BLAH!!

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This is my second year doing school nursing and unfortunately I'm not liking it any better at all. I am really considering going back to hospital or home health work. My biggest problem is being bored. My days are mostly spent surfing the net which gets old very fast. I work mostly at elementary but go to hs about 30 min. daily--have around 700 students. I have 4 students that get meds once a day; have around 5 that get prn meds most days. Most kids I see have scrapes, scratches, or itching from bug bites. It only takes me a few weeks-3 or 4- to do all my required paperwork. I love the hours of a school nurse but do not feel like a nurse at all most of the time. Any suggestions on things I could do to stay busier would be helpful, or opinions on if I should just go back to what I love(hospital).

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Specializes in school nursing, ortho, trauma.

It's nice to be organized ang get through all your work. But it can sometomes be tedious if you keep beating your own deadlines.

In short -no school nursing is not like hospital nursing. During the down time periods it can make one very antsy. Check out this link:

https://allnurses.com/school-nursing/boredom-job-creative-352600.html

I didn't add it in there, but i often use my down time to complete online ceu's for my license.

Now, since you stated that your love is hospital nursing, most of these suggestions will probably mean very little to you. The bottom line is that only you can decide that is right for you.

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Specializes in Telemetry, Gastroenterology, School Nrs.

I am finishing my first year as a school nurse so it has been pretty crazy trying to get myself oriented. I am planning on doing bulletin boards and sending home information next year, as I want to be more involved. I have also used my downtime this year to get some things ready for next year. I have gotten my clinic logs ready for next year's returning students, gotten my requisitions done and done some CEU's.

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Specializes in Med-surg, OB, school nursing.

I know several nurses, myself included, that struggled with the transition from hospital nursing to school nursing. It's not as face-paced but it's also less stress (most of the time or at least a different kind of stress). You don't have other nurses working directly with you giving you help and support but you also don't have dr's or supervisors breathing down your neck. You don't get as much pay but you have more time off. What was it about the hospital you didn't like that made you apply for the school nurse job? You now have been on both sides of the fence so you can decide what trade-offs you're willing to live with. The link above had great ideas on keeping busy. A school is just a much slower-paced environment all together than a hospital. If you really aren't sure, why don't you wait until summer and then go back to the hospital (part or full-time) when you're off from school nursing and see if it's as great as you remember. If it is, you have your answer and if it's not then you'll appreciate what you do have more. Good luck!

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Thank you all for responding. I am planning on working at the hospital this summer prn but I think we sign our contracts June 15th so that doesn't give me a lot of time. I originally took the job at the school for the hours--I thought I would really enjoy it but so far I havent. I miss working with other medical professionals too. My time just seems to go by so slow at work. I have tried to find things to stay busy but have been unsuccessful. I wonder if the other nurses on here see more patients than me and maybe have students that are sicker??? I am going to try to make up my mind by June 10th and just have no regrets with whatever my choice is. I have read several threads on here of people that love school nursing and I wish I felt the same way because the hours are WONDERFUL!! Everybody belongs somewhere and I will find that place soon, I hope!!

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Specializes in School Nursing.

My first year was pretty slow. I had a few scheduled meds and that was it. On slow days I might only see 10-15 kids so it made for a very long day. I am still at the same school, but my current load keeps me hopping. I have a diabetic, 2 students who get cathed twice daily, loads of meds, etc. So keep in mind that depending on enrollments and withdrawals your work load can change. I was actually considering REQUESTING a second school be added to my assignment...thank God I decided not to, I would be a crazy woman, LOL!

Even given that, I still have down time. I check in here on AN, and try to do things like organizing, developing lesson plans for health topics, so if a teacher asks if I can come talk to their class I am ready to go. I also have a School Nursing text from NASN that I review regularly, as well as my peds text book. I try to do lots of CEUs also to keep up to date on other nursing topics as well. There are many free online choices. Sometimes I will pop in and check on my special ed PK class, or touch base with the counselor or the speech pathologist about some kids.

If you don't already have one, you can make a master list of the students in your school with medical conditions on Excel. Then you can sort it alphabetically, by condition, and by grade. It makes it easy to see which kids have, for instance, seasonal allergies and can anticipate seeing them around this time of year. I also make spreadsheets for students I need to pull out of class and screen, for those who have been referred for vision/hearing, etc. It just keeps me organized.

All else fails and I am bored stiff, I write. I have come up with a couple nursing related short stories and personal experiences by doing this. Might try for publication at some point, who knows.

Those are some more suggestions, but if your heart lies in the hospital, then that is where you belong. Only you can make that decision. You have to do what will make you happiest in the long run, and a great schedule is only one of the things to consider! Maybe a pro/con list would help?

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There is so much a school nurse could / should be doing during down time. School nursing is not about waiting for the next child with a headache or scratch to walk through the door. It is a subset of public health nursing: health promotion and illness prevention. School nurses are to assess the population of the health in the school community and create plans for school community interventions and then implement them. It is very unlike the hospital where your orders drive your day. You drive your day.

We had a thread on boredom a while back: Boredom on the job-- creative activities for school nurse down time - Nursing for Nurses

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Specializes in school nursing.

Goodness, down time? Not in my district! I barely have time to use the bathroom and never take a lunch!!!!

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Specializes in School Nurse, NICU.

I feel your pain--i had a previous thread with your same issues. This is my third year--2nd school--from elementary to junior high. i have 700 students i see 20-30 a day--I have one diabetic and 7 students with medication--i am up to date on ALL my paperwork--i even precept student nurses and i am still bored. I am grateful for transitioning to junior high because i too discovered it is not my cup of tea. I loooove the hospital. I tried and wanted so bad to love school nursing because of the hours but have decided to go back to the hospital.--even though LOTS of people think i am crazy leaving-- I have felt really guilty on one hand because of my children but on the other hand I can't stare at the clock any longer and waste each day just waiting for the weekend. I got a job at a Children's Hospital and am getting a 20,000/year raise (way more than i thought it would be) you'll know what's best for you. good luck and just know there are others out there who understand!

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TY, Jaga. We sound like we are in the same boat. Everyone thinks I'm crazy for wanting to go back to working 12 hour shifts, weekends, holidays, etc. I did it for 10 years and my family was ok. I still managed to make it to all the sports and school activities. I want to love this job like i did at the hospital but sadly thats not gonna happen. I will probably go back to hospital work this summer also. Good luck to you!!

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