Most creative ideas you've had as a SN?

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Just curious, what are some ideas that you consider "outside of the box" or creative that you have implemented in your office/school as the School Nurse? I'll go first (I am an elementary school nurse - kg through 4th)

1. I created a "look who lost a tooth" wall outside my office. When students loose a tooth at school, I write their name on little teeth I printed online and staple them on the wall. The kids LOVE this!

2. I hang pictures of the kids everywhere in my office. I think this is a staple for the school nurse because it makes it comfortable and "home-y" for the kids. They're like "hey that's me!" or "hey that's so-and-so" - its cute :) I try to make my office as personable to my students as I can (I have 550 students in my school).

3. I printed "punch card's" out for my students that have anxiety related to coming to school and are absent a lot. I have a lot of students 2nd graders that experience this. I think its because 2nd grade is when teachers are no longer playing around, and "the real work" begins. I have a little girl that comes to my office every single morning crying and is absent a lot of the times. She gets 2 punches a day. 1 punch for being present at school and another punch for positive coping mechanisms in the classroom. When all punches are filled, there is a reward (pizza, ice cream, etc.). I find that this type of positive reinforcement works wonders.

631614030_punchcardspicture.jpg.47e765a238b9c22e07871991cd5ec91e.jpg

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3 hours ago, nurselife13 said:

Just curious, what are some ideas that you consider "outside of the box" or creative that you have implemented in your office/school as the School Nurse? I'll go first (I am an elementary school nurse - kg through 4th)

1. I created a "look who lost a tooth" wall outside my office. When students loose a tooth at school, I write their name on little teeth I printed online and staple them on the wall. The kids LOVE this!

2. I hang pictures of the kids everywhere in my office. I think this is a staple for the school nurse because it makes it comfortable and "home-y" for the kids. They're like "hey that's me!" or "hey that's so-and-so" - its cute ? I try to make my office as personable to my students as I can (I have 550 students in my school).

3. I printed "punch card's" out for my students that have anxiety related to coming to school and are absent a lot. I have a lot of students 2nd graders that experience this. I think its because 2nd grade is when teachers are no longer playing around, and "the real work" begins. I have a little girl that comes to my office every single morning crying and is absent a lot of the times. She gets 2 punches a day. 1 punch for being present at school and another punch for positive coping mechanisms in the classroom. When all punches are filled, there is a reward (pizza, ice cream, etc.). I find that this type of positive reinforcement works wonders.

631614030_punchcardspicture.jpg.47e765a238b9c22e07871991cd5ec91e.jpg

Nurselife13, how do you get the photographs, you take them with your phone? And how do you print them? I love this idea!

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Yes I take them on my phone and just get them printed!

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I was thinking the punch cards were like the rewards cards for frequent visits and after 10, your next one is free ? If I had punch cards for frequency of certain students, they would be filled in a couple days, LOL.

LOVE the tooth wall idea, so cute!

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Specializes in Home Health,Dialysis, MDS, School Nurse.

When I took over this job, I inherited a LOT of stuff. One was a skeleton, about the size of a 4 year old, that was used as a Halloween decoration. The second year I put him out at Halloween, my daughter suggested we dress him up, so I put a costume on him. The kids loved it. Then as I was putting him away, I thought, this is a health office, nothing wrong with having a skeleton out year round?? So I got him some regular clothes and left him out. I put Christmas jammies on him in December. Then he wore shorts and a tank top once spring got here. The kids named him Mr. Bones and they always have suggestions for what to dress him up as. Right now he is sporting a cute little jean jacket until its nice enough to break out his shorts!

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Specializes in pediatrics, school nursing.

If I have a kiddo waiting to be picked up, i print out coloring pages for them or ask them to draw me something and then when the parents arrive I ask if they'd like to take it home or if they want me to display it on the cork board next to the cot; They almost always want me to keep it and my board is filled! I make sure they put their first name and last initial on it and I intend to keep a file for each school year with all the momentos to make a scrap book when I retire (in 35 years lol).

That book is going to be FAT.

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I love all of these ideas! Especially the tooth wall because it is a badge of honor (especially for my kinders) to get that tooth necklace. Their name on a tooth wall would just be a cherry on top!

Side note: I wish my desk was as clean as yours appears to be in your pic!!

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Specializes in ICU/community health/school nursing.

Y'all are SO kind. I mean it.

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2 hours ago, MHDNURSE said:

was thinking the punch cards were like the rewards cards for frequent visits and after 10, your next one is free ? If I had punch cards for frequency of certain students, they would be filled

LOL! Heck no! Hahaha

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2 hours ago, k1p1ssk said:

If I have a kiddo waiting to be picked up, i print out coloring pages for them or ask them to draw me something and then when the parents arrive I ask if they'd like to take it home or if they want me to display it on the cork board next to the cot; They almost always want me to keep it and my board is filled! I make sure they put their first name and last initial on it and I intend to keep a file for each school year with all the momentos to make a scrap book when I retire (in 35 years lol). 

That book is going to be FAT.

I do this too! I keep crayons and coloring pages by my cots and have a wall filled up with pictures ?

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2 hours ago, Eleven011 said:

When I took over this job, I inherited a LOT of stuff. One was a skeleton, about the size of a 4 year old, that was used as a Halloween decoration. The second year I put him out at Halloween, my daughter suggested we dress him up, so I put a costume on him. The kids loved it. Then as I was putting him away, I thought, this is a health office, nothing wrong with having a skeleton out year round?? So I got him some regular clothes and left him out. I put Christmas jammies on him in December. Then he wore shorts and a tank top once spring got here. The kids named him Mr. Bones and they always have suggestions for what to dress him up as. Right now he is sporting a cute little jean jacket until its nice enough to break out his shorts! 

LOVE THAT! I need to get a Mr. Bones!!!

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Specializes in School Nurse.

Halloween or Easter candy plastic buckets from walmart (when they are 0.50) as barf buckets

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