What brought you to where you are now?

[MHDNURSE]

Just curious how we all ended up here. I am sure we all have some interesting stories :)

I always knew I wanted to be a nurse, for as long as I can remember. I applied to nursing school right out of high school and got my BSN at Boston College. I really wanted to work in Mother/Baby, but that was impossible as a new grad. I ended up working at an inner-city pediatric and maternal health clinic and was hired as the Pediatric Program Manager. LOVED my four years there, but got the itch to do more, so I left to attend NYU for a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner program. Graduated from there and worked as a PNP and Nurse Manager in an outpatient pediatric unit at a major city hospital. LOVED that as well, but my husband had to do a fellowship for his medical specialty, so we moved and I had my two kids. I ended up staying home until my younger one was 5. I was asked to work at a Summer day camp in our town for three Summers in a row and I really enjoyed that. I looked into school nursing in the district where I live and was told that basically one of the current nurses has to die or retire for a job to open, LOL. I ended up finding out about my current job (in year four now) from a parent who was in their HR office and was recruiting for the school nurse. So here I am. I love my kids, the teachers, etc. The regional admin politics and red tape are starting to get old, so I am considering subbing next year. I guess we will see what happens.

Thank you OD. I still remember you commenting (either here or on FB) to my announcement about accepting the camp job that they would build memories that would last a lifetime. I didn't realize then how right you were!

Both of my kids have been going to overnight camp for the past 5 Summers. They LOVE those three weeks away from us and with an entirely different "family". My son is 13 and has been travelling around to attend the Bar and Bat Mitzvahs of all of his bunkmates and friends this year. They truly have priceless relationships.

[Amethya]

My story isn't special in a way. I was in college, no idea what I wanted to do but I was trying to do my associates of science (Never completed and never will). My ADD and Dyscalculia didn't help either. So I trudged around life until I turned 21, when my sister-in-law died, left my family and I had to care for two children. Money became tight and I wanted to get a good job but quick. I did the exam to get into medical programs because I had a lot of the credits done for them and I liked the medical field. So I studied and got into the MA program. I thought it was going to be easy, nope. Teacher was difficult and had to get my priorities straight to even pass. I got good grades and graduated with top scores so it worked out in the end.

Got a job, but was desperate because I wanted money and didn't care about my well-being. Ended up being one of my worst jobs I ever had, being mistreated and not respected at work, even thought I tried my best to get along with everyone.

I left/got fired from my job, but was mentally unable to keep another one because I was depressed from that job. I took a break and then tried again. Took some interviews but none seemed like a good fit for me. My mom told me to try schools, but I thought only RNs could work as a School Nurse. But boy was I wrong.

I got into a job interview for one public charter school but didn't get hired because I didn't know what kind of questions they would ask. So I made a script to remember what to say and why, and nailed the interview for my current job. 5 mins after I left the interview I got called to get hired and I took the job.

Been here for 3 years and I love every second.

My story isn't special in a way. I was in college, no idea what I wanted to do but I was trying to do my associates of science (Never completed and never will). My ADD and Dyscalculia didn't help either. So I trudged around life until I turned 21, when my sister-in-law died, left my family and I had to care for two children. Money became tight and I wanted to get a good job but quick. I did the exam to get into medical programs because I had a lot of the credits done for them and I liked the medical field. So I studied and got into the MA program. I thought it was going to be easy, nope. Teacher was difficult and had to get my priorities straight to even pass. I got good grades and graduated with top scores so it worked out in the end.

Got a job, but was desperate because I wanted money and didn't care about my well-being. Ended up being one of my worst jobs I ever had, being mistreated and not respected at work, even thought I tried my best to get along with everyone.

I left/got fired from my job, but was mentally unable to keep another one because I was depressed from that job. I took a break and then tried again. Took some interviews but none seemed like a good fit for me. My mom told me to try schools, but I thought only RNs could work as a School Nurse. But boy was I wrong.

I got into a job interview for one public charter school but didn't get hired because I didn't know what kind of questions they would ask. So I made a script to remember what to say and why, and nailed the interview for my current job. 5 mins after I left the interview I got called to get hired and I took the job.

Been here for 3 years and I love every second.

I have so much respect for you, taking on so much at such a young age. Your niece/nephew are lucky to have you!

[NutmeggeRN, BSN]

I did med surg for 2.5 years in a big teaching hospital, LTC as a DNS in a very small nursing home for 1.5 years, 2-years in a multi-specialty clinic in IM and Ob-GYN, 5 years with homecare and I'm in my 25th year here! In order of importance I think my med surg experience, home care then ob-gyn set me up perfectly for this job. Interestingly enough, a parent approached me about the job to let me know the current nurse was retiring and that I should apply. School nursing was never on my radar, but it is the hardest job I have ever loved!

[Amethya]

I have so much respect for you, taking on so much at such a young age. Your niece/nephew are lucky to have you!

It's nothing really. You know what they say, "it takes a village to care for a child." In this scenario, it takes 3 adults with good income to care for 2 children. :3

I'm not alone and we all work together but if anything is to happen to my parents, I'm ready to take the responsibility to fully care for them.

Both actually, niece (10 years old) and nephew (8 years old). Mom died 6 years ago, he was 2 and she was 4.

[Farawyn]

After 20 years all over a teaching hospital, found myself in a position of acting NM for a busy OBGYN office. The NM left abruptly and they figured they can just keep me in my current position and tack on NM. It was horrible. I was afraid of failing my patients and losing my licence.

I left abruptly when this job came through. HUGE pay cut.

I'm now divorced, and quite frankly, struggling, but I need the hours for Far's Mom.

No regrets.

[JenTheSchoolRN, BSN, RN]

Nursing is a second career for me. My first bachelors degree is in television, but I didn't want to move to LA, so I worked in theater admin for bit. Pay there is even worse than school nursing, however. I ended up working in higher ed administration for a few years. Healthcare was always an interest for me, so I decided to start taking pre-reqs for a accelerated nursing program and see what happened (perk of working higher ed was free classes!) - I ended up really liking it.

I left my job in higher ed after getting into an accelerated Direct Entry program. After I finished the BSN portion and passed my NCLEX, I decided to go part time for the NP portion and looked for a job. I am the rare person who went into school nursing as a new grad. I got a long-term subbing gig through a school contact my husband had - a piano student of his of all things! I worked in a very large elementary/middle school that had two full time nurses. I was subbing for one and the other one was AMAZING and took me under her wing. I was in love - in nursing school I HATED hospital rotations and had a passion for primary and preventive care. I thought I wanted to work with elders, but loved the MS kids. I was very used to independent work situations in my previous career so I thought this might be great fit if I could find my confidence with assessments (again, can't thank that co-worker enough!).

So I started applying for school nursing jobs. I landed my current gig (i'm 6 years in) about a month or so later, started working mid year when the nurse had to suddenly leave. I also found out I love health teaching - I do come from a line of teachers and did enjoy my time in higher ed, though I wanted more student interaction. This job combines those things for me. I can't imagine being anywhere else.

[KeeperOfTheIceRN, ADN]

I had HUGE dreams of being a doctor when I was way younger. That eventually changed to CRNA, then that boiled down to nursing. I tried college right out of high school but had culture shock, I suppose, and it was an awful first go at college! I just wasn't ready! Had some personal relationships fall apart (and boy did they need to fall apart!) and eventually married my jr high sweetheart! Still one of the best decisions I've ever made was marrying him. He encouraged me to finish school and supported me while I was completing all of my pre-reqs. Our son came along about 18 months after being married and then deployment was revealed while we were still in the hospital after having our son. Finished my pre-reqs while hubby was deployed. Took some time off to be a SAHM (best. job. EVER!) but when my son was getting bigger and closer to starting kinder, hubs and I started planning for after that which led to me applying for our local ADN program. Got accepted, busted my butt, and graduated in December 2015. LOVED my school nursing rotations in school. All of my classmates thought I was nuts! But it seemed like a very appealing environment to work in, to me! While in nursing school, I kept a friend of mine's little girls for her to help bring in a little extra cash (hubs is a police officer). Got a job on an IMC floor at one of the hospitals in town. I liked what I did and who I worked for, but the hours were AWFUL. I lucked out and got days, 7a-7p, but our staffing was so bad that I was rarely ever out of there by 8 pm. Plus, my admin. didn't reveal that the 4th day I was working was completely optional. So I was exhausted by the time spring rolled around because I was working 4 12's (which were really 13+) a week. My son wasn't adjusting to all of my time away. He was at the sitter's house until almost 9 pm or later every day I worked and then it was home for dinner and homework. My poor baby was in kindergarten and wasn't getting to bed until after 10 pm 3-4 nights a week! It just wasn't a good fit for us but I was sticking it out for that experience when my friend (the one who's little girls I watched) told me about the school nurse job at the charter school she worked at and suggested I apply. So I did! It was only 19.5 hrs/week but I didn't care! My sanity and time home with my kiddo was worth it! So hubby and I talked and decided I'd take the SN job and stay on PRN at the hospital until they bumped my position to full time. I didn't stay on at the hospital for long after I got the SN job, though. We found out we were expecting our daughter in October of 2016 so I put my 2 weeks in after a doc visit found a very large cyst on one of my ovaries and he suggested I avoid lifting heavy objects until it shrank. That meant no Q2 turns on patients weighing 450+lbs!! I literally got a doc excuse to quit my floor job ok, not really, but that's what it ultimately boiled down to. I honestly love my job at my school! My son is now 9 and my daughter just turned 18 months. My son always asks what my "dream job" is and I always tell him "being a SAHM, but since I can't do that right now, being a school nurse is my second dream job and that's what I do!". If I have to be away from my kids for a job, at least it's one that I genuinely love!

[UrbanHealthRN, BSN, RN]

I went into a BSN program straight from high school. At that point, working with kids wasn't even on my radar- I was actually thinking about military adult med/surg nursing instead! But, as I moved through the program, two things happened: I realized I LOVED my OB, Peds, and Community Health classes, and the kids I was meeting from clinicals and Sunday School classes seemed to really like me. So I figured, ok kids, I'll take care of you when I become a nurse.

I started at the local pedi hospital but really wanted to get back out into the community, so I switched to health center work after about 2 years. I worked for two different inner city health centers over the next five years, both times in the pedi departments. I have to say, those jobs have probably shaped me the most into who I am as a nurse today. All the vaccines I gave also encouraged me to take up playing darts as a hobby, but I digress.

I went back to school for a Masters in Public Health, because that's how much I love it, and I needed a flexible job while I was in school. I wound up working for a Department of Health-funded home visiting program for at-risk new moms, their babies, and also older infants and toddlers who were involved with the CPS system. It was a lot of case management, basic needs, teaching, child abuse and neglect. Very challenging, and I did a good job managing extremely difficult family situations, but boyyy did it burn me out. When I finished my degree, I stayed on with that program, but made it my second fiddle to another DOH funded program for Hepatitis B positive women who were pregnant.

Welp. Hep B lost funding in last last years' congressional budget, so I found out that my job was being eliminated right after Thanksgiving weekend. I tried to work out the home visiting program again for myself, but the pay wasn't the same, the CPS stuff was really ramping up, and the families I was visiting seemed more and more unstable. So, I looked elsewhere, and now I'm still in the same city, but working for Head Start/Pre-K. And I like it! It's really challenging, and I'm still in my first year, and my coworkers don't seem to know what to do with me and my degrees sometimes, but I'm working it out. Even if it doesn't last at this place, I definitely have the school nursing bug and would like to continue on with it in one way or another.

[LikeTheDeadSea, MSN, RN]

My story isn't special in a way.

It's a story of perseverance. Don't discredit your path! many people would have given up.

[OhioBPH]

I like to say I am in the middle of a very scenic route.

I have been a CMA for almost 10 years, most of them in primary care pediatrics. I returned to school for a Bachelor degree in Public Health with the intention of moving on to medical school, then redirecting to PA school. I learned quickly that PA school is RIDICULOUSLY competitive, but also that to do the type of work I wanted to do I would need either a license in social work or nursing. Let's be honest, nurses earn more money! I had to look for a job that would accommodate evening nursing school and here I am.

I really love my job. However it may end up being temporary. In my organization if you get your NCLEX there is a requirement to work in the children's hospital for a year before returning to school health. It seems likely now that I may continue on to NP school, there are a couple licensure entry programs in my area. That's a long way off now, I'll graduate with my ADN May of 2020.

[Flare, ASN, BSN]

I was working at a level 1 trauma center per diem but getting antsy, as I do. I actually wanted to transfer departments to wound care, so I filed the paperwork and waited. In the meantime I noticed a small ad for a part time school nurse job not too far from me. I thought, Why not apply? The school nurse job called me back, I later found out that the open wound care job was filled. Ok. I'll try this. It was in a school specializing in the care of those with special needs. I loved it there. It was so rewarding to watch these kids learn and succeed. But Being a big picture person, I knew and I had to keep going, I finished my school nurse cert and eventially moved onto my first public school job where I worked a span of grades, mostly kinder and middle school, but a healthy amount of time in high school as well. Now I am settled in here - pk-8 and working on a masters in emergency and disaster management. Who knows what I'll do with it when I retire from here in about 15 yrs? Probably OEM somewhere or consulting.