Not a real nurse huh? - Page 4

I have such fond memories of our school nurse. She was loving, caring and to some degree part of the reason I wanted to be a nurse. Don't understand why some people or their positions are looked down upon or not thought highly of. We all have our place in this world and all contribute as nurses, no matter where we practice, to ensure people are taken care of. And that care involves people in their homes, people at school, at work, in hospitals, and so on. I don't have kids but I know I'd be grateful for a nurse at school to take care of my child if they needed it.

You just keep doing your thing knowing you are a REAL NURSE who is greatly appreciated!! It's always refreshing to see someone doing a job they love.

the best thing about being a nurse is that there are soo many different areas that you can go into. Congrats on finding your area of nursing that makes you happy as a nurse!

I have no idea why there are those that say only "real nurses" work in hospitals. So not true. "Real nurses" work in many different venues. I am happy that there are nurses who enjoy working in LTC, NICU, Peds, OB. Those are nursing jobs I have no interest in. I wish our schools had a nurse. I don't ever remember having a school nurse. I remember if I got sick in class I would go see the secretary and she would call my mom.

I think school nurses are greatly needed. I am happy that you found something you love OP.

I have not read the 4 pages of posts above me, but, i might be seen as a 'real' nurse, yet, i'd be highly intimidated to even try to be a school nurse!! (i'd be fired within a month for obvious incompetence, ha ha)

I am not uptodate to field any vaccine questions (that has always kinda intimidated me, i strain to keep it all straight in my mind, even the vaccine charts confuse me a bit, AND it's always changing all the time)
and I do not know enough about peds or flus or ped illnesses or meds or what types of screening should be done on kids, etc, i don't know any of that stuff. Imo, school nursing is a specialty area, with it's own body of knowledge, and i do not know that stuff, at all.

I am intimidated by school nursing, which is why it is one of the few areas i've never ever worked!! GOOD ON YOU for being a school nurse! And yes, you ARE a real nurse!!! watching over our nation's treasure, it's youngest!!

When i was a parent of school age kids, i was always comforted to know they had a school nurse there!! who i viewed very much as a 'real' nurse,
as did all the other parents!! Never heard of anyone not thinking a school nurse is not a "real" nurse, but, i strongly disagree!!!

Don't let it get to you. No matter what nursing specialty and setting that you are in, there will be someone on this earth who will declare that whatever specialty/setting it is is not "real" nursing. Even in the hospital setting itself, specialities will slag off other specialties.

You became a real nurse the minute you passed the NCLEX and they handed you your RN or LVN license. What you do and where you work won't change that. And no one's opinion can ever take that away from you.

If you are happy in what you are doing, that is all that matters.

I agree with all of the above, and would also like to add that one thing I admire about school nursing is that you're pretty much on your own. Hospital nurses have their fellow nurses and charge RNs and even doctors to bounce ideas off of and ask questions. When I worked on the floor, even the seasoned nurses would frequently run things by the other nurses and get feedback before doing interventions. You have NONE of those resources as a school nurse! It's all you, baby! That sort of autonomy and critical thinking, especially with a population of school children with more and more complex chronic issues, takes not only a real nurse, but an EXCELLENT one. They're just jealous. Promise. (and I am hoping to start doing some substitute school nursing soon)

Also, sugarcoma had it exactly right about the same dynamic happening no matter what kind of nursing you do.

Keep doin' the damn thang, yo.

School nurses rock! My friend's mom was a school nurse back when I was in middle school and she was my inspiration! <3

thank you for posting this topic! being a school nurse hadn't even crossed my mind when considering where i want to work when i graduate, but this option makes SO much sense to me with my love of kids! i am excited to look into this path now!

As a mom of a special needs little girl, I give you big hugs and a THANK YOU through my tears. My little girl can have tummy aches. She is globally delayed and has difficulty telling people what is wrong with her. You know her tummy hurts, and you console her until I can get there. Sometimes she comes to you because school is difficult for her and she has tearful meltdowns. You take her in the the office, give her a blanket, put her on the bed, and give her a teddy bear to hold. I know you talk to her even though you know she will not answer you. My daughter comes home with pictures you colored together. You calmed her down so she could go back to her class smiling.
You have no idea how much that means to me. It takes someone very caring to be a school nurse. God Bless you.

Jeesh? A real nurse? What's that supposed to mean? We are all nurses, whether we are school nurses, home health nurses, hospital nurses, retired nurses, former nurses, nurse managers. We need good school nurses, too, because perhaps you may be the only caring adult in that child's life! Our children are our future and we need someone to take care of our children. And perhaps you can even inspire children to become nurses! While I appreciate our hospital nurses and paid my dues, they aren't all that. Hopefully our patients are only in the hospital for a few days and are discharged. We need nurses that take care of people year-round, not just short term in the hospital.