dfs1961

Just started my 7th year in a MA public elementary. $67,243. M-F 8:15-2:50. Sept-June. No weekends. No holidays. Summers off. MSN and DESE licensed as a school nurse. We are in current negotiations for a new contract, so I should be in the low $70's for next year. Best job I ever had.

I wear regular clothes like the teachers. Although I do have to say that I do get a little dirty, especially my pants because I am always putting my students sneakers on my pants so I can clean their knees. In my district they like us to blend in as part of the educational team, hence, no scrubs. I am sure though, that I could wear scrub pants and a shirt and no one would know the difference. Black pants are black pants. I wear comfortable but stylish Danskos, not sneakers. I have white lab coats as well, but usually only put one on if I am cold or in front of a group of people and need to look like the nurse. edited to say that it would be easier to wear scrubs because, well, I wouldn't have to think about my clothes in the morning. However, I am out of school by 3pm and I like not running around doing errands and family stuff in my scrubs. Hence why I wear street clothes.

lol - I thought about this today as I did my "med pass"....I had to give out my 5 daily meds and it takes me about 20 seconds total to complete it. There is one student who I have to crush her pill and mix it in pudding - sometimes I get annoyed about the "extra" work it takes to give her her medication - then I snap out of it and remember the hours long med passes x 5 patients x 3 to 6 passes per 12 hour shift.....nope, I don't miss anything about hospital nursing.

School nurse here for 1.5 years and I love it. Best job I ever had. Former med surg/telemetry RN for 5 years. I enjoy being my own boss, I run the health office, I like the minimal interaction with adults. I mostly talk and see only elementary children all day. My principal is great and so is the office staff. I make a lot of calls and talk to parents, but usually they are quick calls to come pick up your child, etc. Most people (parents and teachers) trust my judgment and don't argue with my decision. My stress level is very low - so different from the hospital which was literally life and death on a daily basis. I work from 8:15 to 3pm. What's not to like about that? - I am home as soon as my children are. I miss nothing. Every weekend off, no holidays, no summers. 3 personal days and 10 sick days a year if needed. No mandatory overtime. No patient emergencies at the end of your shift in which you have to stay late to give report/chart/etc. I look forward to the new school year and then, in June, for that school year to end. There is a sense of accomplishment and completion with each school year. There is a beginning and an end. And then your 8 week reward of summer. I am never bored. Probably because I work in a busy elementary. I see about 40 kids a day. 5 daily meds. No diabetics. I laugh when I think about my former med passes in the hospital - the grind/stress of pulling 15 meds per patient (3 times a day each patient!) crushing meds, cutting meds, applesauce, waiting for your elderly patient to swallow, insulin, tube feeds, IV fluids, blood trans., 5 patient load, discharges, admissions, rapid responses, codes...My current med pass is a total of 5 meds a day - the kids are so sweet they swallow them in 2 seconds and are then off to lunch. I have plenty of time to get things done in between seeing students. I put my radio on, enter my immunizations in the computer, do paperwork, organize stuff, do screenings, etc. I make $47k a year for 35 hours a week. But only 40 weeks a year. I will eventually max out around $80k a year - not too bad! I have GREAT health and dental benefits. I will retire with a pension of 80% of my 3 highest years of work. So, around $65k a year every year after I retire. I will retire at 62. There are PLENTY of opportunities to make more money as a school nurse - you can do camp nursing during the summer, you can do afterschool programs, you can do per diem pediatric home care in the evenings. per diem weekend work, etc. I have my masters now and could be a nursing instructor. Leaving bedside hospital nursing was a great decision for me and my family. It was a good job to get my "critical care experience". However, it is not worth the $, stress, my health, missing my children, the liability, etc. Good luck w/your decision.

I have to disagree about the money. I make about the same that I made as a new grad in my hospital job. Around $30 an hour. I essentially work part-time. In 13 years, when I max out the pay schedule, I will be making $80k+ for part-time work (if you calculate the hours, plus vacations, etc., it is essentially 180 days a year). $80k for 180 days a year, plus great benefits and a pension, plus no weekends, holidays, home by 3pm. Quality of life, being there for my children and spouse - life is indeed great.

I would actually refer the poop smearer to the school psychologist. This type of behavior is associated with multiple psychiatric disorders in children.

I wear business casual for a number of reasons 1. I don't think scrubs are flattering and my Principal wants us to look like a member of the educational team 2. I like my clothes! :) 3. When I get out of work at 3pm, there is a still a lot of the day left and I don't want to be running around all afternoon in my scrubs. If I feel like looking like the nurse, I have a number of white lab coats I can put on.

I pull out teeth all the time. I ask the student to wiggle it for me. I can usually tell at that point if I can get it out. I then give them the choice. 1. leave it alone and come back to get a tooth box once it fall out, or 2. I can pull it out but it might hurt. Usually when I say it is going to hurt they leave :) But I've got some students who can't stand the tooth in their mouth anymore and they can't eat their lunch, concentrate, etc. Usually when it is that loose it comes right out.

My story is similar. I was a telemetry/medsurg nurse for years and have four young children. Once my youngest was in school fulltime, I knew I wanted to make the switch to school nursing. I work 8:15am to 3pm and am out the door everyday at 3pm, on time. I am home at 3:10pm to greet my children. We do homework together, I cook dinner every night and then drive them to activities. Life is busy, but wonderful. I don't miss a thing anymore. I have every weekend and evening off to do family stuff and I even have time after work to go to appointments, get shopping and errands done so I don't have to use all my weekend time catching up. I do laundry throughout the week also so I can just relax on Saturdays and Sundays. This is my first summer off in 6 years and I am LOVING the time to relax and be with my children, especially not paying for a babysitter or trying to coordinate their activities while I am at work. I make $47k a year and that isn't bad for essentially part-time work (35 hrs a week + 40 weeks/year). I carry the benefits for my family. I get three personal days and 2 weeks sick time. In 13 years when I am at the top of my pay scale, I will make around $80k a year. I will have a state pension when I retire at 65. And I can do this kind of nursing until I am 65 (unlike medsurg nursing which harms nurses emotionally and physically). And the best part - the job is fun and rewarding. And the saying is true - my worst day as a school nurse is STILL better than the best day as a medsurg nurse. I like being my own boss, the kids are fun, lice doesn't bother me one bit, sometimes I actually diagnosis something important (I caught testicular torsion last year), and I am still learning about new things (especially infectious diseases). I feel like I have hit the lottery with this job. I am very lucky that my husband makes good money so I was able to make the transition to school nursing. My children love having mommy at home and I love that I get to have a career but not at the expense of my mental or physical health and that of my children and husband. A very lucky woman I am! .....edited to add that I am an MSN, RN. I got my MSN while working in the hospital in medsurg. An MSN is required in my state. I got it fairly cheap at a local state university. If I ever get bored, I plan on teaching in the evenings at the local undergraduate nursing program.

Last day is next Wed the 26th of June. I won't be going back till after Labor Day! Woohoo!

I am supposed to get 50 minutes of duty free lunch/prep time daily. What a joke! I never leave my office, ever. When I go to the bathroom, I can hear the little voice saying "where's the nurse?"...I had one student today who was asking me why I was late to work today because he was in my office at 8:15am with a bloody nose (school doesn't officially start till 8:30am). Meanwhile, I was up speaking to a student and the teacher during this time.....I told him I wasn't late and I was working, and that nurses get to leave their offices! (I should've told him to mind his own business....)

My ADN program had crap instructors as well. And they treated all the nursing students like garbage - because at least 1/2 my class was from a foreign country, they didn't know any better and they took the abuse. I got in trouble on more than one occasion when I would speak up for the entire class (I had been to school before and had a bachelors and masters degree in another subject prior to nursing school). I knew what was happening wasn't right, and I was vocal about it as well. I sort of became the class leader (which bit me in the butt on more than one occasion). I have come to believe the saying "you pay for what you get" was true at my local community college.

Start subbing in the school district (or two or three) that you'd like to work. Get to know all the nurses, be flexible and available. It may take a few years (till someone retires) but if you have been a reliable sub nurse, you should have the advantage over everyone else. Your ICU skills are great, and you will get the pedi experience as a sub. You can also get a school nurse certification through taking classes at a local college in school nursing. They look great on a resume and show that you are committed to a future in school nursing. Get all your ducks in a row and make sure you have the basic entry requirements for the job. In MA, I had to take an exam (that all teachers and support personnel are required to pass), as well as attend numerous conferences in school nursing - just to have the entry level requirements for the job. And I did this all on my own time and dime. Within a month of completing all of this (plus an internship/practicum in a school with the school nurse for my MSN), I got the job. This was the best move I have ever made and I plan on working the next 25 years as a school nurse. I am more than 1/2 way through my first year and I am loving it! (And my family is very happy too - mom is home at 3pm, I don't miss a sporting event, I drive to all afternoon/evening activities, I cook a homemade meal every night, snow days at home with my kids, weekends with my family, holidays off and I'm looking forward to my first summer at home with my children). It will be the best decision you ever made!

How do you get a note from the doctor if the parent's won't get you one? She (the nurse) has done due diligence by 1. discovering the eye problem, and 2. making the referral. The parents have responded. I think the issue is out of her hands and the case is closed.

In Massachusetts, entry level is an RN-BSN. You need to be nationally certified as a school nurse OR have your masters in nursing or education within 5 years to get your professional licensure as a school nurse (you can ask for a 5 year extension). An LPN would not qualify in Massachusetts.