Sunday, December 6, 2020

Write With Me


 Have you noticed the new tab on the 
Diary Of The School Nurse blog?




I have this elementary love for I AM poems
and thought many of you might too.

I AM poems are easy enough to write, 
yet strong enough to be full of emotion.

Please accept this invitation to share your I AM poem with me. 

2020 has been quite the year and 
writing about your challenges, achievements, guilt, happiness,
and/or sadness might be just the outlet you need 
(and didn't even know you needed!).





Sunday, October 18, 2020

FREEBIES for The School Nurse

 Where can The School Nurse find FREE SAMPLES?

 - this post contains affiliate links -

How many school nurses do you know with an unlimited budget and funds available for any and all purchase? Not many right!  Most school nurses have adequate budgets to cover the necessities, but there are many other items that might not be categorized as necessary but would certainly make student's school days easier.





Helpful School Nurse Tip: Even though, I am lucky and have a decent sized budget that covers needed items and a few wants, I search out FREE SAMPLES to make my budget stretch even further. 

Are you wondering where to find free samples?  Don't worry- I've started a Google doc listing many valuable items I've found available for FREE and I'm going to share the list with you too!

The Google list includes links for items such as: 

Feminine Hygiene Products
Allergy Medication
Tylenol 
AED grants
Diabetic Training Supplies
Epi Pens



Please share this blog post with other school nurse's so they can view the list too.

Also, if you have a free resource you'd like to add to the list please post in the comment section or send details to theschoolnurse@diaryofaschoolnurse.com

Many thanks and I hope you find this list helpful!

PS If anyone has a coupon for a free countertop nugget ice maker please let me know :) 



Check out The School Nurse Amazon Storefront lists too!





School Nurse : Personalized Items    She Wanted To Change The World : School Nurse

Sunday, September 27, 2020

FREE- Medication Administration in the School Setting Training


School Nurse Training : Medication In Schools

+ this post contains affiliate links +



Hopefully Helpful School Nurse Tip:  Many school nurses need to train unlicensed personnel to safely administer medications. Use this editable Google slide training to help you train your staff.



Recently, I was asked if I had a school nurse product created for the purpose of medical training in the school setting. Surprisingly, I did not; not surprisingly, I decided to put something together!

This FREE training is primarily used by the school nurse who travels between schools and relies on unlicensed personnel to administer medications. However, it is 100% editable; so any school nurse can customize these training slides to work specifically for their situation.

This Google slide training is available for FREE via Teachers Pay Teachers.




There are 15 available Google slides ready for any school nurse to edit & use.

  • Personalize this digital school nurse product to use with school personnel who need to be trained 
  • Include school district specific information regarding medication policies & procedures. 
  • Remember to discuss information on medication storage cabinets and med documentation
MEDICATION IN SCHOOLS : STAFF TRAINING SLIDE OVERVIEW

1. Statistics from the Data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey

2. Sample wording for medication guidelines in the school setting

3. Prescription & Over-The-Counter Medications

4. How to read a prescription medication label

5. A linked video teaching how to read a prescription bottle label

6. Storing medications in the school setting

7. Documentation for medications in the school setting

8. The 5 R's for safely administering medication in the school setting

9. Review

10. Printable certificate of completion

11. Available resources

12. Poison Control information 

13. Printable practice prescription labels 

          14. & 15.  Clickable resource pages 

School Nurse Digital Medication Forms

In addition to the free medication training, there are numerous other digital medication related items available for school nurses on Teachers Pay Teachers! Check out the entire collection here:

                                        



Medication Administration & Inventory Log  $3!



 


 

Saturday, August 29, 2020

Moms Who Care

It Takes A Village

Are you a school nurse who collects stacks of  clothes in your office cabinet "just in case"?

Are you a school nurse who keeps a hidden stash of school supplies for students who need them?
Are you a school nurse who keeps snacks for certain students you know will be hungry later in the day?
Are you a school nurse who desperately wants to help more students meet their essential needs,
but feel like you don't have enough time in the day?

Those statements described The School Nurse nearly eleven years ago!


Then, one crisp fall day in 2009, the future founder of Moms Who Care (MWC)
worked up some courage, called the high school and asked if there was a staff member who would 
be interested in receiving gift bags full of hygiene products for students in need?

Thankfully, whoever answered the phone that day 
transferred the call directly to the school nurse's office!
Little did the caller know, the service she offered was highly needed
and we immediately took her up on the generous offer; and so, our village started!


At the time (2009) of the call, 
The School Nurse had a large wooden cabinet in her office 
with curtains hanging on tension rods covering shelves 
overflowing with clothes, shoes, socks, hygiene products & 
a few snacks for students who would need them.

Now (2020), after offering services for over a decade to thousands of students,
The School Nurse has a committed group of volunteers with 
the MWC organization who have a large room in the school (with windows) 
full of clothing displayed on department store style fixtures, 
and custom shelving units with shoes, hygiene products, snacks and school supplies! 
There is also a separate storage room for off season supplies 
with an area to sort through donations and organize items. 
All donations are graciously given by generous community members!
To say the school nurse's students are blessed is an understatement.


Although the logistics of the program have changed over the years, 
the Moms Who Care mission has remained the same.

To help students achieve success by meeting essential needs such as:
clothing, hygiene products, school supplies, and after school snacks. 



Typically, the students who participate with the MWC program
qualify for the free/reduced meal program.
However, students are never turned away;
there are so many scenarios where a student might
benefit from participating in the program and
we would never want to deny help to a student who might benefit from the program.
Moms Who Care is a program focused on serving the student as a whole person.
The MWC volunteers understand when the basic needs of the student are met, 
then the students are more prepared and ready to learn.

For many years this program has functioned smoothly while students 
attended traditional in-person school.  Currently, there is new energy felt as we creatively come up with ways to continue the MWC program while our students are learning remotely.  Needless to say, the MWC volunteers and school liaisons are thrilled to have the opportunity to continue to serve our students during this difficult and challenging time.

While the mission of Moms Who Care is to help students achieve success by meeting essential needs such as: clothing, hygiene products, school supplies, and after school snack we know they do so much more for the students too- more than written words can describe!
 

For More Information Visit the MWC Website here

To Purchase Items & Send Directly to MWC click here

(not an affiliate link)

         


View Other Moms Who Care Posts Here



Tuesday, August 25, 2020

Virtual School Nurse?

 

Digital To Do List for The School Nurse

+ this post contains affiliate links +

Many school nurses are wondering what to "do" 
at work while students are participating in some type of virtual learning. 
This was me!  I'm working in the school building 
with staff present, but students are e-learning at home.

Since it is the beginning of the year there are many tasks that need to be completed
whether students are there or not. In fact, this is the first time in ever (!) that 
I have been able to work on collecting the beginning of the year forms 
without student interruptions. It seems foreign to me and makes me 
a little uncomfortable! I am so used to constant noise, commotion and multi-tasking
that this stillness and calm-like COVID chaos has taken some getting used to!

Anyway- I started writing down what I'm working on while the students are not 
in the building.  I'm 100% sure that I've forgotten to include a few things.
I also realize the tasks will change with any given day
according to what needs to be done that day v. what I want to get done-
How many of you totally get that!?

Please comment what you are working on too-
I would like to grow this list to help other 
school nurses come up with a plan.

VIEW THE GOOGLE DOC LIST HERE!


VISIT THE SCHOOL NURSE AMAZON STOREFRONT HERE!






Saturday, August 1, 2020

School Nurse Interview Questions

I'm interviewing for a school nurse job!
Now What?

+ this post contains affiliate link +

CONGRATULATIONS! 

You had the courage to apply for a school nurse position 
during this uncertain, exciting and challenging time. (pandemic 2020)


Hopefully Helpful School Nurse Tip: Being prepared for an interview is an interview skill. Use time to be as prepared as possible and help yourself stand out from the other applicants.

Of all the applicants-
 you received a call to schedule an interview!


After the butterflies settle you might be asking yourself - Now What? 

If you've never worked as a school nurse before then 
you might be wondering how to prepare for your interview.

Being prepared should help you 
stand out from the other applicants.
Hopefully you'll get a call back and 
a second interview or better yet-
JOB OFFER!


After receiving multiple emails & Fb messages with the same questions, I decided to write this fun booklet! Check it out :)

How can I prepare for my upcoming school nurse interview?

What questions should I expect to be asked at my school nurse interview?

CLICK HERE




Were you recently interviewed for a school position?
Please comment some questions you were asked & I will add them to this booklet. 

Best of Luck on your upcoming school nurse interview; I hope this information helps you!





Wondering what supplies you might need for your school nurse office?  




Thursday, July 2, 2020

CLOTH MASKS

*this post contains affiliate links*

WORK WEAR...

For all my years as a school nurse, I've worn business casual. 
This fall (2020-2021) though I'm actually debating wearing scrubs
What about you? 
Regardless of what is covering the majority of my body, 
I'm 100% certain a mask will be covering my mouth and nose; same for you?

During these last few months I've worn either a disposable mask or 
a homemade cloth mask when needed. 

However, I want to be prepared with variety of cloth masks each day- 
for work (if appropriate) & for my children to wear to school (if allowed).
I also want disposable masks available at home to use when needed. 

What does your return to school plan look like?
Cloth face coverings, medical mask, N95, shield, goggles.....

What does the return to school plan look like for students and staff?
Cloth face coverings, medical mask, N95, shield, goggles.....

Will your school have extras to hand out as needed or 
will you require staff and students to always have their own?

FASHIONABLE CLOTH MASKS

Ready or not, the new school year is right around the corner.

I decided it was time to get serious about planning and start ordering some supplies for myself and my school. I'm starting with myself now and am going to order several (probably 30) cloth face masks from SHEIN! I've ordered clothing items before and have always been impressed with the quality considering the low cost. For me, the shirts and swimsuits have been true to size. I'm hoping I'll be just as happy with my face mask order too!

TOP RATED FACE MASKS

At the time of this writing, SHEIN has 169 face masks in their "top rating" category! 
That seems like more than enough options, but I'll break them down for you too.

MULTICOLOR FACE MASKS

Nearly 400 options in this category! I prefer the animal print patterns, what about you?


FLORAL & DITSY FLORAL


With 145 floral print options and 62 ditsy floral masks, 
there is sure to be a favorite for every flower lover out there!

PLAIN

There are even 123 plain options!

Stay safe & healthy-


PS I always order the minimum to qualify for free shipping too (typically $49)