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 !

Hello my fellow school nurses, I was approached by one of the HS assistant principals regarding a 12th grader who they think looks like she might be pregnant. Thie issue is that they want me to meet with the student and inquire about if she is pregnant or not ( in the manner that the teachers noticed changes and are concerned ). I happen to like this asst. Prinicipal very much but I think it is a little intrusive of the student's privacy especially since she is a senior and is graduating in less than 2 months. Even if the student is pregnant I think it is a violation of HIPPA and FERPA which doesn't require me to share this information with anyone else in the school. I don't see how this student being pregnant is pertinent to the remainder of her senior year. What are your thoughts? PS There is already a pregnant 11th grader who is openly pregnant in the school. Also I'm a very experienced nurse in Labor and Delivery.

I check monthly. We have one on each floor. The 1st floor one is outside my office and the 2nd and 3rd are located in the same area right above my office. One in the basement, one in the back of the gym, and 2 in the coaches office. All are in alarmed closets except for the ones in the coaches office.

No, but I wish there was an opportunity to teach health. I'm finishing up my Masters in Nursing Education and it would be nice to apply the teaching skills I have learned (objectives, learning theories , etc) in school nursing. I think since some states have taken the title of nurse teacher away we aren't utilized in that way especially in NY.

Thank you all for your support and advice. @Blue_Moon yes the way I was spoken to was the real issue. From now I plan on asserting myself more and if it happens again I will definitely confront it in a professional manner. @Wave Watcher there is no nurse manager. Apparently it sounds like the prinicpals in this school district act like this smh. My prinicpal is well aware I'm part of the union but, I'm still on probation until March. I really like school nursing and helping the students in their growth and development and will not let this incident deter me. ☺

Braun Thermoscan Tympanic Thermometer- love it! The covers are inexpensive and come 200 in a box. Before I got there the nurse was using a temporal thermometer. I didn't like it because I didn't feel like it was accurate and required to much forehead swipe which is gross.

Farawyn we are cut from the same cloth . I too do not want to deal with that kind of management again and I am very disappointed since I do like the job itself. There has been 3-4 nurses at this school in the past 3 or so years. These students did fall under the radar and basically I am cleaning up. I did reach out to another nurse in my district and she was shocked because the students are considered "in process" with a true appointment card. However, she said it was inevitable for me to get some sort of backlash as her principal has yelled (yes yelled) at her several times and my principal is consider "the nicer one". SMH. I do not tolerate another adult yelling at me. Hopefully this is the first and last time, if not on to the next!I have been keeping an email trail between the principal and myself. I think from this point on I will continue to email rather than communicate via the phone or his secretary to cover myself. I was honestly trying to assist this parent and was not trying take it upon myself to call the "shots" (as I think that is the idea the principal had in his head).

Hello All, I'm in a JHS/HS setting. The other day we had a couple of students being kicked out school because they did not get their delinquent immunizations in by the final deadline set by the principal. However, one parent called my office after getting a call from the prinicpal's office to pick up the child. The father was able to produce an appointment card with an upcoming MD appt for the vaccine. While waiting for the appointment card I was trying to communicate with principal through his secretary as well as walking down to the main office of the status to no avail. My conversation with the father was that it should be okay to keep the student in school until she get the vaccine but, it is the principal's decision. Long story short something got lost in translation and I was "spoken to" about speaking to the parents regarding keeping their child in school for this matter and that he has "50 other things to do and he doesn't need parents breathing down his neck" (this was all in a very demeaning tone IMO and this was the second time I heard the line about 50 other things to do). He wasn't interested in hearing my side of the story. In my defense, in the past he has left it up to me to decide in which he sent a parent who was called to pick up the child to my office and she called doctor in front of me who stated it will be given that afternoon and the child was allowed to stay in school. The principal had knowledge in what was going. My issue is that I felt like I was spoken to as a "student" and not a professional and there is no clear protocol (apparently other teachers and staff have had this issue with how he speaks to them, with some of them even brought to tears). It is to the point where I don't even know how to address this issue if it happens again regarding immunization. This interaction really put a bad taste in my mouth. I only started there the beginning of October and I am still learning the ways of the school.

Congratulations! I am not familiar with NYC but, I work in NY not to far from NYC. I am also new to school nursing but, have been a nurse for 10 years in the hospital. This website helped me out a lot and is the go to for NY school nursing New York Statewide School Health Services Center. The information is user friendly! This School Nurse forum is also great! You are isolated from other nurse so it is good to get feedback and support from this online community. Good Luck!

I've had a teacher send a student down twice for sleeping and each time I sent her right back. By the end of the day the teacher comes in my office saying that the student sleeps in the 1st and 2nd period class. She goes on to say that sheis going to call home but is alerting me because she thinks it's medical . Umm I think not! Call the parents and carry on . (Jr/Sr hs).

BP for dizziness; Temp-sometimes for headache (more so when they look flushed); pulse ox for difficulty breathing, BP and pulse ox-chest pain and fainting or almost fainting.