Kasey Jordan knows the stereotypical image of a school nurse 鈥� overworked, underpaid and, over the past two years, often on the front lines of controversial COVID policies.

And while those things are true, they aren鈥檛 the complete picture, she said.

鈥淲e don鈥檛 always present them as these strong, capable expert professionals that they are,鈥� she said.

The same could be said for nursing in general 鈥� or for any traditionally 鈥渇emale鈥� job. But sees the power in the interpersonal connections that nurses build with their patients and, from that, their capacity to create community change.

鈥淚f we're serious about having better patient outcomes for society, then it's areas in which the traditional nursing role can lead that really, I think, have a lot of potential to make a big difference. Things from communication to health promotion to what happens outside of that time when people are sick,鈥� she said.

Jordan鈥檚 work, then, on innovation management to support the development of health-promoting community spaces, is particularly relevant during this year鈥檚 Women鈥檚 History Month. The theme for Women鈥檚 History Month 2022 is celebrating women as caregivers and healers.

The possibilities inherent in nursing have inspired Jordan ever since she accidentally ended up in a nursing class in high school in rural Georgia.

鈥淚n high school, there were vocational classes that we took with all the other classes, and I wanted home ec, but I got stuck in health occupations against my will. Well, it stuck, and it really resonated with me,鈥� Jordan said. 鈥淚 ended up including those classes as part of my program of study, and I did an apprenticeship program with a local family practice and just never looked back.鈥�

"If we're serious about having better patient outcomes for society, then it's areas in which the traditional nursing role can lead that really, I think, have a lot of potential to make a big difference."

Kasey Jordan, R.N., Ph.D.

Even with the limited work that a high school apprentice could take on, she felt a meaningful engagement with patients and saw the role that the nurses played in their patients鈥� health journeys.

Jordan went on to study nursing with the expectation that she would be a bedside nurse, but by the time she finished her program, she knew she wanted to be in public health. Her first nursing job was in the cardiothoracic unit at Duke University Hospital to gain experience. Then she worked at the health department for a time before taking a job in the emergency department so she could complete an internship while earning her master鈥檚 degree.

Through the public health department, she spent a year and a half as a school nurse in Durham, North Carolina, at five alternative schools, each geared toward a different student population that needed extra attention.

鈥淓very school had its own flavor,鈥� she recalled.

Yet she also started to see constraints in the system.

One small example: The alternative schools were well-connected to mental health and behavioral resources for the students. But Jordan saw that some students weren鈥檛 having truly basic needs met, like good nutrition, decent sleep and adequate physical movement. Jordan approached an administrator about this, and the answer was, 鈥淲ell, there鈥檚 no grant funding for that.鈥�

鈥淚t was like, there's all these high-level treatments that are so valuable. But then there's also these basic processes that are so impactful on our outcomes. And it was sometimes harder to work on those things,鈥� she said.

In both public health and school nursing, Jordan found herself surrounded by 鈥渋ncredibly smart people with great ideas鈥� who faced numerous obstacles in bringing those ideas to fruition.

鈥淭hat core challenge is really what led me to go back for my Ph.D. and what, in different ways, I鈥檝e tried to explore since then,鈥� she said.

Now an assistant professor in the 听at MUSC, Jordan focuses on innovation management. She especially values how school nurses and other health care providers find ways to develop resilience in communities and address disaster risk.

鈥淲hat I鈥檓 most excited about is nurses and health professionals finding ways to make our communities more resilient to disaster. School nurses are incredible change-makers, and so are our students,鈥� she said.

听

For instance, students in the accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing classes are learning the change-making skills that school nurses often learn, by necessity, on the job, Jordan explained.

Innovative projects the ABSN students have tackled recently included a podcast geared toward mental health challenges during the pandemic and support for educators to understand how COVID-related changes could affect student health.

Being prepared

Jordan noted, too, that local disaster response requires flexibility to adapt to specific circumstances, and that鈥檚 where she鈥檚 interested in seeing who鈥檚 doing what.

鈥淚f you consider disaster response, there鈥檚 this piece of improvisation that is in it. It鈥檚 such a fascinating area, and school nurses have been on the ground improvising to meet these needs,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 really inspiring 鈥� and important to understand.鈥�

鈥淪o much of responding to disaster is locally driven,鈥� she continued. 鈥淪o understanding what professionals in community spaces need is important.鈥�

Jordan said she loves seeing school nurses who understand how comprehensive the role can be and are pushing expectations of what they鈥檙e there to do.

鈥淥ne of the amazing gifts of school nursing practice, because you are outside the traditional system, is there is so much freedom and independence,鈥� she said.

鈥淭here鈥檚 good evidence that school nurses are a great return on community investment, but I think there is more to tell about the community resilience they are building that is outside the traditional expectations of what school nurses have done.鈥�

Kasey Jordan, R.N., Ph.D.

On the other hand, that requires skills that nurses don鈥檛 necessarily come equipped with. Unlike nurses in a health care setting, school nurses may need to be more entrepreneurial to 鈥渟ell鈥� innovations related to health.

鈥淪chool nurses really have to build their teams and raise whatever kind of capital is needed 鈥� social or financial 鈥� to see their changes move forward,鈥� Jordan explained.

While there鈥檚 general agreement that addressing health and physical needs will ultimately help with academic outcomes, Jordan said, the rub is the school nurses actually have to negotiate to get what鈥檚 necessary to address that health. That鈥檚 where those skills of teambuilding in a multidisciplinary environment come into play.

鈥淭here鈥檚 good evidence that school nurses are a great return on community investment, but I think there is more to tell about the community resilience they are building that is outside the traditional expectations of what school nurses have done,鈥� she said.

In follow-up to a previous study she conducted, Jordan is currently looking at how school nurses are leading resilience-promoting change in school settings.

Since coming to South Carolina, Jordan has been working with the South Carolina Association of School Nurses to determine what subject areas need more research to help nurses in schools. That鈥檚 how she came to do an analysis of continuing education needs for school nurses, which led to her examining how school nurses are leading resilience-promoting change in school settings.

Throughout her journey, one fascinating thing that she has discovered is that innovation can come from anywhere.

鈥淭here's not a single profile of an innovator,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 something that happens in all parts of an organization. But definitely there are skills we can learn to make it more effective.鈥�