MinnieMomRN

Me too! Boy this count really makes me happy!!

We contacted our local police department. The safety officer was extremely helpful in helping us develop a plan. She also did a great in-service! In light of last week's tragedy, we are reviewing and strengthening our plan. My first thought last week was for the children, then their parents, and then the horror that must have been felt by the staff. Horrible, horrible event...

Nutty parent encounter, 7th grader who threw a plastic thingie into the radiator and smoked out the second floor resulting in the fire department coming, the puke bug run rampant, and a teacher who had white patches and green exudate on her tonsils but the principal will not allow her to go home on my word because I can't do a strep test to PROVE she has strep. PLEASE. MAKE. IT. STOP!!!

Never trust the previous shift's assessment. True story... I received report on a patient who the reporting nurse said had + pedal pulses bilat. Imagine my surprise during my assessment when I pulled back the bed covers and saw that he had bilat BKA's. The moral of the story? Do your own assessment!

We school nurses owe a huge thank you to Dr. Pollack and all his research which led the change in conventional wisdom. Here's one more interesting link -- an interview on NPR's All Things Considered. Dear Lice Guy: What's Bugging Me? : NPR

I have a few frequent fliers who come in just because they need some TLC/psychosocial support. That's okay with me. It's 'The Boy Who Cried Wolf' stuff that drives me up the wall -- of course I assess each time, talk to the teacher, and call mom & dad. I wish more parents were like you, lovinlife11, and want to solve the issue.

post-concussion nursing care/protocol

That line works for me too! :)

I have found that the acceptance of change in 'the way WE do things' to be slow in education. However, change is possible. It just takes patience and time. Additionally, I think the September is probably the worst month to be a school nurse. We are overwhelmed with paperwork (or lack there of in some instances), and very few in the building understand what we do. As Rodney Dangerfield used to say, "I get no respect". Or at least that's the way it feels some days. Take heart, you are not alone. Every September I wonder what the heck I've gotten myself into, but by mid-October it has all fallen into place. Hang in there!

Yes, it's begun again this year. I've already had the teacher of the Pre-K age 3 classroom pull me out of a meeting for a 'crisis'. That crisis was that she had three kids who had messed their pants, and she couldn't find the janitor. Of course, thinking that maybe we might have a GI bug circulating, I asked if the kids seemed ill. Were the BM's loose, watery or foul-smelling. "No, they are normal", she answered, "I just need someone to clean up the bathroom and the school secretary can't find the janitor, so I got you"! No... I did NOT stay and clean her bathroom.

Yup. Listen, fully assess, monitor, and document like heck!

That question always comes at the end of an interview. Earlier in the interview you should have asked them what are the challenges particular to their school and what specific needs are they looking for the school nurse to address. Then your answer to the 'why should we hire you' question is easy to answer. You simply highlight your skills and demonstrate how you have the acumen to address their challenges. Good luck. The day I left hospital nursing was the happiest day in my career. ~Minnie

I can't argue with you. I felt the same way when I worked in the hospital. I now work 2 jobs -- one at a Pedi's office, and the other as a school nurse. I love BOTH jobs, and I no longer dread going to work.

The MD does not think the child is self-directed, and cannot self-administer. That's the part I'd cling to. You need to know the medication delegation law for your state, and that will determine how you can handle the situation. Mom/Dad can want what they want, but in the end it's what your state medication delegation law allows. Under IDEA (federal law), no child can be excluded and accommodations must be made at the school's expense. If the MD says the child cannot self-administer, and if your state does not allow delegation of an inhaler to non-licensed personnel, it's cut and dry. In my experience, whenever I've had to make a call that others didn't like, I've printed put the law and given it as a backup to whomever is asking me for something inappropriate. As always in nursing, CYA...

Here in MA we've had a few patients + flu in the Pedi's office where I work, but I've not seen it in the school. *Fingers Crossed*