The nurse’s office is a quiet, safe place for all students. It’s walls are lined with cabinets filled with anything from bandages and ice bags to prescription meds and insulin. A basket of snacks for the breakfast-forgetters and a bottle of lotion for students to moisturize sit on nurse Angie York’s counter. She sits at her computer catching up on emails, ready for a student to pop in any minute needing her help.

This is York’s first year as a school nurse. Coming from a hospital background she knows how important it is to be prepared for the busy day ahead.

First thing in the morning York gets all of the medications ready because there are several students who take medications on a set schedule. She sets up ice. Students often want ice for their injuries from practice the night before. She tries to read all the emails and let teachers know if one of their students is injured.

“Really I just set up the office for the rest of the day,” York said.

Although York does her best to be prepared for the day, there is no way for her to anticipate what her students will need from her on a given day.

Usually York spends her time just assessing and taking care of the kids coming in with their various issues. However she has non-routine days, like when she is called in to classrooms because someone has passed out or there is a major injury or someone is having a seizure.

“There really isn’t a typical day…I’m kind of all over the place,” York said.

While every day is different, York has noticed a trend in the most common ailments among students. She sees a lot of headaches and stomach aches from not eating, not drinking water and not getting enough rest.

“You’re germy, you don’t eat right or sleep right. You guys are just plain tired… being in class for 8 hours a day is hard,” York said.

To keep an organized record of each student’s visit York always follows the same basic process. She logs the student’s name, what they were there for, what she did to help them, and then if they went back to class or were sent home.

Although York sees an average of 60 or more students a day, events like the recent Norovirus outbreak keeps her on toes.

The Norovirus is a highly contagious gastrointestinal infection. Eight students contracted Norovirus after eating at Buffalo Wild Wings and two of them were hospitalized for dehydration.

When York was notified of the outbreak she focused on helping the students who were affected and making sure the school was deep cleaned so that no one else got sick.

“I was just thinking ‘What am I supposed to do?’ I hadn’t dealt with that before. I was just trying to make sure all the kiddos here were safe,” York said.

Although this was a new situation for York, she handled it the best that she could.  Even when she doesn’t have experience with a specific situation, York finds a way to help.

“Just go with your gut on the things that you know, you can never be wrong for helping someone,” York said.

Sophomore Jenna Alfaro witnessed York’s comforting nature and first hand when she badly injured her hand in woods class.

“She kept me calm and was just talking to me like it was a normal conversation. She was very comforting and took very good care of me especially  since she had never dealt with an incident like mine,” Alfaro said.

With the lines of students who seem to magically appear at her door, Nurse York keeps pretty busy.

“I don’t really get downtime. I even eat lunch in here. It’s just so busy. I just get caught up and work on care plans for the students that have specific things going on. I am also the wellness champion which means I make sure the staff is healthy and doing well,” York said.

The nurse’s office sees so many students every day, nurse’s aid Liz Rulifson works to make sure everything runs smoothly. Rulifson supports the nurse by helping with first aid, keeping medical records up to date, all the screenings and clerical tasks like answering the phone, and handing out medication.

Although being the school nurse is no easy task, York loves her job.

“It’s just so neat! I love the kids! You guys are here 8 hours a day so I get to see a lot of you. And helping the staff here is great too. It’s so much fun to work here,” York said.

York loves helping people so much that even after the school week is over, she works as a clinical team manager at Truman Medical Hospital. She oversees the nurses and helps solve any problems they have, works on payroll and scheduling, and sometimes attends to patients if the hospital is short on staff.

“[At Truman] we take everybody no matter what they can afford. That is really my favorite thing because it is such a diverse community. It’s been eye opening,” York said.

York has had to get used to some changes. She continues to learn new things every day. The two most significant differences are the change in hours and the difference between working with teenagers and adults.
“It’s just about getting to know you. It’s neat to learn about teenagers. You guys are becoming adults. Being a high school nurse it’s not as much about the physical stuff, it’s more about your emotions, stress, and anxiety,” York said.