First, let me say that I devote time and effort to each child that comes in my office. BUT, I will flat out tell the students, whom I see daily for random reasons, that they are coming to the clinic too often.
I see numerous 4th and 5th graders for the most random stuff.
"My arm hurts" (no known injury, no visible swelling, moves extremity well)
"I bumped into the door and my shoulder hurts now" (no visible injury, moves extremity well)
"I have a scab on my ear"
"Can I have water?" (um, you passed two water fountains on the way to my office)
"My ear feels cold"
I just feel like children don't know the difference in "discomfort" and "pain". I often ask what would their mom do if they were at home and they look at me like I have two heads. I will continue to document every office visit, but I would love to know what to say to these 9-10 year old children who act like the world is ending 24/7.
Specializes in ICU/community health/school nursing.
6000 VISITS. Dang. Stay strong.
On 4/22/2019 at 9:57 AM, Cas1in72 said:
100% The battle is real. At this point in the year, I feel like I am throwing up the white flag of surrender. Amazing how we can recharge and come back loving it all again after summer break! I crossed the 6,000 nurse clinic visit on Thursday. Still have 28 school days to go. This is a school of 470. I have sent 3% of those visits home, if that tells you anything. No diabetics this year, No seizure kids. UGHGHGHGGHH is all I can say!!!!!
Fortunately for all of us "Ice pack resistance" will never be a thing.
At a "No throat drop" school I had a kid with a sore throat refuse a salt water rinse. Tonsils somewhat swollen, no temp. I said "If you won't do a salt water gargle I have nothing for you, go back to class." I was later thanked by the teacher, "He was avoiding a math worksheet."
Yep. On Monday, I had a kiddo that said his eyes were "burning" (and this was his second visit for the day, unrelated to the first). No drainage, no redness, no visual disturbance, able to move eyes around in all directions... My only offer for this type of thing is a saline rinse, which I got all set up for, before he saw the eye dropper and exclamed that he couldn't and wouldn't do it but then wouldn't take "I have nothing else to offer you" as an answer. And of course this was all less than an hour before the end of the day. I told him to keep his fingers out of his eyes and deal, or try the eye drops, his choice. He left, dry eyed.
It’s frustrating! There was a mom in a local school who tried to get a sub teacher fired. Why? He was the 5th kid in a hour to ask to see the nurse (and the kid, of course, never asked to see the nurse). The sub said, “no.” He threw up an hour after arriving home. Mom was livid he was denied the school nurse. I can’t imagie what the nurse would have done (other than temp and a few minutes of rest). But maybe I missed the day in nursing school where we learned how to predict vomit 60 minute prior....
ruby_jane, BSN, RN
3,142 Posts
6000 VISITS. Dang. Stay strong.