SchoolNurseBSN

A teacher broght a student because she had a really bad bloody knee! Yep, red marker!!! Seriously? I didn't know it took a nursing degree to tell the difference!

I always do a medical referral after 3-4 visits for the same complaint. I also speak with the teacher and get the counselor involved. I agree that many of these kids do have psychosocial problems and that it may take a while for them to open up. But, where do we draw the line? I am at a school where I have not 1 or 2 frequent fliers but 15-20. Most have many tardies, are failing at least one class, have many unexcused absences. I do not feel I am helping them by letting them visit the clinic 5-6 times a day on a daily basis! That is why i get others involved. AND SOMETIMES, it really is nothing more than the child does not want to be in math class!!! What happens when you spend all of your time on frequent fliers? I also have diabetics, asthmatics, a child in renal failure, etc. When those kids need me......I must prioritize and tend to their needs. Sorry, but there is ony one of me and i only have so many hours in a day to figure out what your tummy ache is really all about. There ae 2 counselors, 3 administrators, social workers, psychologists. I feel those people are better trained to intervene on that child and let me provide the services that only I AM TRAINED (as the only medical professional in the building) to provide!

My biggest fear is that i will have to call 911 on a kid and I will not even know his name. I have had nightmares about it!

Sorry! This is a plain ole VENT! I had a Pre K kid come down with no note, no pass, nada! Can't tell me his name, his teacher's name.....just looks at me and holds up a long gauze dressing. I look and see a giant burn on his arm. He does tell me grandma did, grandma did! Ok, I am ready to call child protective services. But, that would be hard without a name, now wouldn't it???? So, I call an administrator to the clinic and she knew the kid, and went to pull the teacher that stated "I just needed you to rewrap that bandage, what's the big deal?" Turns out, he ran into a hot iron, mom took him to the doctor yesterday, teacher brought me the note from the doctor, etc, etc. Of course this took up 30 minutes of my time, the idiot teacher's time, and the vice principal's time! Now, a simple this is _______ ___________ and here is the note from his doctor, could you please rewrap his dressing is all it took! Really, seriously???? I am a NURSE not a CSI. I do not have all day to follow the non-existent crumbs of clues that are given to me. If this were an isolated incident, I would be ok. But, this is every single day! These people have degrees?????????

Is it me or are children today getting whinier and whinier? I am just astounded at the missed class time for paper cuts and tiny drops of spilled white milk on a white shirt! Kids get upset when I don't have a magic wand to wave to get rid of their tiny booboos! I really strive to give these kids the tools to handle minor aches and pains but it is hard when everyone else is babying them so much! Or is it me getiing burned out? I don't feel like I am "above" giving a band-aid for a paper cut. But, I do feel it takes time away from health education, etc. Maybe I just needed a Friday vent!

Just my 2 cents. When I am in the middle of a "school nurse dilemma" I ask myself this question - How would i handle this situation if I still worked on the floor of a hospital. That being said. If i worked at the hospital and I was told to forget about doing everything except pass meds and emergencies and that I would be away from the floor for 4 hours / daily to do a completely different job.......I would run as fast and as far away as possible!!!! A nurse is a nurse is a nurse. I really believe what your principal is asking of you is beyond his scope to decide. Many times in my career as a school nurse have I had to speak up and explain the Nurse Practice Act to non-medical personnel. What state are you in? RED FLAG - the nurse before you left because of fear of her license and she had fewer classes to teach????????????????????????????? Wow! Just my 2 cents again - run, run, run!!!!!!

Purple Scrubs - stealing this one from you, it's a good one! - 1. Try to be less jaded with the frequent fliers and assume that there really is something bothering them, be it physical, emotional, or social. 2. Eat lunch AWAY from my desk as much as possible.

Sounds like they want a 2 for 1 special to save money! Nurse to 800 kids IS a full time job. 6 diabetics ALONE will take up a lot of your time. Do you have an aide trained to cover for you in the clinic while you are teaching? Or, are you going to be pulled from class to handle minor problems? What did the nurse prior to you do? how did she schedule her day?

I definately agree, I always talk to the teacher first. At the beginning of the year, I give all of my teachers a list of what is appropriate to send to the clinic and what is not. Attached is a baggie filled with nurse referral slips, band-aids, and safety pins. I also REQUIRE that kids have a pass to be seen unless it is a TRUE emergency. If a kid comes without a pass, I send them right back. No exeptions! I think this makes teachers think before sending a kid down!

Best of luck and YOU WILL BE really missed!

The phrase that frightens me most is "and the job description hasn't changed in that time." It is IMPOSSIBLE for 1 nurse to do the same work as 14. Why don't we go ahead and have just 1 math teacher for the ENTIRE district also and see how that works out...................

Ditto. 2-3 cases is not an OUTBREAK in my book. Sending letters home tends to throw everyone in panic mode, which is just unnecessary.

I would just hate to hear the backlash of trying to bring students up to compliance. "But that other 'nurse' said everything was fine." I just feel that the more we delegate to non-medical staff, the more it looks like our services are not needed! Obviously, in cases such as posted where you are stretched really thin...you have no choice but to delegate!

The daycare is a separate entity from you, your school district, and the teacher. I believe any health communication and planning for this student should be between the day care facility and the parent. I had a similar situation here at my school. The city uses our facilities to run an after school program. The employees who run the program are paid bythe city NOT my school or school district. However, several of my teachers do run this program. I found out they were getting keys from my office manager after I left for the day and giving kids inhalers, etc. Were any of theme trained by me to give meds? - NO! Was any documentation done by them? - NO! Did any of them ask if this was appropriate? - NO! The only reason I found out was that my gloves, band-aids, etc were being depleted and I found out that everyone for the after school program was helping themselves! Despite the fact that the city had provided them with a really nice first aid kit. After I put an end to them having access to my stuff, they would chase me into the parking lot because one of their kids would have a tummy ache or a lost tooth. I explained that I am not paid by the city to provide medical care after hours and they would need to take care of these things themselves. Now, if a kid needed emergency help and I was in the building I would not hesitate to jump in and help, but........outside of that- once those kids are checked into the after school program, they are the responsibility of the city NOT the school district!

CONGRATULATIONS!