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Original poster

Any school nurses around?

23 replies

Howmanysleepstilchristmas · 29/03/2019 17:10

I’m thinking of retraining. Can anyone tell me more about it? Do you enjoy your job? What does a typical day look like? Is there much continuity of care? Is it more family friendly than other branches of nursing?

OP posts:
Hollowvictory · 29/03/2019 17:11

Most schools don't have them now

TheFirstOHN · 29/03/2019 17:16

School nurses are based centrally in a team which covers dozens of schools. The role involves a lot of travelling and includes giving immunisations, training teachers (asthma, anaphylaxis etc) and providing extra support to students with long-term medical conditions.

Original poster
Howmanysleepstilchristmas · 29/03/2019 17:22

I’ve seen an advert, so they exist and I can apply. Retraining would take a year. I’ve called and spoken to them, just want to know if the reality would live up to my hopes!

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Redlocks30 · 29/03/2019 17:27

As a senco, the only contact I have with the school nursing team is when they provide whole staff (to 60+ Teachers/TAs) training on anaphylaxis once a year, which we have to have (and have to pay for!). They don’t support with continence issues and don’t help with care plans. I’d love to know what they do, as I don’t feel they offer me much support in my role :(

shatteredandstressed · 29/03/2019 17:27

They definitely exist 😀. A lot of the school nurses in my Community Trust work school term time only- great for family.

shatteredandstressed · 29/03/2019 17:28

@Redlocks30
Lots of safeguarding IME

vintagenurse · 29/03/2019 17:30

Im a health visitor and the school nurses I work with pretty much do all safeguarding and child protection work. The school nursing service here has been cut to the bone and they hardly do any of
the stuff mentioned above just because they dont have the capacity

Original poster
Howmanysleepstilchristmas · 29/03/2019 17:30

@redlocks30 are you primary or secondary?

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Original poster
Howmanysleepstilchristmas · 29/03/2019 17:31

Yes, they definitely sound short staffed- they have that many vacancies you get a qualified nurse wage to train.

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Redlocks30 · 29/03/2019 17:34

I’m primary-I just can’t get hold of any of ours. I am left to write medical care plans for children with no support-it’s not right!

@Howmanysleepstilchristmas what training have you had?

vintagenurse · 29/03/2019 17:35

The SCPHN course is really hard work and very demanding. ( the course is practically the same for Hvs and school nurses). The schol nurses here have 1 secondary and about 6 primaries each that they are responsible for.

vintagenurse · 29/03/2019 17:36

@redlocks30 we dont write careplans here anymore, it is now the parents responsibility to complete

JellySlice · 29/03/2019 17:49

As a parent, the only contact I have had with the School Nursing team have been for children's continence issues. Though I have been present in the school during nurse visits.

The nurses I met are not the people that came into the school to do the imms. They may be the people who did the height, weight, hearing and eyesight checks.

And I can confirm that in our area they do, indeed, only work term times.

bookgirl1982 · 29/03/2019 17:52

Many boarding schools have teams of nurses, working a 24/7 shift pattern in term time. Worth looking at the Boarding School Association job Board if that would be of interest.

Howmanysleepstilchristmas · 29/03/2019 18:11

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Original poster
Howmanysleepstilchristmas · 29/03/2019 18:13

Am also hoping that there’s more to it than height, weight and immunisations. Obviously I can do all that, and deliver training, but I’d like something more involved.

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Original poster
Howmanysleepstilchristmas · 29/03/2019 20:09

So... any school nurses around?

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Original poster
Howmanysleepstilchristmas · 30/03/2019 00:16

I guess they’re in really short supply!

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EleanorLavish · 30/03/2019 02:40

I live in NI, and as I’m a nurse I have had a few chats with the school nurse for primary and secondary school.
The primary school is private and has boarding for its senior bit, so they have a matron who lives on site in a house. She is very busy as over 1000 boys!
Nurses come in for any health checks/immunisations but she does everything else, from bumps on head to staff training.
I’ve older kids in grammar school and we went to a meeting after first had started there about 4 weeks. It was to meet staff etc. She got up and said “ I know most of you won’t know me, but I’ve met most of your kids. I’ve had 87 of the year 8 children in to my office so far!” There’s only 120 in a year!! 😂 She is kept on her toes.

Blueboo0814 · 30/03/2019 07:22

In the school I work at we have a school nurse on site. It's a special needs school, our pupils have a range of medical needs, some quite complex...
She administers medication, trains staff to do things like enteral feeding etc. Runs clinics, is first port of call if an emergency happens...
I work in a classroom where most of the children have multiple and profound learning difficulties so she's in and out alot, we work with her quite closely and it's a fairly hands on job.

Allhallowseve · 30/03/2019 07:33

I have worked as a school nurse but recently left due to big budget cuts. We were responsible for around 7 primary and 1 secondary school and that was on part time hours . As above it involved : cp health assessments only involved in cp cases if there were health needs for the child.
Training teachers in asthma , anaphylaxis diabetes and epilepsy.
Completing careplans - however this was rare .
We did see children for work on emotional health , weight management . I actually felt like I wasn’t really helping anyone . The parents that needed the help and support wouldn’t attend .
Because of the budget cuts the staff are now only doing the minimum which doesn’t really involve seeing the children at all.
The height and weight screening is done by assistants so not qualified nurses. The nurses just have to pick up the pieces when angry parents call after their child has been labelled as obese.
You need to have experience in safeguarding children and children’s health .

mumsiedarlingrevolta · 30/03/2019 07:39

My DS's went to an independent prep day school
(from reception to Year 8) and there was a Matron there.
Maybe working in a prep school is something to consider?

yodelsay · 30/03/2019 07:50

My DSs are at a boarding school and the school nurse role there is huge. Not just jabs. I'm a nurse and would love to retrain but NMC has lapsed so would take much longer. Have a look at the Indy sector.

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