5 Things School Nurses Say Parents Are Doing Wrong

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5 Things School Nurses Say Parents Are Doing Wrong

Carren Teitelbaum, a school nurse in Ramapo, N.Y., once had a student stumble into her office with a 102 degree fever. Mrs. Teitelbaum called his mother, who said she’d given her son Tylenol that had likely worn off and that she could come give him more.

“That kind of thing is extremely frustrating,” Mrs. Teitelbaum said. “And it’s not an isolated incident.”

Most parents are aware that fevers are a symptom of communicable viruses, and it’s

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. But on short notice, many parents can’t stay home from work, leaving school nurses to care for ***** and contagious children.

Sending feverish kids to school is just one miscalculation school nurses say parents make. The New York Times spoke with 14 school nurses across the ******* States who shared other common mistakes. “Some of these things are common sense,” said Mrs. Teitelbaum, “but I find that what makes sense for me may not make sense for somebody else.”

They leave the school nurse in the dark.

Parents might inform a new teacher about their child’s health but many forget to tell the school nurse, Mrs. Teitelbaum said.

Last year, a student with a bad headache visited Anna Etlinger, a school nurse in Cook County, Ill. After calling the boy’s mother, Mrs. Etlinger learned he experiences migraines that cause vomiting without medicine. But public school nurses generally can’t administer most medications without parental consent and permission from a licensed health care provider.

Had Mrs. Etlinger known about the boy’s migraines earlier, she could have requested authorization to give him strong pain relievers. “The sooner you tell the school nurse, the sooner we can get the ball rolling,” she said. Now, she keeps a stash of extra-strength Tylenol on hand for him.

Your relationship with the school nurse can extend beyond physical health, Mrs. Teitelbaum said. Consider sharing changes in your child’s life like moving or a recent ******.

“We can help that child get through their day, offer a little extra T.L.C.,” she said. “If we don’t know any of this, we can’t help them.”

They don’t instill good hand hygiene.

Proper hand washing can prevent

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, according to the Centers for ******** Control and Prevention. And school nurses underscore the importance of hand hygiene because it’s one of the simplest ways to effectively stave off colds and flu.

It’s impossible to ensure children wash their hands when you’re not with them, but you can still build the habit at home. To start, consider teaching them why it’s necessary, nurses said.

Madison Francis, a school nurse in Chillicothe, Ohio, puts glitter on her hands and high-fives students to demonstrate how easily germs can spread. Then, she has the students wash the glitter off to show them what it takes to clean hands thoroughly.

“We really do see an uptick in hand washing after,” said Morgan Ludwick, a school nurse in Springdale, Ark., who has done similar exercises. You can try it at home using glitter glue or washable paint.

You can also help your children remember to wash their hands for

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by playing songs from a hand-washing playlist, Mrs. Etlinger said. (You can find such playlists on platforms like

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.)

They choose the wrong emergency contacts.

Carole Cascia, a school nurse in Bridgeport, Conn., said she cared for many students whose parents couldn’t leave work unexpectedly. But, she explained, this makes it crucial to choose your child’s emergency contacts wisely. Having the nurse call grandparents in Florida, for instance, isn’t helpful when a student is throwing up in Connecticut, Ms. Cascia said.

Instead, choose a nearby and reliable ****** such as a retired neighbor or a classmate’s parent, nurses said.

Their kids don’t get enough sleep.

There are many reasons a child may not sleep well, including

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like night terrors. But screen time is the disrupter nurses see most. “Kids come to school not having slept, and they’ll admit right to my face, ‘I was up all night on my phone,’” Ms. Cascia said.

As children transition to school, try easing them back into a sleep routine, said Christy Ducharme, a school nurse in Burrillville, R.I. Ms. Cascia suggested scheduling bath time for young children before bed, and reading them a story to help them unwind earlier. You can also encourage older kids to take a warm shower and read an interesting book instead of using their phone at night.

Rachel VanDenBrink, a school nurse in Kent County, Mich., ensures her 14-year-old daughter’s phone is turned off by 9:30 p.m. every night.

“It’s OK to take phones away from kids at night,” Ms. Cascia said. “Sleep is essential to keeping your immune system healthy.”

Ideally, parents should nudge kids into a school-friendly sleep schedule one or two weeks before class begins, nurses said. But if that’s not possible, start now.

“A lot of my kids that don’t have a sense of routine at home,” Mrs. Ducharme added, “are the ones who tend to struggle more.”

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