Any school nurses out there having trouble making it through the week?
I feel like I am being such a wimp...I work as a school nurse so needless to say my schedule is pretty good. My days vary from very busy to quiet but I am expected to be in all 5 days. I have just been off for a little over a week due to a blizzard. Over the course of the week, I have slept alot and flared because of all the work removing snow..I have come to realize, that I am much more productive when I can sleep in..get up and do what needs to be done...rest for a while..feel refreshed and do more work aroung the house. I dread going back to work because when I get home I am pretty much useless and tired. I know alot of people have it much worse than I do and I feel like I shouldnt complain but I am not happy. Do any of you school nurses have disability thru your school system? Do you know if you can go out on disability but still work some to make up the difference in pay?
I am not a nurse but I worked within the school system. I am amazed how many folks here are teaching and non teaching staff at schools.
If you are in the USA, apply for FMLA.
I was a school nurse and took disability in "95 due to cancer, then all the other AI diseases hit me.
I applied for disability in the state of Texas. We are not eligible for SSecurity as we don't pay into it. It was fairly easy to get disability at that time but I don't know if it's that easy now.
School nursing (in the school I was in) was very busy and I never sat down...a constant stream of emergencies, meds, calling parents, and taking care of illnesses.
Yes, I always felt blessed to be a school nurse but it wasn't all that easy. Depends on the school , ages of kids, etc.
I could not live on the $$ I get as it is based on your 3 highest pay years. And it's a % of that. I have had one pay raise since '95, got one extra check that one year, and one cost of living raise back in '98 maybe.
Texas is terrible about taking care of their teachers/nurses. I hope your state is better. Nevertheless, I am grateful to have anything.
Good luck and let us know how you are doing.
thanks for your replies. I am in the US and have used FMLA in the past to work 4 days a week instead of 5. Although they got coverage for me, they werent very happy I took it because they want "continuity of care"
I cant get SS because like Tinker,we dont pay into it in our school system. I would have to use the towns disability which is a % of pay. It wouldnt be enough to cover my bills :(
Tinker..how long did you stay out on the disability? Did you return to the school?
I was wondering if I went out on disabillity does that mean I cannot work at all? Would I be able to work somewhere one or two days a week to offset the loss of income?
thanks for any info
Angels, I took permanent disability. In TX, I can never commit to more than one day at a time of sub pay. One can try to return to nursing/teaching on a one time deal, and if you can't manage it, you can restore your disability.
I have only been a substitute and it only pays about 70-100$/day....it's nothing. And you are exposed to lots of germs and illnesses so I spent more on dr. bills and antibiotics. It wasnn't worth it for me, but I miss nursing so much I would still like to do it.
I can work anywhere else as much as I want but not the school system. (There may be a limit on how much I can earn but it was never relevant in my situation so I've forgotten.
Smart of you to use the FMLA...wishing you the best.
Im not a nurse.. And sorry it has been so hard for you to get through the days.. This sjogrens is so unfair.. I replied to your post because I want to say how much I appreciate school nurses.. You guys are so awsome. I have a child who has some health issues.. I am so thankful for our nurse..
Luna
Thank you, Lisa. So nice of you to say those kind things. much appreciated!