School Nurse

Western Tech senior right-handed pitcher Julianne Roper is 8-2 with a 0.67 ERA. She has struck out 85 in 63 innings. Roper, who also plays volleyball, is a certified nursing assistant who interns as a school nurse at a Catholic elementary school. She works in the kitchen at St. Joseph's Residence, a nursing home for retired nuns. Roper also plays softball for the Maryland Chill and will play for Villa Julie next year while she studies to become a registered nurse. She has a 4.0 grade point average and hasn't gotten a B since sixth grade.

About three dozen Annapolis High School students -- concerned they have been exposed to bacterial meningitis that killed their classmate over the weekend -- sought advice from nurses in the school yesterday who were searching for anyone who had close contact with the girl.Cara Margaret Petrini, a junior, died of the disease at 6: 45 a.m. Saturday at Sinai Hospital in Baltimore. As health department nurses interviewed students and counselors comforted grieving students, school officials were annoyed and wondering why the health department had not notified them Friday when it became apparent the teen-ager had the disease.

About three dozen Annapolis High School students -- concerned they have been exposed to bacterial meningitis that killed their classmate over the weekend -- sought advice from nurses in the school yesterday who were searching for anyone who had close contact with the girl.Cara Margaret Petrini, a junior, died of the disease at 6: 45 a.m. Saturday at Sinai Hospital in Baltimore. As county health department nurses interviewed students and counselors comforted grieving students, school officials were annoyed and wondering why the health department had not notified them Friday when it became apparent the teen-ager had the disease.

About three dozen Annapolis High School students -- concerned they have been exposed to bacterial meningitis that killed their classmate over the weekend -- sought advice from nurses in the school yesterday who were searching for anyone who had close contact with the girl.Cara Margaret Petrini, a junior, died of the disease at 6: 45 a.m. Saturday at Sinai Hospital in Baltimore. As county health department nurses interviewed students and counselors comforted grieving students, school officials were annoyed and wondering why the health department had not notified them Friday when it became apparent the teen-ager had the disease.

Middle, high schools would benefit from nurses on staffI read with interest the article "School nurses rescue students and staff" (Nov. 28). I commend the Baltimore City Health Department for recognizing the necessity and priority of re-establishing school nurse programs in the public schools of Baltimore.In the article, however, there were no examples of these efforts at the secondary level. That is because the thrust in the past 12 to 15 years has been to remove health services from the schools.

Samantha Davis-Francis is one of a handful of students at the heart of a mounting debate over health care in Howard County schools.A severe asthmatic, the sixth-grader uses a misting device called a nebulizer. Under state law, it cannot be administered by the health assistant at her neighborhood school, Ellicott Mills Middle. So she must go to Mayfield Woods Middle School, where there's a registered nurse."It's a waste of time and money, and she had to leave all of her friends behind," complains her mother, Cynthia Davis-Francis of Ellicott City.

Bessie C. Goldmann, 98, homemaker, charity workerBessie C. Goldmann, a homemaker who was active in several charitable organizations, died yesterday of congestive heart failure at Sinai Hospital. She was 98.The Park Heights Avenue resident was active in the National Council for Jewish Women, helped immigrants get a foothold in the United States and was a former board member of the Sinai Hospital Auxiliary.The former Bessie Cohen was born in Baltimore, the daughter of Isaac and Rosa Cohen, and raised in Fells Point, where her father was the proprietor of the Waterfront Hotel.

Bernardine Harris Harrison, a school nurse at Paul Laurence Dunbar High School for 26 years, died Friday of cancer at Greater Baltimore Medical Center.She was 71 and lived at Belvedere Towers Apartments.Mrs. Harrison, who retired in 1979 from Dunbar, also had worked at a city health department clinic next to the school and for a short time at other schools in the city. In the mid-1940s, she was a U.S. Public Health Service nurse at a hospital in Richmond, Va.Julia Woodland, principal of Dunbar from 1971 to 1982, described Mrs. Harrison as "the bridge between the parents, students and staff," and as an "unofficial assistant principal."

Forgive Sandee Besser if she has an identity crisis.Her white uniform indicates she's a nurse, but on any given day at Glyndon Elementary School, she's also a teacher, cafeteria monitor, confidante, role model and "mama hen." These days, it's all part of being a school nurse in Baltimore County -- or elsewhere in Maryland.With many families short on time and health insurance, the school nurse often becomes a child's primary health care professional, making the first diagnosis on injuries and illnesses.

A mysterious odor caused respiratory problems for three Harford County teachers and forced officials to evacuate about 650 students and teachers at Church Creek Elementary School in Belcamp for 90 minutes yesterday, fire authorities said."

As the school nurse at George D. Lisby Elementary School at Hillsdale, Ana Jakse said she has noticed a growing number of overweight children each year. After she attended a national conference on the childhood obesity epidemic, she wanted to help do something about it, she said. "Childhood obesity is a lot more than being too heavy," said Jakse, who has been a registered nurse for about 25 years. "It can lead to Type II diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, sleep apnea and orthopedic problems.

Ada C. Veney, a retired Baltimore City Health Department superintendent who was a pioneering African-American nurse, died Sunday at Sinai Hospital of complications from a stroke. The Ashburton resident was 99. Born Ada Christiana Vessells in Richmond, Va., she moved to Baltimore as a child and lived on East 23rd Street. She was a 1927 graduate of Frederick Douglass High School and worked years later as an instructor in its home nursing courses. "From early childhood, her dream was to be helpful to those who needed her most," said daughter Charlene Oliver of Baltimore.

About 55 children visit Susan Brock in the health suite at Churchville Elementary School each day. Some of them come in daily to take their medications, while others have abrasions, fevers or sore throats. And some youngsters just come in to talk, or to give Brock a high-five or a hug. "School nurses have to be patient and compassionate," said Brock, 59, who has worked as a nurse for 39 years. "I have some frequent flyers that come in, and they just want to talk. They need attention and kindness."

Western Tech senior right-handed pitcher Julianne Roper is 8-2 with a 0.67 ERA. She has struck out 85 in 63 innings. Roper, who also plays volleyball, is a certified nursing assistant who interns as a school nurse at a Catholic elementary school. She works in the kitchen at St. Joseph's Residence, a nursing home for retired nuns. Roper also plays softball for the Maryland Chill and will play for Villa Julie next year while she studies to become a registered nurse. She has a 4.0 grade point average and hasn't gotten a B since sixth grade.

Phyllis Marietta Gross, a nurse who delivered babies in rural Brazil then returned to her native Baltimore to raise six children and work as a school nurse, died of an infection Tuesday at St. Joseph Medical Center in Towson. She was 62. Born Phyllis Marietta Scally, Mrs. Gross, who was called "Marietta," grew up in Charles Village. From her girlhood home, she could hear the crowds cheering at Memorial Stadium and walk to Mass at SS. Philip and James Roman Catholic Church, said her husband, Charles E. "Ed" Gross of Parkville.

Constance A.M. Miller, who worked for the Baltimore County Health Department as a school nurse for more than two decades, died of respiratory failure Sunday at her home in Sparks. She was 72. She was born Constance Anna Marcella Szymborski in Baltimore and raised on Fait Avenue in Canton. She was a 1950 graduate of Eastern High School and graduated from the old Union Memorial Hospital School of Nursing in 1954. She was an operating room nurse for a year at Children's Hospital and a nurse at what is now Towson University before joining the county Health Department in 1957.

A steady flow of students filed through the Aberdeen High School health suite to see school nurse Robin Testerman. One student complained of a migraine and asked for a note so he could sit out of gym class. A diabetic student came in for juice and crackers. And several students came in for their daily medication. Others, like junior Quenique Newbill, came in just to chat with Testerman between classes. "Many of the kids use my office as a safe haven," said Testerman after the health room cleared out. "As a result, I have to be a counselor ... a mediator, an advocate and a nurse for the students.

Ina E. Fisher, a World War II Army nurse who became a Baltimore County public school nurse, died of heart failure Jan. 23 at St. Joseph Medical Center. The longtime Timonium resident was 83. Born Ina Elizabeth Frankenfield in Towson, she was a 1940 graduate of Towson High School. After earning her nursing degree in 1943 from Maryland General Hospital, Mrs. Fisher enlisted in the Army Nurse Corps and was sent to Plymouth, England. At the time of the D-Day invasion on June 6, 1944, she was assigned to a hospital in Bristol, England, that treated casualties evacuated from the landing, especially paratroopers and glider crews.

Literacy Council of Carroll County looking for tutors The Literacy Council of Carroll County will hold a training workshop starting Tuesday for anyone interested in becoming a tutor to adults and children. Tutors work one-on-one with clients to improve their reading and math skills. Training is provided in basic English and English as a second language at the literacy council office in Westminster. Registration is requested. Information: 410-848-6387. Board of Education to meet Wednesday The Carroll County Board of Education will meet at 5 p.m. Wednesday in Room 007 of the board offices, 125 N. Court St., Westminster.

Eleanor W. Serio, a retired Baltimore County school nurse, died Sunday at St. Joseph Medical Center of complications related to non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. The Owings Mills resident was 76. Born Eleanor Walker in Brooklyn, N.Y., and raised on Lyttleton Road in Baltimore, she was a 1945 graduate of Forest Park High School. After attending Goucher College, she earned a degree at the Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing in 1952. She worked in the maternity ward of Johns Hopkins Hospital and taught nursing until 1961.