Voices from the Field: Addressing Job Burnout in School Psychology Training Programs.

Job burnout among school psychologists represents a potentially serious issue given widespread shortages of practitioners. It is then important to identify effective strategies for both preventing and responding to feelings of burnout when they occur to ultimately ensure a healthy workforce. The current study examined written responses provided by 122 practicing school psychologists in the Southeastern United States to the question, "What do you think training programs can do about the issue of burnout in school psychology." A qualitative thematic analysis of responses resulted in the identification of three main themes: develop specific personal/professional skills, modify professional/training components, and modify administrative/organizational policies and seven associated sub-themes. Resulting themes are discussed in reference to specific recommendations training programs can take in the future to better address job burnout in the field.

Asthma and the Public School Teacher: A Two State Study.

Background: Asthma is one of the most common chronic health problems experienced by school-age children. As a result, school professionals need to be well informed about this chronic illness so that they can adequately support the needs of students with asthma. Methods: This study examines data collected from a sample of teachers (n = 593) in 2 large southeastern states regarding their familiarity with asthma self-carry and self-administration laws and policies and training received related to general chronic health conditions including asthma. Results: Teachers, on average, reported little training received at either undergraduate or graduate levels. Although teachers noted knowledge about asthma, acquired through in-service training or to a lesser degree formal education, a high percentage of teachers reported receiving no asthma-related training through such approaches. Conclusions: Data in this study are consistent with data collected in a similar study in 2001 suggesting that while asthma prevalence has increased, education about the condition has not. Implications for school teachers, school administrators, school nurses, teacher educators, and asthma education personnel are provided.