Transition to School Nurse

Editorial Team / Admin · Jul 10, 2019

Welcome to allnurses.com K_HinkleyRN,

We moved your topic to the School Nursing forum for the best response.

NutmeggeRN, BSN · Jul 11, 2019

4 hours ago, K_HinckleyRN said:
Hi all!!
I have had my RN, BSN for 6 years now, working in pediatrics (acute and rehab) for the entirety of my nursing career. I love working with children.
I have accepted a position with our school district as the school nurse for the early childhood center (ages 3-5). The medical aspect of the job (some kiddos have Trachs, & G-Buttons) I’m totally 100% comfortable with! But the job as a school nurse is still something I’m trying to grasp!
I’m hoping I get some formal training but some people are saying I may just get thrown in,! I’m sure I can figure it out and I am not expecting the transition to not be difficult but is there anyone here that can give me some insight in the day in the life of a school nurse!
I’m also aware policies and such differ district to district but I’m just wanting a general understanding!! Thank you!!

Welcome! I advise to connect with other nurses in your district or surrounding towns. Also join both your local and state school nurse associations. And please hang out here, we are the nicest board on AN!

scuba nurse, BSN, MSN, RN · Jul 11, 2019

So, day to day varies in the type of school you are, the district you work for, and the students/medical needs at your school. No two days are the same! Some mornings can be crazy esp. at parent drop off, you will have kids or parents in your office checking to see if they are sick, dropping off meds, paperwork, etc...then you have morning meds to do right around breakfast time. Lunch time is the same: meds...treatments, etc. Throw in all the kids who threw up, hurt themselves at recess, and kids needing PRN inhalers...plus getting your immunization data up to date, your mandatory screenings done, and chasing parents and doctors for orders and paperwork, then anything else that comes up in the day, you will be pretty busy! Good luck! It is so worth it!

Flare, ASN, BSN · Jul 12, 2019

Welcome - this board is pretty inactive over the summer. Some of us check in from time to time. Im in summer jail... er school duty so i peek a bit more until i'm free next week. You'll find that your days may get some structure to them depending on the way the school is run. Some schools require the nurse to perform some sort of task such as attendance or front door duty. If you can negotiate keeping yourself free "for the children" try to do so. I know that my day usually ends up getting structured mostly by when my medications and medical needs duties. Student visits fill in the gaps and my day wouldn't be complete without a few curveballs thrown in. You will likely have screenings as mandated by the state. Those can either be an ongoing scheduled task (schedule the students little by little to get them done) or if you are lucky and you are able to get help you can do them all in one shot.

Don't hesitate to call on us for any questions. We're a very active forum once the regular school year gets rolling and use the search tool to see if we already covered something. Don't be afraid of raising a zombie topic either. Sometimes policy has changed or we have done something different in so many years.

Oh and one more thing - You're a school nurse now - on Wednesdays you better wear pink!!

tamaraaustin197 · Jul 13, 2019

Can you tell me if you get paid for the days off that kids are not in school, that are not holidays? And how is the pay calculated during the summer time months

KH_RN6, BSN · Jul 13, 2019

12 hours ago, tamaraaustin197 said:
Can you tell me if you get paid for the days off that kids are not in school, that are not holidays? And how is the pay calculated during the summer time months

So with my district it’s salary, so I get paid for 196 days (the school year) ... I’m pretty sure holidays are paid but not entirely sure. I know in my district the nurses are treated same as teacher so we get a check in May for summer, Atleast that’s what I’m understanding but haven’t fully figured it out!

But I will get an extra 80 hours of pay for June as I’ll do some summer school time.

Im taking a $2000/year paycut leaving my hospital but will be working shorter days and less months so yay!

Fabnurseat40 · Jul 31, 2019

Hello and Welcome to School Nursing!

Your state should have mandated trainings to complete in order to work as a school nurse. I am in Massachusetts, and the following are a list of what we must complete: Foundations in Nursing, Medication administration and delegation, SBIRT (Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment for alcohol and drug use), and School Health Screening (vision, hearing, BMI). I've been able to connect with a wonderful group of nurses in my region, (along with other more local school nurses), by attending these and other training sessions. Because school nursing is autonomous, and you are likely the only RN in your school, connecting with these people can be life-changing. The support and camaraderie you (hopefully!) experience will be beneficial.

In terms of the Day-to-Day aspect, there is always a peak of activity in the morning, at lunch, and also at recess. I work is a school that has children from Pre-K (age 3), to 8th grade, so it is very busy. One minute there is a teary and scared preschooler with a bleeding cut, the next there's a 10 year old feeling anxious about a test, then a 12 year old needing medication for ADHD and the next is a pre teen looking for a tampon who is utterly embarrassed.

My favorite part of my job is knowing I've helped several children throughout the course of the day. I have always loved helping children learn and grow, and of course keep them healthy! I have puppets in my office with Bandaids and wraps, which provide for easy conversation starters when aforementioned preschooler arrives in my office. I allow the child to choose a puppet and we first talk about what they think happened to the puppet. It creates a non-threatening avenue for engaging before I need to look at a wound or injury. For older kiddos I have books about the body and info. on the many chronic conditions we are dealing with in our particular school (Asthma, Anxiety, Diabetes, ADHD, etc. ) I hang pages from Highlights Magazine on the wall near the bed so when children are waiting, it gives them something to look at without having to hold it in their hands when they are not well feeling. I have fun facts about the body that seems to be a favorite....a list of what happens in each system with pictures and activities after each. I created a "Coping Bag" for children who are feeling anxious, and educate them on ways they can help themselves while they are in school. I keep a mini kaleidoscope, small can of PlayDough, (I give each child a small portion and they keep it), mini bubbles, stress ball,little multi- colored stars, a book about feeling worried, etc. The kids love it!

My least favorite part of my job is the amount of paperwork, considering I am only part time. I just don't have enough time! I'm sure I'm not alone ?

Again, welcome to school nursing and GOOD LUCK!

Karen

LPNinGH · Aug 21, 2019

In my area, district employees working only the school year get paid year-round, but it's calculated on 180-186 days of work per year divided by 12. All national holidays are paid, as well as Christmas and Spring vacations. We receive our "vacation" pay in 12 increments, included in our monthly paycheck. It's nice that we still earn vacation time and are paid for them even though we have a lot of time off. If you're an agency nurse working in a school district, you get paid September through June, but usually at a higher hourly rate.

NutmeggeRN, BSN · Sep 11, 2019

On 7/12/2019 at 10:43 AM, Flare said:
Oh and one more thing - You're a school nurse now - on Wednesdays you better wear pink!!

Heyyyyy!!!! I remembered!!!! Happy Wednesday!!!

Guests · Sep 11, 2019

On 7/12/2019 at 11:54 PM, tamaraaustin197 said:
Can you tell me if you get paid for the days off that kids are not in school, that are not holidays? And how is the pay calculated during the summer time months

This varies by school district. In my district ( I am new to this district this year) we are paid on the teacher's pay scale and can chose either 21 or 26 pay checks (so either larger checks from September-June, or smaller checks year round.

In my former district, I was salaried and paid year-round.

In both cases all school holidays when kids are not in school was regular pay

newschoolnurse2019 · Sep 15, 2019

I am brand new to school nursing this year also. I have a district of 1200 students with quite a few health issues. my day is consumed with the 5 students that are diabetic that need to be in touch with me 3-4 times a day. 3 of them have pumps and CGM's that I can watch all day, which is so nice. the other 2 do not qualify for a pump because their hgba1c are too high, which I do not understand, wouldn't a pump regulate them more and help become more controlled? My day is so busy and flies by.

The overwhelming feeling is unreal! I feel so alone.

I am glad I found this forum to see soooo many going through the same feelings I am.

thanks for all the great input!