To be annoyed with the school nurse

[NoodleOodle]

who told my teenage DD that it is not normal to have discharge every day, and that she probably has chlamydia or gonorrhoea. But then, on top of that, to take weeks to bring in the test despite being asked by DD every week, causing her to worry for much longer than necessary.

Why would she tell her that it is not normal to have discharge every day for a start, when the vagina is a continuously self cleaning orifice?

did your dd describe unusual discharge to her? can you not take her to the doctor or to a clinic if it is a possibility that she could have an std?

That's terrible. It is perfectly normal to have discharge every day. Poor DD.

What ? Where the fuck did she get her qualifications from ?!

Almost all school 'nurses' aren't even qualified RNs they are just someone that has done a short 'school nurse' course.

It really makes me angry when they give their unqualified opinions in place of medical advice.

Please complain about this.

She described that she has discharge every day, that her discharge is different textures on different days, and smells different on different days, and that it is sometimes brown. I have told her that along with your menstrual cycle, your discharge goes through a cycle too, and that during puberty you might have more discharge than once you've matured (and I have always provided liners), and that the brown discharge before/after/instead of a period is normal and is blood, and that because of her hormone implant a few days of brown discharge is called spotting and she might get that sometimes instead of her period especially as they're tailing off now.

She has been sexually active and lost her virginity to her boyfriend without using a condom, so I encouraged her and held her hand whilst getting the implant. He was also a virgin.

We have discussed these things before, and she has never felt uncomfortable about it before, but I think that because someone officially medical has told her it's abnormal, she started to doubt what she knew. She then asked her friends, and two girls told her they have discharge about 2days a week, never everyday, which worried her more.

I will take her to the Dr if the nurse's result shows anything. She only told me these worries today though. There is a very slim chance she could have an STD. The presence of discharge everyday isn't an indicator though and I don't know why the nurse told her that.

Would you bother phoning the nurse to ask her for clarification - DD is adamant that she was told that discharge everyday is not normal?

We'll, if it was a problem, I'd have taken her to her own gp instead of waiting for a school nurse! Why was she talking about discharge to her?

Suggest you read Taking charge of Your fertility as it's got good info about menstrual cycle and vaginal wetness dusting your cycle, what's normal and what's not.

I did not know that school nurses weren't RNs. I'm shocked!

Sorry, cross posted! Yes, I'd ring the nurse for clarification. Everyone is different and there's no point worrying your dd like that, then forgetting to bring test in for weeks.

That's disgraceful and yes I'd report her.

Why is she describing her discharge to the school nurse?

I'd report her too. Imagine what other shit she's been telling them ?

I didn't know it was a problem until today. I think DD was trying to be independent, grown up and take charge of her own body by taking herself to the school nurse to ask about a minor niggle she had, most likely looking for reassurance, rather than feeling like a child and running to mummy with every problem or question. Although, I am glad that that is what she has finally done, and she still feels able to come to me to talk about these things, especially in this case so I could address the misinformation.

Why is she describing her discharge to the school nurse?

I think they are encouraged to talk tot he school nurse about sexual health issues and to go to her for condoms and things.

And, thank you for the book recommendation.

Thing is if she had told the nurse that she had had unprotected sex then it's one of the conclusions that people jump too.

How do you know he was a virgin and that she was for that matter? Teenagers don't always tell the truth.

I know because I know them both, he was a virgin and so was she. They're both lying little teenage scrotes, but I am certain about this.

School nurses ARE registered nurses. Many have done an additional degree (or Masters) in Specialist Community Public Health Nursing with a School Nursing specialism.

Of course she may have been misinformed but unless you were in the room when the consultation took place you don't know exactly how the conversation went. It could be that she described a vaginal discharge that sounded potentially abnormal hence why the nurse suggested swabs/further testing.

Or the nurse could be barking up the wrong tree completely. You just don't know.

Of course you could make an appointment to see her with your daughter and clarify the issue, if your daughter is happy with that. In the meantime you could always take her to a CASH clinic if you don't want to wait to see a school nurse.

I suppose, if I wanted to be really generous, I would say that assuming there is something wrong is the safest option if you are presented with something which is at the outside of normal. So I can almost see how she might have said something like 'Discharge can be a symptom of x, y or z so if you're worried about it then getting tested is the best option.'

However, even with that most positive of spins on it, failing to then provide the test for weeks is unforgivable and I would definitely complain about that. Leaving a vulnerable teenager without the medical care that you believe they need is unconscionable and failing to provide the emotional support that they have come to you for is huge failing as well.

When I think of how hard it is for teenage girls to talk to someone openly about this kind of thing, the fact that your daughter has been left in this position after taking the mature step that she did to try and resolve it herself makes me sad and angry. I hope your daughter's ok and that the nurse is reprimanded.

School nurses are registered nurses surely? Else why would you have to do additional training to be one? Yes I'm a nurse.

It used to be the case that all school nurses were RNs but I think it is a rarity now.

I have worked with many schools over the years and have only ever met one school nurse who was a qualified nurse and she was a retired health visitor.
Some schools will have visiting professionals that come in on specific days of the week/month, but more often than not the in house school nurse is just someone with basic training.

Obviously I can't says that's how it is for the whole country, it may be different in other areas, but in the counties where I have worked this was the case.

WeAreEternal I think you are very misinformed, of course school nurses are registered nurses, and most will have done additional training to masters level (I'm a HV student and the academic part of the course is basically the same).

OP in your position I would contact the nurse yourself and try to clarify what was said.

WeareEternal no, in state schools the school nurse is unlikely to be 'in house' and the allocated school nurse WILL be a registered nurse. It's quite unusual to have an in-house school nurse unless a school is very large or very rural/isolated.

School nurses are usually responsible for a cluster of schools and are rarely based in the school. They tend to be based locally in a central unit, often a community health centre type place. In senior schools they tend to visit and hold drop-in sessions for pupils, as well as being called for specific referrals/queries/situations.

Private schools often have someone they call Matron who tends to have a pastoral role, and is rarely a qualified nurse. State schools will have first aiders but if they need a school nurse they will call the School Health Team for their locality.

Many School Health Teams will use HCSW to carry out growth, sight and hearing screens rather than qualified staff but the results will be filtered back to registered nurses.

sidge that was really concise and helpful info on the graduated role of schools nurse involvement in schools, thank you from me!

OP, I hope you manage to sort out the mis-communication issues at school level, as surely, as your daughter is sexually active there are certain procedures or other external services in operation? How old is she? Sorry if I missed that being told already.

It's so so unlikely that the nurse would have said "you probably have gonorrhoea or chlamydia"

I would take the account of the conversation with a pinch of salt tbh.

As with most jaw-droppingly outrageous events on MN probably best to take the basic facts and frame them in a perfectly normal, acceptable conversation to get an accurate picture.

School nurses are qualified but it's rare for a school to have it's own nurse. Tend to be first aiders who run medical room at school (confusingly at the school I taught at the first aider was called matron). But all health authorities have proper school nursing services who do vaccinations etc. what was the person who advised your daughter?