Top Nurse Blog Since 2018

Top Ranked Nurse Blogs

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Diary of a School Nurse: A Journey to the Top – Thanks to You!

It hasn’t happened overnight, but I’m incredibly thankful for this amazing milestone! 🩺💙 What started as a fun hobby—a way to share tips, resources, and encouragement with fellow school nurses—has grown into something I could have never imagined. Thanks to your incredible support over the years, Diary of a School Nurse has been recognized as one of the Top Nursing Blogs since 2018!

And now, I’m beyond excited to share that we’ve once again been named one of the Top 10 School Nurse Blogs for 2024 by FeedSpot! This honor reflects years of dedication, creativity, and, most importantly, the incredible community of school nurses who have supported and encouraged me along the way.

The Journey

The path to this recognition has been both challenging and rewarding. Whether it was late nights writing blog posts, brainstorming content ideas, or connecting with all of you through comments and messages, each moment has been worth it. Sometimes I find out about these honors through an email, other times I stumble upon them unexpectedly—but each time, it feels just as surreal.

This blog was founded in 2012 and since 2018, Diary of a School Nurse has been included in multiple "Best Nursing Blogs" lists, and this year’s recognition is a testament to the incredible school nurse community that inspires me every day. You never know where one small decision will lead you. What began as a fun side project has grown into a top-ranked nursing blog, offering encouragement, support, and practical advice to school nurses across the globe.

A Big Thank You

To my readers, supporters, and fellow school nurses: Thank you from the bottom of my heart! Your engagement, encouragement, and feedback keep me motivated to continue creating and sharing.

Explore the List

If you’re looking for even more inspiration, take a moment to check out the full list of Top 10 School Nurse Blogs for 2024. There are so many talented and insightful nurses sharing their experiences, tips, and resources. You can find the full list here and have fun exploring other amazing blogs!

Moving Forward

As we celebrate this milestone, I’m excited to continue creating content that supports and uplifts school nurses. From helpful tips to Continuing Education (CE) courses, my goal is to keep empowering our community.

Here’s to another year together! 🩺

 Check out these other popular DOASN blog posts & product links.

  

Organizing Student School Health Charts

Organizing Student School Health Charts &

a little bit of charting info too

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Hopefully Helpful School Nurse Tip: Paperwork, paperwork, paperwork- the life of a school nurse does include a lot of paperwork! Keeping your papers organized will save you time in the future!

School Nurses- Let's get organized!

Shop The School Nurse Amazon Store Here

I’ve come to embrace a healthy level of organization—especially at work! Over the years, I’ve realized it’s often easier for me to stay organized at the office than it is in my personal life (go figure, right?). In the school health office, organization isn’t just about tidy shelves or neat stacks of paper—it’s what makes our student health charts accurate, accessible, and meaningful when we need them most.

To keep things running smoothly, I rely on a few tried-and-true tools. These essentials not only keep me on top of the daily chaos but also help me stay one step ahead of the game (hopefully). And in the end, they all support one of the most important parts of our work: accurate, professional charting.

1. A file, paper, chart alphabetizer organizer!  

This handy document sorter is a lifesaver in our school health office! We organize all paperwork alphabetically by last name, keeping it neat and accessible until it’s time to file.

Want to take it up a notch? If you have two document sorters, you could dedicate one to daily filing and the other to manage forms for your most pressing project—like handling physical exams and immunization records at the start of the school year.

Here’s a bonus: this product is even available in a left-handed version, ensuring it works for everyone on your team!

Typically, I only purchase decorative office items with my own money, but I made an exception for this document sorter, and I’m 100% satisfied. It’s practical, sturdy, and makes my busy days so much more manageable—totally worth it!

2. Clear, plastic bankers boxes!  

Plastic Bankers Boxes: A Must-Have for School Health Offices

Plastic bankers boxes are incredibly versatile and have become a game-changer in our school health office. After years of using cardboard boxes, I made the switch to plastic storage boxes—and I’ll never go back! These sturdy containers are perfect for a variety of projects and hold up much better over time.

At the start of the school year, we use these boxes to sort student health charts for incoming students into labeled piles, such as:

• Up-to-date – OK to file
• NEED physical and/or immunization records
• Review before filing
• Waiting to register

They help us stay organized during the busiest times of the year.

At the end of the school year, these boxes take on another important role. We store the school health folders of the graduating class in them, preparing for their 60-year storage journey. With over 1,000 students in my school, we typically use at least five boxes per graduating class to manage the load efficiently.

Switching to durable plastic storage boxes has made organizing student health records easier, more efficient, and better suited for long-term storage!

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3.  Index Cards! 

It might sound old-school, but we still use white index cards for charting student health information! Each student gets one card that we update throughout their school years until graduation. Some cards fill up quickly, while others remain nearly blank, holding nothing but their student ID label. On average, we go through at least 600 index cards each year!

As of 2018, our electronic charting system was limited to tracking specific information like student immunization records, physical examination dates, and medication inventory and administration.

By 2020, we transitioned to using Skyward for charting basic office visit information, which has been a game-changer for collecting more accurate and actionable health data. This system works wonderfully for logging and analyzing trends in school health visits, helping us better track and showcase the impact of our office.

💡 Want to improve your Skyward skills? Learn more about its features and how to make the most of this tool by signing up here: Skyward (original) Skills.

This shift has allowed us to balance the reliability of our traditional methods with the efficiency of electronic health records, creating a comprehensive approach to student health management.

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4.  Labels... 

At our school health office, we organize student health records with precision. Each student gets a label placed in the upper left corner of their index card (mentioned earlier) and on their student health folder. These labels include:

• Student's last name, first name, middle initial
• Date of birth (DOB)
• Student ID number

Each year, we print two sets of labels for the incoming freshman class: one for their student health log card and one for their school health chart. This system ensures that our student health documentation is accurate, organized, and easy to access, streamlining the management of school health records.

This approach helps us keep everything in order, so we can focus on providing the best care for our students!

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5. Student Health Charts- 

Each student has their own student health chart, which serves as a comprehensive record of their health documents. For incoming freshmen, we use professionally printed labels for clarity, while transfer students and new enrollees will have handwritten details- unless you're reading this in 2025- because this is the year we decided (which means we learned how) to print labels for any student throughout the school year! Depending on the school year, we typically prepare 300-500 health charts to ensure every student’s records are properly organized!

At the front of each chart, we place the most current school physical exam and immunization records for quick and easy access. Behind these, we file additional documents, such as doctor’s notes, dental forms, and vision exam results, all arranged by date for streamlined organization.

This efficient health record system allows us to access vital student health information quickly, ensuring seamless care and compliance with school health requirements!

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Keeping student health charts organized is only half the job—what you write in them matters just as much. All those files, folders, and labels keep things neat, but it’s the documentation inside that really tells the student’s health story.

Good notes don’t just help you remember what happened yesterday—they make it easier to spot patterns, share accurate updates with families and staff, and show the level of care you provide every single day.

And honestly, documentation is what protects both the student and you if questions ever come up down the road. Even the most perfectly labeled chart isn’t useful if the notes inside aren’t clear.

6. Documentation- 

When it comes to school nursing, documentation isn’t just “paperwork”—it’s your professional record of what happened, when it happened, and how you responded. Whether it’s an office visit, a phone call with a parent, or even an email from a teacher, keeping clear and consistent notes protects you and supports the student’s continuity of care.

The best format for documenting interactions is objective, concise, and standardized:

• Stick to the facts: Record what you see, hear, and do. Avoid opinions or assumptions.

• Use a framework: Many school nurses prefer SOAP notes (Subjective, Objective, Assessment, Plan) or PIE notes (Problem, Intervention, Evaluation). Both help capture critical information in a consistent way.

• Track communication: Document the date, time, and a brief summary of phone calls or emails with families, staff, or healthcare providers.

• Stay professional: Write with neutral, clinical language, knowing your notes may later be reviewed by administrators, parents, or even in a legal setting.

Good charting provides a reliable timeline of student care, strengthens communication, and demonstrates your role as a healthcare professional in the school setting.

👉 For a deeper dive, check out the posts linked HERE and HERE.

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