School Nurse Interview Report

I interviewed my previous school nurse, Sherri Vail. She is the full time school nurse for Medomak Valley High School, as well as Medomak Middle School. To become a Registered Nurse, Ms. Vail studied at University of Southern Maine, and received a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Nursing. While the only schooling she needed was a Bachelor’s degree to become a school nurse, she decided to go a different route after becoming an RN. She joined the airforce, and was an active duty Nurse for four years. Then she went on to be Labor and Delivery nurse for around twenty years before becoming a school nurse in 2015. The aspect of being a school nurse that Ms. Vail loves is that she believes that she can make a difference in some student’s lives. On
She is the only school nurse for the high school and middle school, which combined have around eight hundred students. She would also like to have more time for preventative healthcare such as oral health and sexual health presentations, but again, she is the only nurse for the two schools. Being a school nurse, many daily activities include the same as a nurse at a hospital, except the school nurse is taking care of the students of the school. Ms. Vail takes care of the students with any of their medical needs. For example, she administers medication such as insulin for a student with diabetes, as well as ibuprofen, ice, or other medications. When I was interviewing her, a student came in with a tick in his leg, and she helped him remove it. She can also help students with any panic or anxiety attacks, or other similar affair. Another
Ms. Vail believed that most of the students had either healthcare through a private company or already had Mainecare and did not need to get it through the school. The school also pays the school nurse. At Medomak Valley, the nurse is on the same pay scale as a teacher. The pay scale is based on seniority, as well as education. Thus, every consecutive year someone works at the school, his or her salary is raised. But, staff members are also paid according to the education they have received. The most common is a bachelor’s degree, but some have received a master’s, and those staff members have a higher salary. Ms. Vail is working on receiving her Master’s of Science in