A well-deserved recognition, Karan Hervey, a District Nurse for Saline Area Schools, was recently honored by the Michigan School Nurses Association.
Hervey was recognized with the Distinguished Service Award. The award acknowledges a person who has continually supported or uniquely contributed to the Michigan Association of School Nurses, school nursing, or school health services in the past five years.
Saline Area Schools (SAS) shared this news in the recent superintendent newsletter.
“Karan is a gift both to her profession and to our entire District. Congratulations Karan!”
Of Hervey, Saline Superintendent Dr. Stephen Laatsch said “District Nurse Hervey is an incredible resource to our District.”
“She always differentiates the care for all our student (and staff) medical needs. Further, she does it with great empathy and great care!” Laatsch said. “Hands down, she’s the best nurse a school district could ever wish to have working for them. We are very lucky to have Karan leading the charge in Saline Area Schools.”
STN followed up with Hervey.
“I am humbled and honored to be recognized by MASN a second time,” she said. “I have to admit that I am a little uncomfortable being singled out though, as I feel that my colleagues who work in the area of school nursing across the state all deserve recognition. I am so proud of the work school nurses do each and every day to support students, our staff and our families. We truly have the best job!”
Hervey has worked in school nursing and school health for 19 years after initially working as a registered nurse in a hospital setting. She’s been with Saline Area Schools for the past 15 years and “feel so grateful to be a part of this incredible school district!”
In her role, she oversees nursing services for the district which includes a staff of three other nurses. She and her team serve students from birth through age 26 in both the general education and special education settings. A main part of her responsibilities includes case management of students with special health needs in the school setting including diabetes, seizure disorders, severe allergies, cardiac conditions, and asthma, among others.
“Schools are a subset of the greater community so any medical condition or need you find in the community, we see and accommodate at school,” she said. “This includes supporting students who are navigating cancer, mental health challenges, who have undergone organ transplantation or other recent surgeries and those who live with chronic health conditions.”
She said they also provide support for those who require necessary medical interventions at school such as tube feeding, tracheal suctioning and urinary catheterization.
“In a nutshell, we work with other members of the school team to accommodate students’ needs in order to maximize their ability to attend and experience school with their peers in the least restrictive way,” Hervey said.
Other responsibilities include working closely with school staff to provide training such as medication administration, first aid and diabetes care. One area in which she is especially proud is the coordination and training of the Medical Emergency Response Teams (MERT) in each building.
“My team and I train staff members at each school in CPR, AED use, first aid, Narcan administration, Stop the Bleed and emergency medication administration for diabetes, seizures, anaphylaxis emergencies,” she said. “We truly could not do what we do without the partnership of our amazing staff and the wonderful families we serve.”
