RNqueens

This happened to me. Student comes down as soon as the school starts c/o headache. No fever doesn't not look under the weather let them rest and return to class. I offer the student to come back around lunch time if not feeling better. Student comes down before lunch time stating that the librarian said she has to go home because she has a cold. No runny nose no coughing no sneezing no fever still. Student then proceeds to tell me the teacher text her mother to come and get her smh. I was fuming. The classroom teacher thinks something is wrong with almost all of her students everyday. She used to call my office 3-5x day in the beginning of the school year until she caught on to my annoyance. I really wonder when does she have time to teach since she is constantly playing nurse.

The school I am at has a policy that for 3 consecutive days absent in addition to parent written reason, the student is required to have a doctor's note with a return date to school in order for the absence to be excused (this is under the excused absence bullet in the policy). The unexcused bullet gives examples of unacceptable reason. With that being said some of the teachers are insisting that I send students home if they have no doctor's note after 3 days, that's the "policy". I think they are interrupting the policy wrong as I have no problem sending a student home who has been out or 3 more days without md note and still appears sick while demanding a note. However, if the student appears well no s/s of disease I don't not feel that I should send them home just because they do not have a note so that they can miss another day of instruction. I do however give the students a formal letter of the policy that they are to return the next day and/or call to find out what happened to the student. Most of the time they were on vacation. I have discussed this with my principal who is okay with this but, some staff feel it is their duty to give me suggestions. I am at a new school in which they are use to their previous nurses way. I do not think I can legally exclude a child who appears well just because the do not have a doctor's note (what if they did not go to the doctor at all). The school has a high absenteeism rate and the exclusion should come from the principal if the student is deemed well enough to stay in school based off of my assessment. What is your policy?

Hey OP I am in my 2nd year as a school nurse and have 10 years of high risk ob. It does take time and self guidance to get use to the culture and environment of the school system which is very different than the healthcare world. While I like school nursing I do still love Ob so I work per diem twice a month or more on my old unit. I don't miss the stress that comes with it but, its refreshing on the days that I work. I do agree with you that my biggest pet peeve are parent enablers. It drives me nuts at times but, then I say hey its not my education I have one already. However, those students who I can reach do get that nice lecture from me on the importance of school and working in the real world will not allow any absences. I work with ms/hs students who are easier to talk to especially since we have cared for many teenage mom's in l&d. I couldn't survive elementary. The middle schoolers are tough because they still need a lot of babying and have the highest occurrence of parent enablers. My office has become a safe haven with boundaries for students since they have gotten to know me. They share with me their achievements and frustrations and I give life lessons and encouragement. This is the part of school nursing that I love. Some days I love school nursing and other days I'm like get me out of here. Will I retire as a school nurse I doubt it but, right now it works for me. I would suggest keeping your foot in the door prn in womens health while you figure things out.

This week one of the teachers notified the princ. that they were infected. Princ. Asked my opinion about it. Reviewed the students in the school vaccine status and shared with princ. To my knowledge what the immunization status of the school is and no known student cases but, will be willing to send out info to staff. Infected teacher proceeds to rant that her doctor is from a prestigious hospital and they are sure they got it from the school even though its not the only public setting I'm sure she has been in especially at this time (insert rolled eyes due to unnecessary banter from teacher as I was doing my job as a school nurse by informing the princ. About the student body). "Public service announcement" emailed to staff per principal request for 1 known case. Sorry had to get this off my chest. Teacher really annoyed me and was totally out of place. Obviously teacher does NOT respect my job title. Please note I made sure to add in the email not to send every coughing student to me since sending out PSA's can potentially cause hysteria. Reviewed proper hand hygiene.(not an elementary school)

I have to say every time I'm having a bad day whether it's parents, teacher, students, or adminstrators I just come to this forum and makes me feel better! Its hard when you don't have someone in the same profession/specialty to share your gripe. Last year was my first year as a school nurse. This year I think I have earned majority of the staff's trust. They go on my lead and valuable my professional opinion. It helps when the principal asks you to read and sign off on his PPD in front of the main office staff. Other schools in my district the teachers and principals are not so nice to the nurse.

Per diem night shift at a hospital

I certainly cannot send my kids to college if I continue to do school nursing when they are that age.Even though we are on the teachers retirement plan is it doable at retirement age? Our scale caps out at 16years and its still $10,000 less than what I made a new grad. Smh LI as well. I should have been an art or phys ed teacher so I can make six figures with my masters and required years of service.

When they come to me because their arm has been hurting over the weekend and I go through the whole thing about did you tell your parents. I gently remind them that the health office is not an urgent care center. I cannot see past your skin and cannot diagnose you. My students are high schoolers as well. One kid told me his mother told him to go to the nurses office at school that I may know whats wrong smh. The district I work in is a higher economic status.

Love you Farawyn . I just can't deal. My system is similar to yours expect for the permissionext slips and I'm responsible for the junior high school as well as high school. I also worked 5 days I the summer. I think I going to have to talk to my ad about the coaches taking their own permission forms. I feel the same way you do I don't care what sport they get permission for.

Hello all! I am drowning in paperwork and junior high sports clearances that I don't even have a handle on students with new issues uughh. How do you go about sports clearances? Right now I have each roster where I put if the student is medically cleared to participate. My issue is that I am also responsible for their permission form for the sport. I think I'm going to suggest the coaches be responsible for their own permission forms so that I can just focus on the medical aspect. Do you have clerical Staff and how competent are they? I have 1400 students to one nurse and a secretary who is not efficient. I have to constantly micromanage her. I stayed way past my time to enter physicals (I actually worked until her time) and she did nothing. Her excuse is that the paperwork doesn't get in the computer until november. That is unacceptable when I entered 3/4 of the 7th grade physicals during unpaid OT. I have other things that take priority and think the health aide/secretarial staff should be more efficient PS there is nothing I can do about it

Thank you all for your support and thoughts. Like I said before this has definitely been a lesson learned as a new school nurse. All the concerns everyone voiced were my same concerned and made aware to admin. this situation stayed with me the whole weekend because I totally understood how the student felt and it was me who presented to her. I heard the mother came to the school but, I am not putting myself anymore into the situation. As I told the student the staff (not myself) were concerned. Like someone posted earlier I kind of feel like they were probably gossiping about the student but, convinced me due to "safety". Never again!!!. No one has brought it up to me again and I am very happy with that. They wanted to know they deal with the aftermath. Also the whole look of a pregnant belly versus just a belly was asked by myself and everyone was so sure it was rounded out like a pregnant belly. Which it wasn't once I got a good look at the student ( no I didn't ask her to show me her belly I just observed how her clothes were fitting her). SMH

Update: The nurse in the other district sent me the lawyer guidance memo which does state that parents are to be notified if students under 21 are pregnant. According to NYSED that is their guidance as well despite a supreme court ruling of a school district notification to parent being overruled in 2009. Since, I am a new school nurse I went ahead. Now I have no relationship with this student so the encounter was awkward but, she said no and yes she has been gaining weight. I tried my best to smooth it over as the staff is only looking out for her best interest and stressed that I mean no harm. She was fine when she left my office and reassured me that she was okay. Well as you all suspected, and myself, this situation has now taken on a life of its own. One of the teacher approached me and said that the student is upset that the staff would think she is pregnant. I felt so horrible. She was with another teacher and I went up again to give emotional support. She wasn't upset with me cause as she said I barely know her so someone else had to have come to me. On the consult of the teacher we referred her back to guidance because that is where it originally came from. The poor student was so upset and according to the teacher the mother is a "hot head" (as some of you predicted might happen). I really felt like that used me as a scapegoat because I am new to the position having started in October. I feel really bad and told the student I totally empathize and apologized. I told the counselor that the student is very upset and will probably tell her mother as a heads up because I am not dealing with it anymore they wanted to know they should have asked instead of pressuring me to feel that it was my duty because of what the lawyers said. His rationale was that they know of a case where a teacher suspected a student was pregnant and did not tell the parent and she almost died from pre-eclampsia which could have been treated had the parents know and started prenatal care. This is the part of school nursing I do not like and has truly been a lesson learned !

I spoke with the guidance counselor today and apparently the school lawyer's have stated that the school is to notify the parents if the student is pregnan even if she is 18. So I guess I have to be intrusive.

@BeachyRN2Be those are my thoughts exactly. I have access to the students attendance record. I am going to do a little investigative work and contact her guidance counselor to see if the student is in jeopardy of not graduating. If not I don't see why that is need to know info. I have never seen the student since I've been at this school.

Hey Farawyn, I am well, miss you too !