items in the clinic

Bandaids and ice...that pretty much covers it. Plastic zip lock bags, post-it notes,sanitary pads(lots of them), wound cleanser, eye wash, and long cotton-tipped swabs--I use them like chopsticks to separate hair when I'm hunting for lice. OOoo, and I have these neat little red BIohazard bags that I give to kids when they're vomiting. I give it to them when their parents pick them up so they won't mess of the car.

Table 1

Minimal Essential Emergency Equipment and Resources

FOR SCHOOLS WITHOUT A SCHOOL NURSE PRESENT

Accessible keys to locked supplies

Accessible list of phone resources

Biohazard waste bags

Blunt scissors

Clock with a second hand

CPR staff on-site when students are on the premises

Disposable blankets

Emergency cards on all staff

Emergency cards on all student

Established relationship with local EMS personnel

Ice (not cold packs)

Individual care plans for students with specialized needs

First aid tapes

Non-latex gloves

One-way resuscitation mask

Phone

Posters with CPR/Heimleich instructions

Refrigerator or cooler

Re-sealable plastic bags

School-wide plan for emergencies

Soap

Source of oral glucose (i.e., frosting)

Splints

Staff that have received basic first aid training

Variety of bandages and dressings

Water source/normal saline

From "Recommended minimal emergency equipment and resources for schools: National consensus group report" by N. Bobo,

P. Hallenbeck, & J. Robinson. 2003. Journal of School Nursing, 19(3), 150-154.

Table 2

Additional Minimal Essential Emergency Equipment

and Resources for Schools With a School Nurse Present

C-spine immobilizer

Glucose monitoring device*

*Committee acknowledges challenges with maintenance and expense of test strips. Monitoring of machine must also be in compliance with CLIA (Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments)

Medications *

Albuterol

Epinephrine pen

Oxygen

*All medications should be in accordance with state laws, pharmacy, and nurse practice acts

Nebulizer

Penlight

Self-inflating resuscitation device in two sizes (500 ml and 1 liter) with appropriate sized masks to meet needs of population being served

Sharps container

Stethoscope

Suction equipment (minimal source, does not have to be electric, i.e., turkey baster)

From: "Recommended minimal emergency equipment and resources for schools: National consensus group report"

http://www.nasn.org/Default.aspx?tabid=238

Bobo, N., Hallenbeck, P., & Robinson, J. (2003). Recommended minimal emergency equipment and resources for schools: National consensus group report. Journal of School Nursing, 19(3), 150-156

Don't forget to be sure you have a thermometer of some kind. Our district uses the Welch Allyn sure temp. And you'll need probe covers if you use a digital one. (No, I don't work for Welch Allyn!) While thinking of orders you may need to make, sometimes just asking your supplier might get you free shipping.

excellent post! thanks everyone!:)

From "Recommended minimal emergency equipment and resources for schools: National consensus group report" by N. Bobo,

P. Hallenbeck, & J. Robinson. 2003. Journal of School Nursing, 19(3), 150-154.

Table 2

Additional Minimal Essential Emergency Equipment

and Resources for Schools With a School Nurse Present

C-spine immobilizer

Glucose monitoring device*

*Committee acknowledges challenges with maintenance and expense of test strips. Monitoring of machine must also be in compliance with CLIA (Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments)

Medications *

Albuterol

Epinephrine pen

Oxygen

*All medications should be in accordance with state laws, pharmacy, and nurse practice acts

Nebulizer

Penlight

Self-inflating resuscitation device in two sizes (500 ml and 1 liter) with appropriate sized masks to meet needs of population being served

Sharps container

Stethoscope

Suction equipment (minimal source, does not have to be electric, i.e., turkey baster)

From: "Recommended minimal emergency equipment and resources for schools: National consensus group report"

Really? Do any of you have a C-spine immobilizer, oxygen, spare epipen and albuterol, turkey baster,or an Ambu bag with "appropriate sized masks"? I have never even been in a school that had all that stuff. I have a nebulizer in my clinic, but students have to provide their own tubing and medication. Likewise, the epipens. I thought I was doing good to have an AED in my last school. My current clinic is about the size of your bathroom. If I had all that stuff in there I'd have to hang it from the ceiling like a pinata.

I use the Welch Allyn Sure Temp digital thermometer also, but It is really good to have a common forehead strip thermometer for kiddo's who refuse to let you put a probe in their mouth. Also good for special ed students who may be scared. Lot's of tissues. Zip lock bags. Vaseline. Calamine lotion. Aloe Vera Gel. Wound cleanser. Paper towels to wrap ice packs in. Paper cups. 1/2 oz.souffle cups for medications. Plastic graduated cups for liquid medication. Spray bottle with bleach (diluted) or disinfectant to spray down cots between uses. Just a few items that I can't live without !

Good luck with your new job !

Praiser :redbeathe

I have a question too, about some of the supplies listed, specifically the glucose meter (and strips and supplies).

We do not have "stock" glucometers or supplies, as we can't do a fingerstick blood sugar on anyone without a physician's plan. We do make sure that our known diabetics provide adequate supplies for the health room, or carry them on their persons, though. But they are used only for the identified student. Are nurses in other locations allowed to keep stock glucometers/supplies and use them per their discretion if they believe a student (whether identified as diabetic or not) is having a blood sugar problem?

In Nebraska, we have a state mandated protocol for the management of presumed severe asthma and/or anaphylaxis, so we do have stock Epi-pens, nebulizers and albuterol because we have the legal coverage to use them. We also allow students to provide their own emergency meds for any condition (diabetes, asthma, anaphylaxis, seizures, oxygen and suction dependent students, etc.) as long as we have a physician's order to cover it. But I can't imagine the potential liability of stocking supplies and meds that the nurse does not have the legal authority to use.

Am I understanding this list right, or reading too much into it?

Really? Do any of you have a C-spine immobilizer, oxygen, spare epipen and albuterol, turkey baster,or an Ambu bag with "appropriate sized masks"? I have never even been in a school that had all that stuff. I have a nebulizer in my clinic, but students have to provide their own tubing and medication. Likewise, the epipens. I thought I was doing good to have an AED in my last school. My current clinic is about the size of your bathroom. If I had all that stuff in there I'd have to hang it from the ceiling like a pinata.

No C-spine immobilizer, oxygen or Ambu bag. Although my middle school had several infant sized masks stored away in a long-forgotten cabinet. I couldn't find anyone who could tell me why, though.

No C-spine immobilizer, oxygen or Ambu bag. Although my middle school had several infant sized masks stored away in a long-forgotten cabinet. I couldn't find anyone who could tell me why, though.

Eep! My first thought was to all those pregnant middle schoolers. Maybe they wanted you to be prepared in case they drop one at school!

I don't have an ambu bag, or oxygen, or most of that other stuff. I do have a "stock" epipen, but kids must supply their own glucometers and such. I couldn't make it a day without my Welch Allyn sure temp thermometer, qtips and vaseline (chapped lips!), bandaids, ice packs, and cotton balls!