ana010

I have learned this week several of our admin do not know what a school nurse does and believe the ones on our district do not do enough, so they are assigning one of our new nurses a class! I am appalled and floored!!!

When I changed campuses several years ago, I refused to deal with clothing as a nursing issue. Or shoes or glasses. I will help anyone, but this is not a nursing issue. Any staff member may help with these issues. It made me unpopular with a few people, but I was still able to sleep at night.

Two thoughts after reading this thread. 1) I am thankful for my coworkers. I have gotten a tweet from my school and 2 sweet gifts from co workers. 2) What you allow is what will continue. Sign out and leave campus for 30 minutes.

Do you all have staff members who require as much or more time and attention as your students? I just had a staff member in crying to me because she felt targeted. What?!? See your therapist! I will take your bp, etc, but I don't get paid enough for this. Thankfully a student (with a known arrhythmia) busted in needing to call dad. This happens weekly with a handful of staff members. All have known health concerns and I am required to see staff too. I have told several they need to see a therapist, no that they have listened. Anyhoo! I feel slightly better having vented.

I usually buy aloe at the end of summer and give for any burn. Have found sometimes people just want something on it.

I get that. Admin wanting parents happy all the time makes it difficult to do what is best for the child and to do your job to the best of your ability.

The 7 year old kindergartner's parents would be in truancy court here. I allow children to call parents all they want, but I quickly explain I will not excuse the absence unless it meets criteria. Like so many aspects in education, the fact that we are more concerned with the welfare of these children is heart breaking, infuriating and plain exhausting.

I live in a state that has a law to prevent excessive absences. Students may miss 8 days per semester, unexcused. I am in a high school. I am completely out of patience and sympathy for these children with allergy or cold symptoms who have no fever and want me to send them home. I have asked student if he/she thought in January (when student missed 6 days) that he/she might be ill in April. Of course student does not care, but I will continue to pose these questions and maybe one kid will realize he/she needs to plan ahead! Ok, rant over. Carry on with your day.

Or even just the child's name. If you have 40+ inhalers and several epi pens in your office, not to mention diastat for certain individuals, a name can be a great clue. But yes, a little info goes a long way.

In middle school, I gave out frozen paper towels for any "injury" that was not recent, swollen, etc.

My admin understands I can report objective findings. In my experience, VS out of normal range and enlarged or pinpoint pupils, plus odors present lead the admin to question more pointedly. There is no "proving it" by a nurse in a school setting. And I haven't decided if kids think I'm safe or just want it off their chests, but they often tell me and I let them know I am bound by my ethics to report to admin.

Your desire to learn and evolve into an experienced nurse will drive you to seek out opportunities and develop the communication skills you envy in those colleagues you admire. The advice already given is great. Emulate a colleague or 2 you admire, ask questions and NEVER be afraid to say you don't know. I don't know, but I will find out, ask, etc. is the best thing you can say. You can fake it til you make it with your confidence level, but do not feign knowledge. I am in my 19th year of nursing and I still learn something new everyday. I love medscape!

Call parents of kids waiting outside your office and have them complain their child is missing instruction time waiting for meds and treatments. In my experience this is only recourse to get action.

At the high school level kids can (and do in my office) perform a lot of self care. Encouraging and instructing them on how to care for themselves sets them up to be independent adults, which is right around the corner.

This post has seriously made me thankful for my coworkers. There are a few (aren't there always), but most of my coworkers "get it". Even have one teacher friends who regularly tell her students she is not Wal-Mart or the bank. They ask for her stock of water and food and ask her to change their larger bills.