I am very excited because I just accepted a substitute nursing position I work full time on an orthopedic floor as a staff nurse, I really like my co-workers and manager but I just don't want to stay in hospital nursing. I have always been interested in school nursing and this opportunity is great for me because I can continue working full time at the hospital and as a school nurse to find out if it is something I would consider full-time. Any comments or advice would be helpful. thanks

Hi Amy,

I am not a school nurse, but I just wanted to congratulate you on the new job. It sounds like a great opportunity. Now at least you will get to really see what school nursing is like and be able to see if that is something you would like to do full time before giving up your hospital job. Good luck. By the way how does subsitute school nursing work? Do they just call you on short notice to fill in, etc? Just curious:)

Best Wishes,

Purple_RN

My manager at the hospital I work at posts our schedule about 1 month ahead of time, so I am going to give the school district my schedule and they can call me on my days available.

Congratulations! Being a substitute nurse was how I got into my current position. For me it would be difficult to get back into hospital nursing.

I hope you love it. I have been a school nurse for 4 years now and I wouldn't trade it for anything. That's a good way to get your foot in the door - subs are hard to find. Our subs work almost as much as we do as it's a big district and our nurses have children who get sick or other things happen. It should be a great experience for you.

Hi Amy,

I have been a school nurse for 17 years and have really enjoyed the experience and especially the schedule. There are local Nursing Organizations you should join in order to be able to network with others in your district. There is also a state association of school nurses that you should look into. Enjoy

My youngest will start school in the fall, and I'm considering applying for a substitute position in our local district. I've got 11 years of OB and NICU experience, but very little in general peds. Do most schools have a P&P manual to refer to, like nursing units do? There are 3 schools in our small district, and each has 1 nurse on duty, so I wouldn't have anyone immediately available as a resource person should a question arise. Do most districts offer any orientation time, even 1 day working with the regular nurse? What resources would you all recommend? Any good journals or organizations? Thanks for your help.

I have never worked in a district that did not have a sub folder, a list of the minimum you need to know to get through the day. Some schools, especially those in big city districts, do have very specific P & P manuals. Most do not. Some states have policy and procedure manuals for various school health responsiblities. There are generic publications that you can purchase also. Two sources for school nurse books are the National Association of School Nurses http://www.nasn.org and http://www.schoolnursebooks.com

You should be given an orientatiion, and there may be a health aide or paraprofessional who can give you a sense of how the office works. Many states now hold 1 - 3 day orientation programs in the summer for beginning school nurses.

Just because you are physically alone, you should be able to call the nurse in the other schools with questions. Once you are on the sub list, ask about volunteering in the office. Helping with vision and hearing screening, and asking if you can shadow several days in each of the schools you might be subbing in may help with understanding what the job entails.

I started off working as a sub in the school district I am in now, I have been a full time school nurse for 3 years now and love it. The hours are great, the benefits are good and the pay is about the same as were I came from. I keep a current book for subs in my office that has all the information they will need. I also have a P & P book. We have a RN for the district nurse, a LPN at the high school, me (LPN) at the middle school, and health aides in the elementry schools. The RN and LPNs serve on call for schools where there are no nurses or if there is a sub in the building our numbers are list for them to contact if needed. For the must part there is little if any training for subs.

Wow...we don't even have school nurses anymore. One is "assigned" from the local Boundary Health Unit and has to look after several schools in the district.

I am substituting in the city and want to get a position in our small school district. I was wondering how they get by without having a school nurse. I called the State Board of Health and found that Texas does not require school districts to have even one nurse. They have to have hearing and vision screening, meds adm. etc, but a lay person can be assigned to do it.

I plan to write a proposal and present it to the school board. Any hints as to what I need to cover?