JoRose1

Thanks for the reply! Yes, I was thinking that peds ER would be a really good background first, as you never know what you'll encounter when you are the nurse in charge of possibly hundred of school children! I appreciate the response:)

Thank you so much for your response- I really appreciate that! Glad you love school nursing and found your niche! Sounds like you have a ton of great experience!!! I'm sure I'll have more Qs in the future about this topic as I research more but I think substitute school nursing is a great idea to get your feet wet first and see if its the right fit.. Thanks again :)

Hello everyone! Very interested in one day becoming a school nurse. Wondering in general-- what type of nursing/how much experience is best to have before making the switch to school nursing? Thank you all for any advice, it is much appreciated! :)

Thanks for the response nurse2033. That brings up a good point. Maybe if more people reported incidents to the law, more awareness on this issue and procedures could be put in place to protect nurses, and other health care workers as well.

I appreciate that comment! My post may have come off sounding like they 'should be punished.' No, if they have a true mental illness, dementia,etc.. I agree they deserve our empathy and respect and should not be punished for that what they cannot control. I guess my post was worded strange- sorry. Thanks for all the comments/responses back. It is good for me to reflect on my own thought processes and learn from others.

Yes you are indeed right! I need to remind myself to put it in perspective, not worry about something that "might" or "could" happen. Interesting perspective--thanks!

Hi all, I am new to allnurses-so, hoping I post this in the correct spot. New to this profession. I have anxiety over the risk of physical assault (witnessed some stuff--heard some horror stories) & I am wondering, if a patient attacks a nurse in some way (for example- throwing something at her, or smacking her), can the patient be charged with assault? Can the nurse file charges (whether thru the police or a civil case)-do you call the police right when it happens, etc.? I have been reading about this online, and many articles seem to say something along the lines of "well the patient was never ultimately charged" or 'they had a mental illness, so no charges were brought". Not all of course, but it sounds like many patients are never charged for assaulting a nurse. I am interested in others opinions on this matter, i have a pit in my stomach thinking someone can get away with hurting someone else simply because they are a patient (as if "the customer is always right" applies in this situation). Other Q: if a patient is physically assaulting you, (& i know you must use least force and such possible), do you defend yourself? If it is a serious assault-- simply trying to block the punches (or whatever) may not be enough.... I want to come home to my family every night safe & sound and don't believe I should allow myself to be hurt in any way from any patient (but also, don't want to risk losing my nursing license or my job). Of course we as nurses all want our patients safety as the priority--but shouldn't our own safety be equally important? Thanks for any responses- I am interested in hearing others thoughts and points of view and learning.