Hempfield Area School Board raises hourly rates for nurse assistants

Hempfield Area School Board unanumously agreed to raise the hourly pay rate for nurse assistants in the midst of the the covid-19 pandemic, from $17.90 per hour to $19.90 per hour.

“Nurse assistants are critical to the operation of our schools, especially during a pandemic,” said Superintendent Tammy Wolicki. “We had two vacancies for several months. The increase better aligns our hourly rate to that of local school districts.”

Nurse assistants work under the supervision of a school nurse and principal while providing health services to students and staff, according to a job description posted by the district in late January. To qualify, candidates must be Licensed Practical Nurses (LPN) or a Registered Nurse (RN).

School nurses have seemingly been pushed into the spotlight during the covid-19 pandemic, with several districts relying on them to conduct contact tracing. Prior to the start of the school year, the state Department of Health stated school nurses will be “the first line of screening for students and staff who may be exhibiting symptoms of covid-19.”

At Hempfield, parents and staffers have been encouraged to report positive covid cases — 100 since Jan. 1, according to an online tracker — to their individual school nurses, as well as to school principals and other administration officials.

While school nurses have been a critical position in districts this year, several local districts have been juggling shortages of substitute teachers, custodians, school nurses and paraprofessional aides as covid-19 forces school employees to quarantine, meaning they are out of school buildings for two weeks.