Sudsy

We have no guidance dept.....I'm pretty much it.....The parent died last night. The family is out of state for a week for the funeral, etc, so we have some time to figure out our school's response. Thank you for the help and advice.

Any ideas for good resources, both for the family and the class as a whole? Child is only 3 1/2.....I contacted the school the older sibs attend to see if their social worker would work with me to make a plan for all the kids (we have no mental health support at my school, so I'm it). In the past, I have used the books "Everett Anderson's Good-Bye" (which might work for this age) as well as "The Fall of Freddie the Leaf". Would love any other thoughts/ideas. Thanks for the help.

Thank you both for responding! I asked the arts and crafts director to switch my red sharpie for a black one, as that seems like the easiest way to go this. Really appreciate the help!

I've been a camp nurse for 4 years but this is the first time I've had a camper whose meds are individually packaged (https://www.campmeds.com/). I know some camps require such a thing, but mine doesn't. I have privacy concerns when throwing this kid's med packet in the trash since she takes some psych meds.....How do others deal with this? Thanks and wishing everyone a good, healthy summer!

Wow, Spidey's Mom: big pat on the back!

In my state (MA) I just call the doctor's office and ask them to fax an Asthma Action Plan over. Then again, I am pretty sure it's a law here, and if it's not a law where you are..... Good luck.

EpiPen® (epinephrine) and EpiPen Jr® (epinephrine) Auto-Injectors Free epipens for schools

What a great opportunity to speak with parents! I would talk about --when to keep a child home --handwashing (after my yearly handwashing talk with the kids, I always have teachers tell me they wish their spouse could hear me). If you have/can get Glo Germ (Glo Germ: Handwashing, aseptic & isolation techniques, infection control, Contagion, Meryl Streep) that would be great! --concussions/sports injuries (depends on your school and how often you encounter these) --basic first aid? Good luck and have fun!

I give notes for students to return to class. Says the time they left my office (b/c some of them can walk mighty S...L...O....W) and any f/u the teacher should do/watch out for. I have worked hard to get the kids to know that, aside from emergencies, they should come to my office on "Their Time" (i.e. recess or lunch) and the pass allows them to get back to my office if the teacher says, "you already went to the nurse an hour ago" Otherwise, the main things I use are :1) ice packs for any bump/bruise 2) hot tea and saline gargle (sore throat, cold symptoms) and 3) lots of TLC Good luck!

I don't have a second job yet, but am looking. I have an interview scheduled for February re being an adjunct professor of pediatric nursing at a small local college for Fall 2014 We'll see .

YES! Any parent who doesn't have a 504 for their child with diabetes should get one!!!!

I wish I had input, but this is more of a "me too" post. My school is age 2 through grade 8, and the practice that was in place before I got here was that the preschool has a list up in all classrooms of every preschooler with allergies or asthma. We have never had a parents complain about confidentiality issues (and we have a TON of parents who are doctors and advanced-practice RN's). I think it makes sense for this age b/c they are too young to know about/tell about their allergies. Whether it's legal, though, well that's a different story. For the older grades, eek, it's so difficult. I ask parents for permission to tell their child's teachers about the issue and our practice is that every class that has a severely allergic child in it has the child's epipen in the middle drawer of the teacher's desk. I always worry, though....

Preschool student with mild asthma, usually triggered by uri. Mom says she "always knows" when he will need and will send inhaler to school if necessary but she doesn't want to spend $ on getting another one just for school "which he will probably never use". Parents live about 30 mins from school. What do you think? If I insist, they will probably get. While I'm sure they're not millionaires, this is not the difference between them having food and not having. Thanks for the input.

I borrowed this from my library my first year: School Nursing: A Comprehensive Text: Dr Janice Selekman: 9780803614031: Amazon.com: Books It was very helpful! Also, the major children's hospital in my state has a conference called "Summer School for School Nurses" that I attended. Very helpful! Here is the link so you can see if there is anything like it near you: http://childrenshospital.org/clinicalservices/Site3102/Documents/HABROCHURE2011.pdf Welcome aboard!

Very good point, Esme!!!!!