Many people already have Facebook so this post is actually going to focus on the platform of Instagram. Instagram is an image and video sharing platform. You can view and interact with posts from any browser but you can only post things from the mobile app. People can follow your profile or specific hashtags (#hashtag) to see posts. Each image or video you post will have a caption area and that’s where you can add in a description of your post along with hashtags in order to reach a wider audience. You can also tag people in posts by using @ followed by the username.
 A school nurse can utilize Instagram by:

• Posting fliers for: immunization clinics, community health resources, illness guidelines, and school events
• Sharing posts from reliable sources like the CDC and local health department
• Interacting with other school nurses and professional organizations
• Interacting with posts from your school and district to show support
• Creating fun images and videos for the community to enjoy
  
  

How to get started: Go to https://www.instagram.com/ and click on sign up or download the app on your phone. The screenshots below will be showing what you see on a computer.

If you have a professional school nurse Facebook page you can link the two accounts by clicking on “log in with Facebook”. If not follow the steps for account creation.
            When choosing a user name remember that this will be a public and professional page. Usernames like:” SexiNurse911”, “I_Need_a_new_Icepack” are not appropriate for this. Simple but informative names work best. I also recommend adding the word Nurse to the name section of the sign-up in case you do have your own personal account. That way the two aren’t confused.

Once you sign up it will bring you to a page to follow people. I would first start with your school and district pages and then the local health department. Then some great ones I suggest are:

• @cdcgov
• @ananursingworld
• @nihgov
• @moschoolnurses
• @american_heart

When looking at things to follow, most reputable accounts with a lot of followers will have a blue icon next to them so you know you are following the real people. See the example below where there is the @cdcgov page with the blue check icon and then a knock off pages without the icon below it.

You can also follow hashtags by typing them in, but it’s important to note that anyone can type in a hashtag so it might not always be something relevant.

• #SchoolNurse
• #SchoolNurseLife

 
Now that you’ve gotten who you are following done, you can finish putting things on your profile by clicking on the little person on the right-hand side and then clicking on profile. This area will allow you to update your picture, see previous posts, and things you’ve been tagged in.

Now that you are all set up, let’s make a post! This can technically be done on a browser using the workaround found HERE, but for now, it’s much easier to do this on a mobile device following the directions below.

1. You will see a plus sign on the bottom, that’s what you click on to make a post. You can choose any picture that you have on your phone, so I recommend checking out sources like the CDC social media tool kit that has Instagram sized pictures for you to download and share.
2. Once you choose a picture you are welcome to put a filter on it to change the style of it or continue to the next page.
3. This final page is where you can write in a caption and add the hashtags mentioned above. Then you click share and you are all done!

 
Let’s say you want to share something you see on Instagram! One of the ways to share other people’s posts is by sharing it to your “story” which is an area that will highlight a post for 24 hours on your profile and pop up on your followers’ pages for them to click on you and see.
 
Here is a practice exercise:
In the search bar type in @SchoolNurseSVE and click on the page.
You should see the below post. Click on the paper airplane and choose “share to story”. It will bring you to an area where you can add text or stickers to it or just post it as is. Once you are done hit share. Once you do that, you’ll see a little border appear around your photo which means it worked!

Remember too that the best way to connect with your community is by providing reliable evidence-based data. Be sure not to post things that you have not fact-checked, that may be biased, inappropriate language or content or anecdotal stories to be used as evidence.
 
I hope this guide helps you navigate the world of “the Gram” and you enjoy interacting with your community in a new way!

Darrion Cockrell, a Physical Education teacher at Lindbergh Schools’ Crestwood Elementary, is a true inspiration to students across the nation, especially to African American youth. Above and beyond his role as a Physical Education teacher, he is passionate about providing tools and resources to students across a wide variety of topics, including physical education, nutrition, abstaining from drug use, stress management, and more. He emphasizes the importance of exercise and its impact on productivity, poverty reduction, interpersonal connection and communication skills, and developing a sense of discipline – just to name a few. He believes that all teachers and students should have access to the resources they need for their own achievement and success – a belief and knowledge honed from his own lived experience.

Born and brought up in a community with high levels of drug use and incarceration, he describes how he has lived life on what he calls “both spectrums”. He was born to a mother who struggled with drug addiction and a father who was murdered before he turned 4 years old. Growing up, he thought he was born to simply fail as he didn't have access to basic necessities. He is candid about joining a gang during his youth and how he “started life at the bottom.” Without access to basic necessities, education was not a priority. Several years later, his life took a turn for the better when he was adopted by a football coach – a defining moment which set him on the path to becoming the inspirational educator we are proud to have as the Missouri Teacher of the Year!

To learn more about his inspirational life and approach to education and mentoring youth, please watch his 2021 Missouri Teacher of the Year Recognition Speech
Read more about his work at Lindbergh Schools' Crestwood Elementary in St. Louis here
Watch his feature on Good Morning America

We are excited to kick-off a new series on our blog, specifically geared towards school nurses.

Welcome to the first “Tech Tuesday” post! These posts are going to be specifically for school nurses. Many of us now are in a role where we are servicing staff and students in-person, virtual, in isolation, and in quarantine all at the same time. My goal is to provide readers with evidence-based information and simple instructions so they will be able to start using different pieces of technology right now to connect with their school community or to be more efficient with their day to day practices.

​I’m going to dive right into one of the biggest areas for spreading information: Social Media. Back in 2017, Beth Mattey wrote an article, which is HERE  regarding why school nurses need to start using social media to get their message across to families, but still today many school nurses feel hesitant about trying it out.

Below is a chart from Pew Research that looks at the % of US adults who use at least 1 social media site over the years. It shows that as of February 2019, 72% of US adults are using at least 1 social media site. Below is another chart from Pew Research that shows that of those adults who use social media, they check it multiple times a day. These facts make social media a tool that a school nurse should use to put out information, especially in times like these where misinformation is being spread that can cause harm to a community.