Do you remove ticks?

[Riley RN]

Hello I'm in my fourth year of (elementary) school nursing and want to say how much I've enjoyed this forum. I learn something every day from all of you and appreciate your input so I'd like to get your opinion on this. Yesterday, a fourth grade student came in with her hair all pulled back exposing her scalp. She complained of a scab on her head. At first glance it did look like a scab, but because she has thick dark hair, I pulled out my trusty magnifying glass. Sure enough, it was a tick - not fully embedded and not at all engorged. She became very very upset (understandably so) and was now complaining that she could feel it biting her (?). I thought that I might have a chance at removing it since it was not embedded, so I gave it a shot. The tick was clinging on for life and the girl was flinching when I tried to remove it. I really did not want to try any further and take the chance that I may not be able to remove it in its entirety. Also, the nagging liability bell was chiming in my ear. I called mom to inform her that she should take her to a doctor or urgent care to have it taken care of. Mom was not at all concerned and said she'd be there in a half hour. So the girl is literally moaning and crying the entire time she was here waiting. She would not let me move farther than an inch away from her. I tried to put her at ease as best that I could. Mom finally shows up 50 minutes later and says that they have a doctor's appointment in 2 hours. Later that day I'm relaying the story to my husband and that I felt so badly for this student because she was so upset. My husband says "you told them to go to the doctor? I've removed ticks on myself plenty of times...what would you do if it was one of our kids?" I said that is completely different, this is not my child, and if I wasn't confident that I could fully remove one from my own child I would do the same thing. I told him that we really are not even supposed to remove splinters (although I do) and he looked at me like I'm crazy. He says "but you're the nurse" Unfortunately, liability is something we have to always keep in mind. Do you think that I handled this correctly?

[moreoreo]

I don't think you were in the wrong as she was flinching as you tried to remove it. I feel badly for how long she needed to wait for relief but I would not persist in anything that seemed to cause discomfort to a student unless it was necessary to avoid imminent harm.

I am curious to see what others have to say though!

[MrNurse(x2), ADN]

The tick was not fully embedded and probably wasn't in her blood vessel, that is the time to remove it to reduce disease transmission. You probably would have seen the smallest of epidermal tissue at the mouth. I would have done it quickly and quietly, sounds like this student was an anxious mess. Sometimes you don't need full disclosure.

[Eleven011]

Ticks are pretty common around here and I remove them from my own kids all the time. I have a handy dandy tool called a Tick Twister that I use at school. You hook the tic, twist it around and they pop right out. Its pretty uncommon around here to go to the dr for a tick unless its after removal and there is a sore/red area that needs looked at. I guess its the culture, but I'm sure most parents would want me to remove them ASAP rather than wait.

[OldDude]

I put a drop of soap on a cotton ball and rub the area, on top of the tick, with a circular motion. It will turn loose and the area will be cleaned from the soap. I've yet to have one NOT turn loose.

[Flare, ASN, BSN]

i do remove them with really fine point tweezers. Haven't had an issue with not getting the entire tick so far. But i think i may try OD's soap and cotton trick on the next one. Why not?

[OyWithThePoodles, RN]

I will remove ticks if they do not appear embedded after I have called home and got the parents permission. I also let the parents know that I will be sending the tick home in a small sealed see through envelope (if they wish) just in case the child develops redness, other symptoms. I will then clean the area well and send the kid on their way.

At home I or my husband will remove the ticks from our kids-we live in the sticks, not uncommon. But I do always save them for a couple of weeks. That sounds crazy but my oldest had a reaction with lymph node swelling, MD said if it persisted we would further investigate.

[KDRNMA]

I bought a 2 pack of these off Amazon for $ 8. They work great and are easy to use. I will try the cotton ball/soap trick though also.

[WineRN]

I haven't had to deal with this yet, but there are mulitple tick removing kits in my office, so I'm assuming its a thing the nurse before me did often.

Soap totally works, and so does cooking oil if you are at home (tip from my mother in law lol)

[JenTheSchoolRN, BSN, RN]

I have never dealt with this, But I'm saving this thread for future reference if I do!

[MHDNURSE]

Ticks are pretty common around here and I remove them from my own kids all the time. I have a handy dandy tool called a Tick Twister that I use at school. You hook the tic, twist it around and they pop right out. Its pretty uncommon around here to go to the dr for a tick unless its after removal and there is a sore/red area that needs looked at. I guess its the culture, but I'm sure most parents would want me to remove them ASAP rather than wait.

Can you post an Amazon link of the exact one you have? I want to order one (for personal use with my dig and kids- lol) and there are a few with the same name- want to make sure I am ordering the correct one. Thanks :)

[ohiobobcat]

I use the Tick Scoop and scoop those suckers right off. I call home after just to let the parent know what I did and will save the tick for them if they want. Most kids here will look at the tick and say "Oh that's a dog tick, I'm all set." Ticks are very common in my area, and we have lots of outdoorsy hunting, mudding, farming kids in my school so I see this a lot in the spring/fall.