Soup kitchen

[NurseEric81]

I was wondering if anyone has volunteered at as a soup kitchen as a nurse doing blood pressure screenings. I am thinking of volunteering as a server at a local "soup kitchen" but maybe I could do more...just a thought. Any advice?

[JustBeachyNurse, LPN]

And what will you do with patients having BP outside normal limits?

[taggart84]

My fear would be the legalities of providing clients with education in that setting without having had access to an accurate medical record. Check with your BON to see in what capacities you can use your title as a means to provide a service. Love your passion to help! Keep that up!

[VivaLasViejas, ASN, RN]

You may want to check to see who sponsors the soup kitchen. A lot of times it's a church, which may even have an active parish nurse program. The advantage here is that such programs generally have policies and guidelines in place for the nurses, and as long as you stay within those parameters you're generally safe.

When I was involved in my church's PN program, we held blood-pressure and blood-sugar screenings every month and ALWAYS advised people to check with their physicians ASAP if anything was out of range. We also kept records on index cards (this was way back in the day) and wrote down the parishioner's numbers down for them to give their doctors. We did not give medical advice, ever.

Just a few things to think about.....otherwise, being a server at the soup kitchen is a noble endeavor as well.