Frequent Flyers

Keeperofbandages, LPN · Oct 23, 2020

Work with your admin, parents and school counselor!

NutmeggeRN, BSN · Oct 23, 2020

I take vitals (temp, o2 Sat) etc, look at their color, whether or not they have ACTUALLY vomited, etc...and I say

"You have no temp, your color is good, you have not vomited. I need you to go back to class. See me later if anything changes."

The next thing I check is which class they are missing. Often they are struggling in that class or there is a conflict with the teacher or another student. (sometimes guidance or the teacher can help).

Then I'll call the parent/guardian and share that I have seen their child, alot. And I'll do it with the child there.

Sometime an honest question as is "why?". The answers can vary but often it fixes the issue.

Good Luck!

CanIcallmymom, BSN, RN · Oct 23, 2020

2 hours ago, NutmeggeRN said:

I take vitals (temp, o2 Sat) etc, look at their color, whether or not they have ACTUALLY vomited, etc...and I say

"You have no temp, your color is good, you have not vomited. I need you to go back to class. See me later if anything changes."

The next thing I check is which class they are missing. Often they are struggling in that class or there is a conflict with the teacher or another student. (sometimes guidance or the teacher can help).

Then I'll call the parent/guardian and share that I have seen their child, alot. And I'll do it with the child there.

Sometime an honest question as is "why?". The answers can vary but often it fixes the issue.

Good Luck!

This to a "T"!! After I notice a pattern, I say "does your mom know you've been to see me 18 times this month/week/etc? Let's call your parents right now because maybe something bigger is going on that they need to take you to the doctor for."

Another thing to ponder with *some* of them is a deeper meaning to the frequent visits... attention seeking vs. abuse/neglect. But that is usually not the case, just something that sometimes might come up.

JenTheSchoolRN, BSN, RN · Oct 23, 2020

14 minutes ago, CanIcallmymom said:

Another thing to ponder with *some* of them is a deeper meaning to the frequent visits... attention seeking vs. abuse/neglect. But that is usually not the case, just something that sometimes might come up.

Story here from me: I had a FF that was seeing 2-3 times day. Parents knew, teachers knew (and kept letting the student come, but that is another thread), and nothing physical going on. I'd been trying to dig deeper, as the student definitely was struggling in some classes and would admit what classes they didn't like and was very talkative.

One day I'm asking the student how their day is going, what class they are in, etc, when they suddenly blurted out that 1 year prior they were molested by a family friend.

Suddenly everything about the student made sense. The visits were spent getting to know me enough to trust me with that information. (We did get the student the support they needed and filed a report immediately.)

NutmeggeRN, BSN · Oct 23, 2020

3 hours ago, JenTheSchoolRN said:

Story here from me: I had a FF that was seeing 2-3 times day. Parents knew, teachers knew (and kept letting the student come, but that is another thread), and nothing physical going on. I'd been trying to dig deeper, as the student definitely was struggling in some classes and would admit what classes they didn't like and was very talkative.

One day I'm asking the student how their day is going, what class they are in, etc, when they suddenly blurted out that 1 year prior they were molested by a family friend.

Suddenly everything about the student made sense. The visits were spent getting to know me enough to trust me with that information. (We did get the student the support they needed and filed a report immediately.)

Great catch, heartbreaking tho

ruby_jane, BSN, RN · Oct 26, 2020

On 10/23/2020 at 9:49 AM, JenTheSchoolRN said:

Suddenly everything about the student made sense. The visits were spent getting to know me enough to trust me with that information. (We did get the student the support they needed and filed a report immediately.)

You get the Old Dude pat on the back for this one for sure. Wow. Glad you were there.

Serhilda, ADN, RN · Oct 28, 2020

I was a "frequent flyer" in elementary school and there was certainly more going on. I went without help for years because of nurses with this attitude. Sometimes these kids have absolutely no idea how to ask for help, no matter what the issue is. Sometimes they're overwhelmed with shame and hide what the actual problem/pain really is. Try to get a little bit more information each day about the child and trust that something is indeed wrong.

It's really heartbreaking to see school nurses dismiss these kids as attention-seeking or dramatic though. You don't know them or their motivations.

CanIcallmymom, BSN, RN · Oct 28, 2020

9 hours ago, Serhilda said:

I was a "frequent flyer" in elementary school and there was certainly more going on. I went without help for years because of nurses with this attitude. Sometimes these kids have absolutely no idea how to ask for help, no matter what the issue is. Sometimes they're overwhelmed with shame and hide what the actual problem/pain really is. Try to get a little bit more information each day about the child and trust that something is indeed wrong.

It's really heartbreaking to see school nurses dismiss these kids as attention-seeking or dramatic though. You don't know them or their motivations.

I'm guessing you didn't see where it was encouraged to bring the parents, school administration, and counselors in on the issue to discuss possible bigger problems. If all you got out of this thread was school nurses dismissing student problems, maybe you should read it again.

ruby_jane, BSN, RN · Oct 28, 2020

9 hours ago, Serhilda said:

I was a "frequent flyer" in elementary school and there was certainly more going on. I went without help for years because of nurses with this attitude. Sometimes these kids have absolutely no idea how to ask for help, no matter what the issue is. Sometimes they're overwhelmed with shame and hide what the actual problem/pain really is. Try to get a little bit more information each day about the child and trust that something is indeed wrong.

It's really heartbreaking to see school nurses dismiss these kids as attention-seeking or dramatic though. You don't know them or their motivations.

While I'm sorry this happened to you-

The majority of kids who come to the clinic often are, indeed, frequent fliers with teachers who find it easier to send them to the clinic than actually delve into why the kid doesn't want to do the work. This is our safe space to chat. Your concern was validated about three posts up.

BunnyBunnyBSNRN, ASN, BSN · Oct 28, 2020

13 hours ago, Serhilda said:

I was a "frequent flyer" in elementary school and there was certainly more going on. I went without help for years because of nurses with this attitude. Sometimes these kids have absolutely no idea how to ask for help, no matter what the issue is. Sometimes they're overwhelmed with shame and hide what the actual problem/pain really is. Try to get a little bit more information each day about the child and trust that something is indeed wrong.

It's really heartbreaking to see school nurses dismiss these kids as attention-seeking or dramatic though. You don't know them or their motivations.

they don't even go here

k1p1ssk, BSN, RN · Oct 28, 2020

1 hour ago, BunnyBunnyBSNRN said:

they don't even go here

There's always someone who floats in from another unit, sees us all sitting around the break room, and immediately judges us, thinking that's what we do all shift.