Happy Monday! Are you counting days til Summer? 3.5 days for me!
So, I have a question for those of you in elementary schools and how you handle potty accidents.
I am the lone nurse at our school and when our littles have pee and poop accidents the responsibility falls to me to handle the clean-up and change of these kids. I make a point, whenever humanly possible, to hand these kids a change of clothes & either send them to the restroom or give them privacy in my clinic closet to change. Then I always notify their parent of the situation via email and give details of how they were able to change/clean on their own.
BUT, often at the beginning of the school year, my K5 kids need significant help with changing and clean-up. Or there's a kid in the bathroom that needs me to come wipe their bottom. And there's this one kid in 1st grade that has ZERO modesty and before I can leave the closet he's porky pigging it right there. He's been doing that for 2 years now. I love him but I'm ALWAYS telling him, "wait til I get out, buddy!"
So, how do you guys handle these situations? Do you pull another staff or faculty in to witness? Do you insist a kid do this on their own without your help? How do you protect yourself?
Just thought I would vent. We have a good supply of clothes from donations. We buy underwear. I ask parents to wash and return short,shirts, and pants. I have student who I gave a change of clothes to for the 19th time yesterday. I have asked mom to bring a change of clothes and I have asked her to return the clothes several times this year. If I call and tell her to come to school and bring clothes she says she can't. She has not returned a thing. Oh yeah she blames the teacher of course. 11 days to go. BTW I do help kids clean up if they are young and poopy.
Specializes in ICU, Home health, Peds, School Nursing.
Hi,
I encourage younger grades to bring in a change of clothes at the beginning of the year. They don't. If any child has an accident I HIGHLY recommend the parent bring an extra set of clothes to school. At that point they are usually feeling backed into a corner and somewhat embarrased and bring some in. I refuse to change any pants or clothes for any reason. I don't even look to see if there has been a bowel movement. Sniff test is it! I refuse to check any parts of the body that includes anything below the belt unless it is mid thigh or down. I won't check anything in the private chest area. There is no way I am losing my license or anything because of a child's false report. Plus, I am the only nurse in a school of 800. So it's not like I have a witness, but it wouldn't matter anyway. If I think it could ever come into question, I chart, "could not assess due to area on the body" and that is it. If it is something that needs to be assessed I call the parent in. What REALLY irritates me is when teachers let our students play in a field that they know is wet and they send them to the clinic when they are wet and muddy. Do they think I have a shower and a closet of a k-5 size department store clothes? How embarrassing if I have to call a parent because their kid is so muddy it is not feasible for them to return to class. I generally make them clean up as best they can and go sit in it. I sound like a mean nurse. I am the farthest from it. But this is kind of a serious issue if you think about it.
I would love to hear solutions that have worked for other nurses. Accidents are an ongoing, never-ending problem at my school. Here we are the last week of school, and I have seen at least 3-4 accidents per day. I have advised my Pre-K and K teachers to have students keep a change of clothes in their backpack, but that doesn't happen. I even see older kids who are too busy to stop at recess urinate/def. on themselves. I do keep some clothes in the clinic, but my stock is sporifice. Parents refuse to answer the phone. What are we supposed to do???
There are only two choices. Do it or don't do it. I'm not going to expose and or contact the genitalia or perineal area of a child unless it is an emergency. Adult witness, parent permission, principal's direct order...NOPE, NOPE, NOPE. That is the end of that story. So the school administration, the staff, the parents can have any opinion they want to but it AIN'T happening. And...mc3...I'd like to see the fall out for a school district terminating you for refusing to do this.
There are only two choices. Do it or don't do it. I'm not going to expose and or contact the genitalia or perineal area of a child unless it is an emergency. Adult witness, parent permission, principal's direct order...NOPE, NOPE, NOPE. That is the end of that story. So the school administration, the staff, the parents can have any opinion they want to but it AIN'T happening. And...mc3...I'd like to see the fall out for a school district terminating you for refusing to do this.
Get tough, OD.
You guys seem to think the school will back you against a parent's lawsuit. It won't. CYA.
I have a lot of donated clothing in my closet, but never the right size. It's generally the little ones who need clothes r/t accidents and they never get returned, so my 2 full boxes of 5-6s are completely gone. It's the same few that need a change of clothes and never return them. I did have a 1st grader(home schooled for kinder) this year who informed me that he has never been to the restroom without an adult(mom) and had never dressed himself before. He had no idea how to work pants! I do not assist students with anything that requires their clothing to be removed. For medical things (scrapes, pain, rash)
ETA: Mr.Nurse and OldDude, I think, have a perspective on this that a lot of women don't even think about. Male school nurses are not the norm. One false claim, one parent complaint, one outsider raising an eyebrow will end your career. As nurses, we know that male or female makes no difference in the care we are capable of providing, but as a parent, well, we still have some parents that are uncomfortable with male teachers!
Can your PTA help?? We have several local service organizations who help with personal care items. This should NOT be out of your pocket.
We have no PTA/PTO in my school. Apparently they had one a few years back but they weren't managing the fundraiser money properly and the school disbanded them. I purchased out of my pocket for my own peace of mind... I really hate having kids sitting in my office for 2-3 hours when I can give them clothes and sent them back to class.
My school is in a low income area. Parents are asked to send a change of clothes but most don't. Most don't answer their phones. The one time a parent did answer and bring in a change of clothes, tried to hand me the clothes so I could change her son's BM accident up. I refused to take the clothes and pointed her to the bathroom down the hall. Seriously! It's a pain to search through clothes and when the kids complain I remind them it's not Walmart and they can either take what's offered or stay wet, dirty, whatever. Luckily we have a local church that donates clothes in whatever sizes I need. I ask for the clothes to be laundered and returned and maybe get 1/4 of them back. I hand the kids wipes and clean clothes. I think some kids are just barely potty trained when they start school. We have a large amount of parents who don't seem to know how to be a parent. It's very frustrating.
However, if a child has several accidents we ask for a dr evaluation and parent meeting. Then we start a classroom plan on more frequent scheduled reminder bathroom breaks, etc. Once the parent realizes this is being taken seriously and is a major disruption it usually improves. We have had cases of sexual abuse or kidney issues discovered by requiring dr exams so it's good to keep track of which kids and how often. Sometimes its behavior related. Never fun though.
My school is in a low income area. Parents are asked to send a change of clothes but most don't. Most don't answer their phones. The one time a parent did answer and bring in a change of clothes, tried to hand me the clothes so I could change her son's BM accident up. I refused to take the clothes and pointed her to the bathroom down the hall. Seriously! It's a pain to search through clothes and when the kids complain I remind them it's not Walmart and they can either take what's offered or stay wet, dirty, whatever. Luckily we have a local church that donates clothes in whatever sizes I need. I ask for the clothes to be laundered and returned and maybe get 1/4 of them back. I hand the kids wipes and clean clothes. I think some kids are just barely potty trained when they start school. We have a large amount of parents who don't seem to know how to be a parent. It's very frustrating.
However, if a child has several accidents we ask for a dr evaluation and parent meeting. Then we start a classroom plan on more frequent scheduled reminder bathroom breaks, etc. Once the parent realizes this is being taken seriously and is a major disruption it usually improves. We have had cases of sexual abuse or kidney issues discovered by requiring dr exams so it's good to keep track of which kids and how often. Sometimes its behavior related. Never fun though.
I get your vent and don't want to sound holier than thou at all, just wanted to give you another perspective. Driving through the city to work 11-7, I saw the harsh realities of these kids' lives. Elementary aged kids were hanging outside their homes in groups at 10:45 on school nights. There was usually one adult hanging close. The sad social reality of inner city kids is the 3 out of 4 of them are being raised by single mothers who work multiple jobs and can't be there for their kids. School is primarily child care because they are living hand to mouth, making education secondary. Therefore, the only ladder they have to climb out is not given any importance and only a few parents understand that it is their only way of rescue for their children. Without real parental guidance, the teens become independent without maturity and the poverty cycle continues. My sociology lesson has now ended.
I get your vent and don't want to sound holier than thou at all, just wanted to give you another perspective. Driving through the city to work 11-7, I saw the harsh realities of these kids' lives. Elementary aged kids were hanging outside their homes in groups at 10:45 on school nights. There was usually one adult hanging close. The sad social reality of inner city kids is the 3 out of 4 of them are being raised by single mothers who work multiple jobs and can't be there for their kids. School is primarily child care because they are living hand to mouth, making education secondary. Therefore, the only ladder they have to climb out is not given any importance and only a few parents understand that it is their only way of rescue for their children. Without real parental guidance, the teens become independent without maturity and the poverty cycle continues. My sociology lesson has now ended.
Specializes in family practice and school nursing.
Nope. will not spend my own money anymore. learned the hard way on this one.
YES! This was me, all year long. Garage sales, Good Will, Walmart.. I spent a good $300 out of my pocket on uniforms, underwear and socks (and that is after the district gave me a box of undies in the beginning of the year and another mid-year!). I've also spend a lot on lice treatments for families who couldn't afford it.
not a school nurse but happened to come across this. the hospital I work at carries individually wrapped disposable underpants. they're some combo of cheap cotton and something super stretchy so you can pretty much give them to your 96 y/o LOL or the obese man next door. maybe they come in pediatric
Next year I am sending home a note with a Ziploc bag asking them to return clothes in the bag provided. If I don't get it back and it is a habitual offender I will continue to request they provide clothing. I hope this helps.
Get tough, OD.
vikivail26
53 Posts
Just thought I would vent. We have a good supply of clothes from donations. We buy underwear. I ask parents to wash and return short,shirts, and pants. I have student who I gave a change of clothes to for the 19th time yesterday. I have asked mom to bring a change of clothes and I have asked her to return the clothes several times this year. If I call and tell her to come to school and bring clothes she says she can't. She has not returned a thing. Oh yeah she blames the teacher of course. 11 days to go. BTW I do help kids clean up if they are young and poopy.