HATFIELD — Inside Jean Hobbie’s nurse’s office at Hatfield Elementary School on a recent morning, second grader Arun Bun drops by to make sure he can successfully address his low blood sugar level, a challenge of having Type 1 diabetes.

A few minutes later, after Arun has a bite to eat and gets medication, he feels better, with readings on a monitor indicating his glucose levels are back to normal.

With Arun ready to resume his day, Nurse Jean, as all the students call her, praised him for his medical knowledge. “You’ve become an expert in learning to manage a chronic illness,” Hobbie says.

“Nurse Jean helps me,” Arun says in repaying the compliment, explaining that she understands his situation and helps him keep detailed medical information straight.

For Hobbie, the school’s nurse since 2014, the job is about ensuring all students have a good environment in which to learn.

“If they feel healthy and safe, they can be ready to learn and have success in school,” Hobbie said. “We try really hard to work with students and families to recognize the dignity of the individual, where everybody is valued, everybody deserves dignity and respect.”

For her accomplishments, the Massachusetts School Nurse Organization will honor Hobbie this spring as its school nurse of the year, an annual recognition presented “to publicly recognize and honor a practicing registered nurse for outstanding contributions in the nursing specialty of school nursing.”

School Principal Melissa Pitrat said it was during a bimonthly meeting of the school’s Social-Emotional Learning Team — which reviews a behavioral health and social-emotional learning grant

Hobbie was instrumental in applying for, getting approved and overseeing — where members suggested Hobbie be acknowledged for her daily “above-and-beyond support” to the school.

Pitrat said a nomination team spent two weeks collecting information to submit.

“A few weeks later, we were ecstatic to learn that Nurse Jean had won the award she has deserved for many years,” Pitrat said.

Hobbie said she enjoys being part of the community and taking care of students from preschool through sixth grade. “It’s great to see them grow and develop,” Hobbie said.

Parents and teachers know the children best, she noted, seeing herself as a partner in a group effort to address kids’ medical needs, such as recurring symptoms.

“We’re trying to work with families — that’s a big part of the job,” Hobbie said.

She does temperature checks and other assessments quickly and, with permission of parents, will be in touch with pediatricians. Hobbie is quick to point out that she tries to avoid a one-size-fits-all approach. “I have the questions, I almost never have the answers,” Hobbie said.

For some students, she says, they may not have an illness, but are feeling down and need a pep talk. For those facing chronic conditions, she has photographs of athletes, politicians and celebrities who are living with similar conditions and are still leading great lives.

Hobbie, who credits being surrounded by amazing people at the school, said her job entails working with students on social, emotional and intellectual skills, as well as hygiene, such as washing hands, coughing and sneezing into their elbows.

“We’re trying to teach kids so they are comfortable taking care of themselves,” Hobbie said.

Every day’s different

There is no typical day in the nurse’s office, where three beds are ready for use and a cart contains assorted bandages and ice packs for cuts, bumps and bruises. While there is unpredictability, Hobbie said there is often the midday “recess rush.”

Sometimes the space can be like a miniature emergency room, where Hobbie will quickly assess and prioritize who needs attention. This can give children insights into health care and medications, such as Tylenol and ibuprofen, they may put in their bodies.

“Sometimes you need your nursing skills,” Hobbie said. “Sometimes it’s just Band-Aids and boo-boos. Sometimes the children just need a place to take a break.”

This March, there has been a lot of strep throat and Type A flu going around the school building, she said.

Hobbie also relies on advice from school nurses across the state, as manuals don’t prepare a school nurse for every situation.

An Easthampton resident, Hobbie said she also focuses on her own self-care, staying up to date on vaccinations and taking breaks during the day. When there are symptomatic children, or staff, in her office, she makes sure to don a mask and do extra cleaning of surfaces.

She compliments her husband for being a big part of her support and a family dog that keeps her moving, and on weekends she spends time cooking.

For Hobbie, nursing was a midlife career change. After working in community health education, she went back to school, starting as a licensed practical nurse through Holyoke Community College and working in long-term care.

In addition to working with students, she has paperwork to deal with associated with the Department of Public Health’s comprehensive school health services and school behavioral health grants.

“That helps us to really provide equipment and tools, supplies training for staff, and that helps a lot beyond what would normally be in the budget,” Hobbie said.

Pitrat said this money has allowed the school to support systems such as the Social and Emotional Learning Framework, a schoolwide social and emotional learning curriculum, and so-called “calm rooms” for students.

“She is consistent in her philosophy of supporting students with the mindset that physical health and emotional health work together,” Pitrat said. “She is a true leader, educator and a great resource to all students, their families, and the whole staff.”

“She truly embodies the ‘whole child’ philosophy of care,” Pitrat said.

Hobbie’s work extends beyond the school to the emotional well-being of the entire school district. For instance, she collaborates on initiatives with Smith Academy’s nurse, Martha Elliott, is part of the Heads Up Hatfield group that promotes mental health through community events, and has done CPR training and provided information in the use of automated external defibrillators.

Hobbie said a primary goal is for children to grow up to become healthy adults who will have respect for themselves and for others.

“Personally, a big purpose of school is preparing kids for life,” Hobbie said. “These are skills we try to teach students — to be respectful, responsible and safe, and to become great adults.”

Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.