Bathroom accidents...

[Supernrse01]

... are they really a nursing issue?

I'm not talking about the kiddos that are legit sick with something acute or even chronic. I'm talking about the kids that just don't ask to go to the bathroom or are consistently presenting with behavior issues or looking for a reason to get out of class.

Just wondering your thoughts on this and figured I'd bring a little Coffee Talk to our table. "Talk amongst yourselves"

[River Song, RN]

To answer the original poster, my PreK and K classes actually have their own bathroom in the classroom. Shortly after I started, I had a discussion as some PK & K teachers were giving the children their spare clothes and sending them to my office. It made zero sense as it is a nice long "walk of shame" from the classroom wing to where I am located and past the library, cafeteria and gym. If it is between class periods, the poor child could go by a lot of peers in their wet or soiled clothes when a bathroom is literally IN their classroom. I think the teachers perhaps thought I was doing more hands on help? However, my district rules prevent me from helping toilet a student or helping with personal hygiene (for regular ed students, obviously special ed or medical needs are a different situation with signed consents in place) and I explained to the teachers that nothing magical happened in my office. I simply hand them a few wipes and verbally cue them through it around the door which the teacher can certainly do without the indignity of forcing them to walk through the school. For those instances where the student has no spare clothes, the teachers and I decided it was quicker and easier for the teacher to simply text or call the parent, especially as all of my PK and K teachers are bilingual and most of the parents are not English speakers. So now what ends up coming and staying in my office are the PreK and K kiddos with no spare clothes and either the teacher can't reach the parent or they are waiting and have an odorous BM that they don't want to smell in the classroom.

For 1st grade and up, those teachers and I haven't worked out any such plans so those kids always come to me and I just call their parents. I have been surprised at the number of 1st through 3rd graders with no medical issues who have accidents but as they generally don't have a change of clothes in their classroom, I call the parents or emergency contacts and we just wait it out together.

As for the spare clothes, I moved the "clothes" to the guidance counselor's office which was the recommendation of our district nurse to get us out of the business as much as possible. Those tend to be used more for I fell in the mud, my pants split during PE or I spilled my entire lunch tray on myself type issues as we honestly don't have a lot of clothes and as a Title 1 school, we rarely get those clothes back. If the teachers or I didn't call parents to bring clothes when bathroom accidents happened, we would be out of clothes in a week.

[aprilmoss]

Yeah, I'd definitely had dumped the "spare clothes" out of my office if I could have when I was in the elementary school. I had that and the lost and found (go figure how that gets to be a nurse responsibility). Now in HS, the kids can go get their gym suit if they are desparate. I suggested to the office that they stock some sweats (the school store does sell them) or scrubs or something for such emergencies, but it's not my problem.

[KeeperOfTheIceRN, ADN]

I started back in the days of only blood got gloves, they were too expensive for every contact.

I can appreciate that. I do know as a unit, we went through an un-countable number of gloves. Especially during those "double glove" moments. I sure hope they're a little more affordable now as we were even taught in nursing school "if its wet, put gloves on!".

[MrNurse(x2), ADN]

I can appreciate that. I do know as a unit, we went through an un-countable number of gloves. Especially during those "double glove" moments. I sure hope they're a little more affordable now as we were even taught in nursing school "if its wet, put gloves on!".

I laugh at the new nurses that do nothing without gloves. We are told to put gloves on all the time.

[Rubor]

I don't mind doing it and have before (with my assistant). It would depend on the situation.

[Crystal-Wings, LVN]

In response to MrNurseADN(x2)- Wait what?! No gloves for anything except blood? There's no way I would be nurse if I could only wear gloves for blood. I'd never clean up poop without gloves! You're a brave soul!

[aprilmoss]

I remember when I started we would do a lot of stuff without gloves but these days we pretty much glove up any time we're touching a student. Lots of sanitizer as well.