EnoughWithTheIce

Sometimes these practices come back to bite them on the butt. I had a student that the SPED was sending home A LOT for "illness." When mom got the truancy letter - she was mad! Admin came to me on why illness absences not excused. and I explained it is because I never saw the student. never happened again with that teacher. Of course, now she drives me crazy with every tiny thing but, oh well!!

BOTH!!! Why do they EVEN come to us if they are going to argue??

OMG, yes to all of the above! I have been at several different schools in several different districts. Though I get along great with my current office staff, counselors and admin - I still feel that staff is the hardest part of the job. The teachers that rarely greet me, but oh my goodness when they want someone to look in their ear, I should drop everything. DRIVES.ME.NUTS. When staff call me just by "nurse", I call them right back by their title also. You get what you give!

I just had a conversation with a SPED teacher who had "no clue" she was supposed to call or put on my e-pass before sending a student down because of covid protocol. We have been in person since August!! More like, she knew and thought rules don't apply to her because they never do with the SPED department. And kids stomach was hurting all day but decided to drop her off to me on their way to lunch.

This is so well said. Why apologize for something that we did not create and have no control over????

Masks are now optional in my district! One giant free for all.................

Kids in morning athletics (and their parents who support the behavior). Well enough to attend practice, too sick to go to math 2nd period!! But, I leave in an area where sports ARE THE PRIORITY!

I just sent a student home with 4 covid symptoms, including a temp. Reason for being sent to school - so she would not miss basketball tryouts!

Do you ever feel that their department is a full-time job in itself??? And I am not talking about the kids, THE STAFF! And they don't seem to know how to use a telephone - they just love to call people on the radio instead. And panic when I can't answer right away because I am on the phone or with a student. It is never an emergency anyway. Sorry, Friday rant over.

I am trying to stay as motivated and as positive as possible. However, it is hard to fight the good fight when I know I am trying my best to do what is right for my students, staff, and community - yet they are choosing to not take it seriously. I place kids on quarantine, yet they are out at the Friday football games and target. I have learned this year that I can only control my own actions and educate. What others choose is in their own hands.

STAFF.IS.THE.HARDEST.PART.OF.THIS. JOB

I had a VERY similar situation about 3-4 weeks ago. These episodes had happened several times at home but parents had never given me a heads up. You can only make decisions based on the info you have and your assessment. Never doubt it!

COVID C'MON NOW!! Parent #1 sends kid to school with cough, fever, body aches, etc. Mad because you send home and quarantine when "it is just allergies!" Parent #2 keeps kid at home for 3 weeks because mom's co-workers neighbor's brother-in-law's niece dated a guy one time back in February that posted on facebook he is positive. Parent mad at you that her daugher is not considered a close contact. Can we just find SOME middle ground????

This is what I would fear! After 8 weeks in, I am finally getting parents to understand the need to keep ill kids home and follow up with their PCP. If they found out we are testing, the lines will be out the door every morning. What are the implications for nurses doing these tests? It's diagnostic, is that even within our scope???

In my soul, I really believe that this would not be done to any other person on a school campus besides the nurse. That is disheartening!! I would find a place where nobody could find me from here on out And to not even have the decency to ask the kid what they even needed first!!

Yep, this!!

Didn't I read somewhere that the LA area of CA has one of the worst student to school nurse ratios in the country??? Like 1:2500 students? Was it an aid? A nurse only on campus 1/2 day a week?? A secretary that staff think is a nurse? Sort of irrelevant though in this case!! it certainly did not take any kind of medical degree to see he was in bad shape. The shot with the bb's is what really got to me. Poor baby...

So sorry! WOW!, I have had some bad administrators but this takes the cake for sure. Just as others have stated, bring all of your documentation to the table. stay calm, stay professional and state the facts. What burns me is she knew she done something stupid but instead of owning it, she is trying to throw you under the bus. What a *****. If it were me and I felt attacked at all during this meeting, I would consider filing a grievance. It just makes me sad that so few people see how valuable we are!

I am the supplier of "all things." Especially things teachers want / need but put no forethought and planning into. Some make sense, others I am like - whaaaaatttttttt? It is not even what they are asking me for but it is the look of shock on their face when I don't have that object or can't spare to give them 5 boxes of my gloves which would leave me with -2 boxes for my own use. 1. Cotton balls for santa beards. 2. Tongue depressors (????). "I only need 130!" 3. Vaseline - to play a prank on a co-worker. Just reached their hand in there and scooped out most of my jar. And I had just placed an order for supplies and spent all my budget. I was livid, told her she needs to replace it! 4. Borrowed my wheelchair to use as a prop in a play - lost it!! 4. Coffee creamer, inhaler for their bronchitis, mouthwash, toothpicks, pencils, water bottles, a toaster, snacks, glucometer, scrubs, phone charger, dental glue for a crown, etc, etc, etc.

Not going on a hunt / wild goose chase among 950 middle school students based on rumors about something that is a nuisance. I feel like I could have actually written this post as I have dealt with the same thing the last few weeks. 3 moms and their daughters (who had no symptoms of lice/nits at all) complaining about a terrible outbreak.............

I had a student that fell out of his chair in class last week. I was called to the scene because "he can't move." When I got there, I assessed his head/neck/ back - all normal. I asked him if he could get up and he says "sure, I am fine." Took him back to clinic, he had 1 red area on an arm. Teachers were SHOCKED I didn't at least send him home. He was fine, he talked to mom and we told her he was fine. And we wonder why the kids are so whiney???? Nobody asked him if he was OK or could get up - they just panicked and called me. I just want to yell over the PA "kids are not as fragile as they appear."

I am in North Texas where allergy season is pretty much all year around. They come in with watery eyes and allergic shiners - swear up and down that it is a cold........

Just thought I would let my school nurse peeps know I will not be around for a while. I will be checking all 950 middle school kids for lice, in their classroom with a flashlight and comb. Then, we will just have to burn the entire school down because the current lice outbreak is causing several life-threatening diseases to run rampant in the school. Never mind, we follow evidence-based recommendations and not stupid demands from raving lunatics!! C'MON NOW!! I am a school nurse, your e-mail don't scare me.

I could just see me doing the announcements at my school. I can't even eat or go to the bathroom. "I pledge allegiance to the............no, I said pinch it - don't stuff the kleenex up your nostrils........United States.......just sit in front of the trash can and give me a minute....of America. I don't have your inhaler, you are a self carry. And to the...oh never mind, they just called me to the band hall, someone just passed out."

Any "Real School Nurse" would know that there is more to a pass than a piece of paper. 1. Safety - we need to have all students accounted for at all times, passes allow us to hand off student responsibility from one adult in the building to another. 2. Crowd control -if we had no clinic rules, we would be bombarded all day every day with never ending lines of kids needing us for every tiny discomfort. We must use some triage system to make sure we are serving the students who really need us. 3. Educating children to be smart health care consumers - I consider passes as their appointment or insurance card. Teaching them that they have a personal responsibility in how they use (and hopefully not abuse) the system. 4. Information - I have 950 students in my building. I rely on teachers to give me proper spellings of names, etc. in case I have to call a parent or 911 in an emergent / urgent situation. 5. Documentation - I feel no need to explain this one..... I am sure that if I were at a very small school and only saw a few students daily, passes might not be so important. But, I see at minimum 60 kids a day - I have to have some sort of system in place to keep it all flowing. And, here's the deal - some of us MAY BE pass nazis but I am sure none of us would ever turn away the kid who is obviously ill, injured, upset, in need.