June Taylor, or “Nurse June,” as she is known by her patients, has been instrumental in schools across the state, providing medical advice, care and assistance to young and old in the education facility.
Coastal Point • JESSE PRYOR
Nurse June tends to students at Lord Baltimore Elementary School, where she took the position of school nurse last September.
After coming on board as the school nurse of Lord Baltimore Elementary School this past September, she is exercising the opportunity to help and teach others the importance of taking care of oneself. Having no children of her own is more than made up for when, seemingly overnight, she had a watchful eye to give over nearly 600 of them.
For 17 years, Taylor has been diagnosing illnesses and keeping students and faculty healthy in schools across the state. From 1996 to 1998, she held the position of president of the state’s National Association of School Nurses. Prior to her move into schools, she worked in home health care and in the health department of the veteran’s administration in New England.
A graduate from St. Francis’ now-retired nursing program in Wilmington, Taylor furthered her education with a master’s degree in science from St. Joseph’s College in Maine. She is active with the local union and part of leadership teams, too.
No task has proven too big for Taylor, who has even managed to set aside time to travel the world. The Delaware native eventually found herself back on familiar ground, working with coronary care at Beebe and throughout the Indian River school district, where she’s one of roughly 16 school nurses in the region. Taylor has nursed at several schools in the area, including Selbyville Middle.
“It’s great,” she said. “Going from school to school, I’ve had the chance to reconnect with families.”
Though many may not realize it, Taylor’s responsibilities at as a school nurse far exceed taking temperatures and applying bandages to minor wounds. New advancements in medicine are constantly surfacing of which she has to stay abreast.
“We have to stay current all the time,” she said. “The medical world is always changing. There is always something new, and there’s always a need for someone in medicine.”
Taylor also receives information concerning new health risks in the region, and finds herself keeping in check with new developments and procedures.
At Lord Baltimore, she assists students who take prescribed medications, helping them learn their dosages.
“A lot of people think that all I have to do is wait here until a sick or hurt student walks through the door,” she said, which is hardly the case in reality. Several students even start their days in Taylor’s office.
“I’m actually the first line of medical defense for the staff, too,” she noted. Taylor will see members of the faculty who are feeling under the weather, as well. “I’m on a teacher’s contract, so I see everyone in the school as one big team,” she added.
As far as the typical nurse visit for a student goes, Taylor said she deals with a variety of concerns and health issues, though primarily, colds and flues are hot tickets for a nurse visit.
“We’ve learned over the years that the cold season can stretch from September to June,” she said. “It’s not just in the winter months.”
Working in the education system, Taylor said, informing her patients — especially the young ones — is one of her primary concerns.
“When a student comes in with a sore throat or upset stomach,” she said, “I explain to them what I’m doing. It’s very important that the children understand what I’m doing to help them.”
Taylor will edify students on their condition, describing instances such as strep throat and fevers. If a limb is sore, she will explain the importance of wrapping and elevation. Sore stomachs are often the result of a rushed morning with little or no breakfast, Taylor noted, emphasizing the importance of a child’s balanced diet. Education is key for the students, even in the nurse’s office.
“That way,” she added, “there is no mystery. Teaching them these things, I think, makes them a better consumer in years to come.”
She is constantly finding ways to make herself a more approachable and comforting asset to the school’s health department.
“Students that come in and behave very well receive starfish stickers as rewards,” she said. These stickers can later be exchanged for extended recess or other school-time perks. Her kind attitude and endearing care have helped Taylor acquire small-time fame among many of the students. “I’m still learning names,” she said, “but a number of children smile and wave to me in the hall.”
Cuts, scrapes, bumps and bruises inside and outside of the classrooms keep Taylor on her toes.
“You never have any idea what to expect or when to expect it,” she said. She will even help supervise recess to ensure that children are taking precaution and not playing too aggressively. “Fortunately,” she said, “children are pretty much well-behaved here.”
Each visit to the nurse’s office is followed up with a courtesy call to a parent or guardian, to clarify the child’s condition. “It’s important that parents understand the situation, too,” she said. “By interacting with them, it brings a shared learning. Parents never want a call from a school nurse. Their child is precious to them, and the first thing most do when they get a call from the nurse is panic. By working with them and calling regularly, I can instill that trust.”
She has attended open house events and assists with kindergarten registration each year, too, familiarizing herself with parents.
Taylor has also applied her experience with patients as they grow older, talking with coaches as students enter middle school with the ambition to take on sports. “I manage a lot of the physicals and paperwork on file,” she said. Her role, comparative to that of a sports trainer, helps her maintain relationships with her patients over the years.
The self-gratification is more than enough motivation, Taylor noted.
“I do this for the kids,” she said. “There’s no better feeling out there than knowing you made a difference in a child’s life.”