IEP/504 Help!

Hello everyone,

Today I had an IEP meeting for a student with behavioral issues. I'm so confused with IEPs and 504s. I understand they are accomadations for students but I'm not really understanding the nurses role.

The other district nurse nurse had me get the parents signature on a HIPPA form so I can get medical info from his provider regarding his incontinence issues. Am I then supposed to write up a care plan for accomadations at school?

They havent given me any me any sort of formal training and whenever I ask questions I'm not getting the answers I'm looking for. Someone please explain the IEP and the nurses responsibility with them?

Usually our roles to ensure that the medical part of the IEP/504 are being kept and used during the school year.

For example: I have a TD1 student and he has an 504 that states that if he needs to use the restroom, go visit the nurse or needing water in class, he is allowed. Any teacher that doesn't let him do these things, is going against the 504. My job is to make sure the teachers are aware of his needs and will accommodate to them. As well my job is to make sure he's ok in his BG and he's feeling alright.

Usually the accommodations are already thought of by the committee when they had the 504 or the doctor states what they want for the student, along side the parent. In our school, when we have a 504, we work along side the teachers and parents to think of a plan for them and we execute the plan.

IEP - Individual education plan. Because the student is not learning to grade level and needs individualized help in order to pass and catch up. 504 - the student is needing supports from school but not necessarily educationally based (like medical from nurse, or counseling from counselor or LSSP or whatever, ST, OT, PT, you get the idea)

Any time you have a student that you see fairly often and they have an IEP or 504 in place, a nursing care plan needs to be drawn up. This is the IHP - Individualized health plan. One for each diagnosis the student carries and needs nursing care for. Example: ADHD, Emotional Disturbance, Anxiety or Diabetes, Seizures, Encopresis, etc.

Essentially it is like writing a care plan if in the hospital (back before computers generated them).

Good luck! I wrote all of mine last week. Nearly 40 of them. Every one of my students has an IEP and several diagnoses that we work with.

If the child just needs an IEP because of learning disabilities, I don't think the nurse needs to be involved in that.

I can say for the IEP meeting I attended for one of my patients a couple months ago (2 year old with a trach and G/J tube, will qualify for public pre-school once he turns 3), the nurse's role was to weigh in on the child's nursing needs during the school day. I.e. his IEP needed to be written to say that he needs a 1:1 nurse on the bus and during the school day. She also mentioned writing an individualized health plan related to trach safety and his J tube feeds.

Hello everyone,

Today I had an IEP meeting for a student with behavioral issues. I'm so confused with IEPs and 504s. I understand they are accomadations for students but I'm not really understanding the nurses role.

The other district nurse nurse had me get the parents signature on a HIPPA form so I can get medical info from his provider regarding his incontinence issues. Am I then supposed to write up a care plan for accomadations at school?

They havent given me any me any sort of formal training and whenever I ask questions I'm not getting the answers I'm looking for. Someone please explain the IEP and the nurses responsibility with them?

Your role in a IEP vs 504 is completely different. It requires more training than what is posted online. Seriously, though, advocate for yourself and acquire the necessary training. You've been given good advice in this thread.

This helps differentiate the two as well:

IEP vs. 5

Thank you all for the helpful answers! So in IEP meeting the mom said the only "nursing concern" she had was that her child would have incontinent episodes sometimes because he would wait till the last minute to ask to use the bathroom.

So from my understanding, I would write up a care plan for this issue.

So far I have urge incontinence with some interventions such as: having a toileting schedule (every 2-3 hours) for this student, Keeping an extra pair of clothes in his backpack or office, and his 1 on 1 aide will assist with keeping to the schedule and help walking to and from the restroom.

Am I on the right track?

I think your interventions sound right on point.