What do school nurses do?

[RunnerRN, BSN, RN]

Okay, dumb question I know, but this is yet another thing no one teaches in nursing school!

I am currently an ER nurse with 1 year of experience, both in adult and peds ED. I am so tired of everything from the hours to the "do everything as if you'll be sued" atmosphere. How did you get into school nursing? What do you do? Do you have the opportunity to teach health promotion to the kids?

There are a few open positions in my area, and I'm strongly considering a switch. Any help is greatly appreciated!

[michigooseBSN]

You do everything! Many people think we just give pills and dress scraped knees but actually that's the tip of the iceberg. In my school of 460 elementary students and 65 staff members I am the only health professional. Yes I give meds and practice first aid much of the time but that's not the fun part. I do individual health teaching (proper use of an inhaler and spacer for example), refer children (and staff) to their PCP as needed, teach EpiPen usage to every staff person yearly, monitor immunization records, schedule, perform and/or supervise state mandated annual health screens (vision, hearing, scoliosis, and growth/BMI), serve on or chair many committees (Health and Safety, Crisis management, Child Study), do research, provide input for Individual Education Plans at SpecialEd meetings, serve as a resource for teachers, interact with parents and healthcare providers and generally have my finger in everything. I'm sure I've forgotten many things but this gives you an idea of how diverse the job can be. It's great fulfilling job with wonderful hours and in my community good pay. It helps if you are well organized and multitask well. Good luck.