Can a school nurse leave the school clinic?

[mommynurse890]

Hello nurses! I have one important query about school nursing. I am working as a school nurse in a nursery in the UAE. If i am not mistaken, I am the 3rd nurse who worked here. it was a long time practice here that the school nurse will go for rounds twice a day (nursery is working only for 6hrs) to go for rounds to each and every classes. there are 3 villas in this nursery and sections are from A to R plus Playgroup. one round will take me 1 1/2 hour to finish. many times it happened that I was in my rounds in one of the villas when an emergency happened in another villa and they sent the child to the clinic assuming that I am there. I came from the farthest villa and it took me time to reach the clinic. Still, the principal has not noticed that it is really not good to leave the clinic and go for rounds. in this case also, the teachers are mind set to think that I will be the one to go to their classes to check the children. So if complaint is there in the 1st villa, and i am on my rounds in the 3rd villa, the helpers will look for me and tell me to go to that class, which is very difficult. for long time, i was trying to find a written literature that says that the nurse is never allowed to leave the clinic (unless deemed necessary) but i cannot find one. Can you help me with this?

[mommynurse890]

The children are 3-4 years of age. In some other schools, there will be attenders that will send the children to the clinic for they are nurseries and cant go by themselves only. I think that the thing that should be done.

[Queen of Icepacks, RN]

I only leave the office during school hours if there is an emergency that can not come to me. We have a very large campus with many buildings, we often need to use the PE golf carts if students are injured on the sport fields or in a remote building. I have a bathroom and kitchen area. I bring my lunch and eat in the office. If I leave for an emergency I take a walkie talkie and my cell phone.

[SaltineQueen]

When you say nursery, are you talking about infants? What ages are there?

This is what I was wondering. Is there not someone who can walk with them to you at the clinic.

Just for my own understanding of these "rounds" you do... Are children allowed to come to school ill and you're just checking on them? Do you check everyone's temperature every day? Or are you just going into rooms and asking the teacher if anyone seems ill, then checking on them?

[OldDude]

It's unlikely you'll find documentation to support your position but you could bring up that in the US, the kids either come to the clinic by themselves, with a "buddy" from the class, or are brought by an aide (caregiver in your case). There are more of them than you and student health and safety is top priority so the staff should be utilized in that order. Good luck, let us know how it goes.

[tining, BSN, RN]

Going on rounds to temp check everyone "just in case" seems fruitless to me. I tell my teachers if anyone is not looking or acting like themselves to send to me. The teacher should know their student's highs and lows. I will do a house call if necessary, but that is rare..

[mommynurse890]

Not everyone i need to check with the thermometer. But still, i have to go to every classes to check the children. Even the smallest marks/wounds i have to check if they have. Because if i dont, the principal will attack me. Everyday i feel sad for that kind of policy, it is actually "nonsense" that's why I need to stop it.

[OyWithThePoodles, RN]

Maybe this is why they can't keep a nurse.

I think waiting for the nurse to make rounds to check a temp is ridiculous. If you think the kid has a fever they should come to the clinic then, not 2 hours later when the nurse comes around, think of all the kids they've spread their illness to. I would bring it up and use the word "liability" admins are scared of that word. I would let them know that should a true emergency come up and you are doing rounds and not in the clinic, and it takes too long to get back (kids decompensate fast) then the school will likely be held liable.

That said, I'm in and out of my office. I will go to my T1D rooms at times if they are doing something fun and don't want to miss, I'll go to them. Sometimes I just go for a little walk to stretch my legs, but it never fails that I see a kid in the hall and they remember there is a school nurse and follow me back to the clinic.

[scuba nurse, BSN, MSN, RN]

I have 2 buildings that I go between, my main office is in the larger building, but I go over to the other building for a T1D 3x a day, and while I am there, I do check in on all the classrooms, so I guess I do "rounds" (there are only 8 classrooms), but that is so when I leave that building, I am not called back 2 minutes later (I am lazy! LOL). IN the building my office is in, the kids come to me. I never leave to eat lunch or take a break. But I do take my time walking back and forth between the 2 buildings...I always have my walkie with me.

[lifelearningrn, BSN, RN]

Not everyone i need to check with the thermometer. But still, i have to go to every classes to check the children. Even the smallest marks/wounds i have to check if they have. Because if i dont, the principal will attack me. Everyday i feel sad for that kind of policy, it is actually "nonsense" that's why I need to stop it.

Your principal sounds neurotic! Going class by class and assessing every little complaint?? Wow!!! My prekinders love to show me every bump, scab, tooth and invisible ailment on their little selves. No wonder it takes you three hours.

[OyWithThePoodles, RN]

I will add that we have two 3 and 4 year old pre-k classes in our building and they still come to me, with an assistant. The only time I've gone there is for a mouth injury with lots of blood.

[KeeperOfTheIceRN, ADN]

Is your facility a childcare facility where the kids are brought in every morning and go home every evening or is it more of a hospital setting where they are sleeping there? It sounds like you're required to treat the kids like they're patients rather than students. All of my students on my campus are just that...students. Until they become ill or hurt. Then they cross that boundary of becoming a "patient". But even then, most of the time they come to me unless its a true emergency, then I go to them. But that doesn't mean I just stay in my office all day either. I get up and out for the same reasons that others have mentioned above. Has something happened in the past for your principal to feel so deeply about having every class checked? I would never be able to complete all of my other duties (maintaining immunization records, for example) if I was out of the clinic for that long everyday. I would try to find out WHY he requires this and then maybe suggest hiring an aid to perform the rounds or to man the clinic while you do it. I hope you can find some common ground!! Good luck!!

[Farawyn]

Not everyone i need to check with the thermometer. But still, i have to go to every classes to check the children. Even the smallest marks/wounds i have to check if they have. Because if i dont, the principal will attack me. Everyday i feel sad for that kind of policy, it is actually "nonsense" that's why I need to stop it.

Completely inappropriate.