To ALL school nurses.. Questions for you, please & thank you!!!

[radtech]

Hi everyone!!

Thank you in advance for reading my post and for all of your greatly appreciated help. I have been reading through these posts, and got a lot of useful insight, but I am still confused, so am asking more questions. When responding, I would appreciate it A LOT if you could tell me about yourself: the state you work in, how many years as a school nurse, your benefits (union? teacher contract? pension?), salary (if you feel comfortable), etc... Thoughtful, detailed answers are VERY, VERY APPRECIATED!

Let me start by telling you a little about myself. I am not a nurse, but am considering going back to school to get my accelerated BSN! Out of high school, I originally was accepted to a nursing program (which I wish had stuck with!), but ended up switching and getting my associates degree in radiography (I'm an x-ray tech). I continued onto school upon graduation to get my bachelors degree in health sciences, just to broaden my options. I have found that the need for full time x-ray techs is pretty much non existant, and even though I like the technological aspects of my job, I wish I had stuck with nursing and had a job in which I could focus more on patient care and interacting with people (as an x-ray tech, I usually have to move people through the department as quickly as possible, and never under good circumstances). With that said, I can't find a full time job (only work per diem) and am not satisfied with the career!

I have been contemplating either going back to school to get my accelerated Bachelors in Nursing, which is a 15 month program, which I already have all of the pre-reqs and GPA to do, because of my previous degrees. OR... I am toying with the idea of going back for a 9 month long masters degree teacher certification program. Either way, I want to work in a school with children.... so as either a school nurse (which would probably be my top choice, because I am very interested in public health, and teaching wellness to children) or becoming a school teacher (most likely elementary/middle school grades). I think I would rather be a school nurse, as I could combine my interests of health with teaching. I would most likely get my BSN, work for a year or two in a hospital setting to gain experience, and try to get certified as a school nurse, and look for a school nurse job, hopefully get hired, etc. I eventually want a family (don't have any kids now), and do not want to work weekends, holidays, an 12 hour shifts in a hospital forever (but respect and bow to those who do and continue to do so for a long time ). I am just too family oriented to miss family events or other activities for the next 20 years (if I had to work nights, weekends, holidays forever). I am at the point where I want to do something I LOVE. However, I am concerned about the school nurses not getting as many benefits, salary, and respect as teachers... Reading through this forum and others, it seems it depends on where you work, whether or not you get teachers pay, pension etc. or whether you are unfortunate and do not. I would very much like to be on a teacher's contract where I get pay raises every year, as well as raises based on my education/credits, and a good retirement pension. I know not all (or many) states have school nurses that are unionized into a teacher contracts, so I have questions for all of you out there. Let me first say, I would most likely want to be working in one of the New England states as a school nuse: Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Connecticut, and possibly Pennsylvannia. These are my questions:

-What do you like most and least about being a school nurse (pros and cons)?

-What state do you work in?

-How many years have you been a school nurse?

-Are you part of a teachers salary contact/union?

-What benefits do you receive (health insurance, dental, disability, retirement pension?... and how it compares to those of teachers in your district) Are you getting the same retirement pension as teachers? Do you get any sick/personal days? Can you take days off (I know, probably not likely, but that's ok!)?

-How many years have been a school nurse?

-What is your salary (if you feel comfortable) or that of your area?

-Do you feel respected in your school district and by teachers?

-What are your contracted working hours at your school? What hours do you actually end up working? (Is this more or less than teachers? Do you often end up working longer hours like teachers do?) Do you have to work on teacher in service days? How many days are in your contract?

-Do you have to take work home with you, as (most) teachers do?

-Do you know which states usually have school nurses on the same salary contract/union as teachers (particulary, like I said before I'd probably going to work in these states: Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Connecticut, Pennsylvannia... {From what I have seen on this forum, I am pretty sure Pennsylvannia and Masschusetts have a lot of schools nurses receiving same salary/benefits/unions as teachers...}. But, I am interested on hearing what states or school districts (anywhere in US) that school nurses are on the same teachers union/salary contract as teachers. Yes, (like you have told others on this forum already) I have gone to the school nurses association websites (for individual states), but not finding much luck as to seeing what specific states or schools have school nurses on teachers contracts.

-If you could choose, would you choose school nursing or teaching? Would you recommend I pursue nursing or teaching in my education (if my end goal is to work in a school with children (any grades) making a difference. I want to get teacher contract salary/benefits/pension, school schedule, etc... The teacher retirement pension is a big one for me, and would hate to not get that one!).

-Is it an unreasonable/unrealistic goal for me to pursue a nursing degree if I only want to get into school nursing? (I realize it is important for me to work a 1-3 years in a hospital setting prior to school nursing to gain confidence, better my assessment skills {however, I already do have some patient care experience, although I know it is not comparable to that of a nurse}. If I were to work in a hospital, my interests are labor & delivery, ER, and maybe OR? But I do know, I do not want to do bedside hospital nursing forever as a full time career... The 12 hour shifts, nights, weekends, etc.. are not for me forever.

-What are my chances of getting a school nursing job? Do you think I will have to wait many years to get one (is it super competitive and each opening has 100s of applicants?)

-How would you compare school nursing to a career as a school teacher (pros and cons) in regards to the job, hours, salary, benefits, etc.. and yes, I have read the teacher salary vs. nurse salary posts.. and yes, I am still confused, as they seem to be about the same!

* I think I would prefer to be a school nurse. I like the health, wellness subject area. I like the autonomy you get with the job. I like that every day is different and you stay busy and have to think on your feet. I like the fact that you get to work with children, make a difference, etc. I REALLY like the school schedule, and I'd really like to get the teacher salary/retirement pension. My biggest concern is that if I go into nursing with the goal of only becoming a school nurse (and not wanting to do bedside/hospital nursing until retirement), I won't be able to get a school nursing job. I have already done the hospital route, and all though it can be rewarding, it is tough physically, mentally, and emotionally. I don't like 12 hour shifts, nights, holidays, etc. as I said before. If I become a teacher, at least I know I will get a teaching job, with good benefits, retirement pension, etc. What I don't like about becoming a teacher is all of the extra work you have to bring home, the extra hours, etc... If I was guaranteed a school nursing job on a teachers union contract, I would not hesitate to go for nursing, as I know I would LOVE to be a school nurse! I am all around more interested in it. But if my expectations are unrealistic (about getting that kind of school nurse job), then I would proabably go for teaching (which I think I would like {not as much as school nursing, but would be satisfying nonetheless}, but I would dislike the extra hours, taking home work, meetings, administration problems, and using my own paycheck to buy class room supplies!)

I thank you all SOOOO MUCH for reading through this long post. :typing I know it was a lot, but I am trying to make a smart, thought out decision as to what to do with my future. I have been reading through both nursing and teacher forums to gain insight. Basically, I would prefer to be a school nurse, if only they were all in the teachers union/salary contract and got the same retirement pension. But I know this is (unfortunately) not true. Any insight, encouragement, etc. you could provide me would be sooo, sooo appreciated. Thank you, and I look forward to talking to you all in the future!!! :heartbeat

[bandaider]

Wow - sounds as though you have put a lot of thought into school nursing - good for you!

First, though, just remember that there are no guarantees.....I pretty much stumbled into school nursing when my health no longer allowed me to keep up the exhausting work load of long term care (my first love!) however, I have grown to LOVE school nursing! We set goals for ourselves, but life often gets in the way!

In my school district, the nurses are considered support staff, so do not receive the same pay scale & benefits as the teachers. That varies district to district....so you could shop around & see what opportunities are in your area.

Some of the teachers value my input & position...others seem to think I need their directions as in "Teacher said I should get an aspirin & come right back to class"....(oh, really??) Human nature, personalities that clash - all of which might happen in any work place, not only schools.

We are allowed a certain number of "sick" and "personal" days - and can arrange for a sub as needed. MY workday is 7 hours - which is great! Occas I might stay later, waiting for a parent to pick up a "sickling" (my term for sick students, sort of a cross between sicko & darling) or for a meeting, but most days I can leave pretty much on time.

I do not get as many chances to present lessons in the classroom as I would like...but I do a lot of one-on-one instruction as the need arises. I write frequent info-articles to email the staff, to keep them updated on all sorts of health concerns - from head lice, to chicken pox, swine flu, etc, etc, etc.

I hope that this helps answer some of your questions - and I hope that you can make your passion become a reality! Wishing you the best!

"Bandaider"