervene when a health problem, such as encopresis, has been recognized. The Individual’s with Disabilities Act dictates that all children, regardless of disabilities, are eligible for an individual education plan (IEP). This plan is developed to include nursing and other necessary services, based on an individual child’s needs, to assist the child in reaching their educational goals. These other services can include special accommodations for bathroom access. School nurses are, as a result of these laws, responsible for assessing, planning and intervening on behalf of a child with a medical need, and developing individual health care plans that are specific to that child. Nurses in the school setting can play a vital role in the care of children with encopresis by helping them to establish an individualized health plan.
Remember, proactive partnerships with school personnel, health care providers and scientifically proven tools, such as UCanPoopToo, can make a difference in reducing the length and severity of your child’s encopresis.
For more information on this article and to understand how UCanPoopToo can help you both take action now and regularly monitor your child’s progress, visit www.ucanpooptoo.com.