tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83088192734244945552024-03-05T19:47:55.115-08:00Naughty Night NurseNurses, this one's for youUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8308819273424494555.post-85830361202617619412012-10-25T14:25:00.002-07:002012-10-25T14:25:28.699-07:00Just SmileI never knew that smiling could really fool people into thinking
you’re happy. But in the mornings when the day staff comes on, they tell
me I must have had a good night because I’m smiling. I reply by telling
them I’m smiling because I finally get to go home!<br />
When I’m working and in the middle of being stressed beyond belief,
my patients and my co-workers are unable to tell. For some reason, I
just smile through the stress at work. At least it seems to make
everyone else feel better. My patients certainly don’t need to know and
I’ve learned that it helps the rest of the staff that I’m working with.
It helps them to think that it’s not so bad and they can make it through
too. I never realized at first that I was smiling through everything. I
guess after the night that I realized crying didn’t help me, my body
just naturally reverted to smiling.<br />
<img alt="So SO true" height="521" src="http://media-cache-ec4.pinterest.com/upload/172896073164369335_W9xIuN5Z_c.jpg" width="367" />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8308819273424494555.post-306129585207026102012-10-21T13:57:00.000-07:002012-10-21T13:57:29.152-07:00For New NursesHere’s a bit of advice for new nurses starting out. There will be so
many supplies that you want with you on the floor, not just as a new
nurse. You will always need extra pens, perhaps a calculator, scissors,
markers, etc. There are a lot. I would like to tell you the things that I
have found I need to have every day and you should have too.<br />
<br />
As a starter, use a pencil box! I can’t tell you how handy having this has been:<br />
<img alt="" height="275" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglg1m6kXKrzb5lmf3Z49UQeFybEaTYcvY_AqZm0VthsTdSNKZAUNvnpMhXJ9QFVhj2jNx3JCBa6gqI9eb9Blw6Up864cAsTFCBZxz8wNaAaVZB2QBis0sCjnLWzU_ha4UBbLsz_kfGmTdG/s1600/pencil%2520box%2520-%25207950002.gif" width="372" /><br />
I use only black pens and always have extras in my box as well as in
my bag in my locker. We’re about to go onto a computer system, but since
we’re not there yet I also need red pens. I always have an extra of
that in my box as well. Then I have highlighters. I keep a yellow
highlighter in my pocket and various other colors in the box. I also
have a black marker. These are used to write names and room numbers on
charts. I didn’t have one at first, but after I acquired one, it made
things run more smoothly. I keep a pair of scissors with me in the box. I
don’t need them all the time so I like to keep them in the box since I
keep enough in my pocket. I keep a pencil with an eraser in there too.
While I don’t really need it for work, I use it to request my schedule. I
keep a calculator to add up intake and output at the end of my shift. I
usually don’t use it, but have it just in case. Once again, this will
change once we go to computers. And let’s not forget, a power bar! I
always have one or two power bars with me because most of the time I
don’t have the time to sit and eat. This way, if I don’t have time to
run in back and heat something up, I know that I at least have something
to eat that can hold me over. Power bars have lots of protein so
they’re great for long days. Now, here’s my last item that almost no one
else on my floor carries and it really is a crucial item to have… it’s a
pen light!<br />
I can’t tell you how amazed I am that most people don’t carry them
around. You’re a nurse and we will get patients every now and then that
need to have neuro checks done. You must have a pen light for this. I
end up loaning mine out all the time to the day nurse when she doesn’t
have one. But I only give it to them if I know I’m coming back the next
night. Otherwise, I know I’ll never see it again. And for the few weeks
that my pen light was broken, before I got a new one, I brought a small
flashlight to work.<br />
<br />
Now, let me tell you why pen lights are of such a necessity. First of
all because of the neuro check that I mentioned. You have to check
pupil reaction for a neuro check. There have also been multiple times
during my clinicals while I was still in nursing school that doctors
went around looking for pen lights. And the nurses didn’t have them, but
I as the nursing student did! When you have a patient that you are
debating calling a neuro RRT on, you need to check their pupils! As a
charge nurse for my floor I have called multiple neuro RRTs and I always
check pupil reaction because the doctors will be asking about it. There
was a time when one of the patients had one pupil that was unreactive
to light, necessary neuro RRT! Another time I saved the day with my pen
light, was when another nurse had a patient who pulled out her NG tube.
The PA needed to replace it, but she didn’t have a light and neither did
the nurse. But there I was, coming to the rescue with my pen light! And
with that, the NG tube was put back into place.<br />
<img alt="" height="174" src="http://i.allheart.com/images/detail/ah352/1_ah-352_375.jpg" width="174" /><a href="http://www.allheart.com/pens-and-penlights/c/1251/" target="_parent" title="Pen light">Purchase a pen light</a><br />
I’m sure there may be more needed for other types of floors, but this
is my must-have list for a standard med-surg floor. And this of course,
does not include the stethoscope I wear around my neck!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8308819273424494555.post-2271220015908764452012-10-10T14:38:00.000-07:002012-10-10T14:38:09.664-07:00Survival Guide to Nursing School Post #1I never thought that nursing school would be as tough as it was. And I
didn't just come out of high school and go into nursing. I have a good
background to judge. Nursing was my second degree. My first was in
Biology from which I graduated with honors. Getting my bachelor's in
nursing was much tougher than my bachelor's in biology.<br />
I survived nursing school!<br />
And
you will too! But not without a new best friend. It will come
naturally, because you will be like a fish out of water with all the
work and the questions and the clinicals and holding people's lives in
your hands. You need someone to study with, to vent with and to ask all
of your questions to. Your friends who are not in nursing school will
never understand! They think they know what it's like to be in school,
but they don't know what it's like to be in nursing school. I met my
best friend in my first real nursing class. After that, we went through
every single class together and now we work on the same floor in the
same hospital! That was not planned, it just happened to work out that
way. She works during the day because she has 2 kids and I work nights.
So now at work when I come in early and she's working I always go to her
and see if I can help her and I do the same when I'm leaving work and
she's coming on. She does the same for me. And when we were both first
starting out, there were times when the day nurse left me with 8
patients who were a mess and I had no idea what to do, she was there
staying late to help. I owe her my sanity. She is an amazing nurse and
mother and I am so thankful that she was there in my class needing a
friend too. Don't worry, this all comes naturally with nursing students.
I have seen it with everyone in my class, especially those who are
getting a second degree. We all bonded together and helped each other
through everything. We made sure everyone got through it, we would not
leave anyone behind. That's just what nurses do and that's why we became
nurses!<br />
<img alt="" data-mce-src="http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m96yvoXDy41qzbuy5o1_500.png" src="http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m96yvoXDy41qzbuy5o1_500.png" width="250px;/" /><img alt="I survived" data-mce-src="http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_mbozjcBIxQ1rivaino1_400.jpg" src="http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_mbozjcBIxQ1rivaino1_400.jpg" width="250px;/" />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8308819273424494555.post-57521106424794829862012-10-08T18:09:00.000-07:002012-10-08T18:09:46.995-07:00BreaksI have to say that I have never ever officially taken a break on the
floor that I work on. The only time I have taken a break is when I was
floated to the ER. When I worked in the holding room I was able to leave
when I had cleared out all of my patients. The other time I was there
in the main room, I had sent all of my patients to their floors. On my
own floor, none of the night nurses really goes in the break room to sit
and eat. When we actually have time to eat, and yes there have been
plenty of nights where I have too much to do to eat at all, we take the
food out to our station and eat it there. I'm lucky I find time to pee.
Usually around 2 in the morning I force myself to take the time to go to
the bathroom. And of course, one time that I took a second bathroom
break, my beeper went off telling me that my patient's heart rate was in
the 180's and I had to go running. That'll teach me. But yes, the
unfortunate truth is, I am always working while eating and have never
been able to take a few minutes for myself. There is always more work to
do.<br />
<br />
And the day never ends at 7:30 like
it's supposed to. It takes at least until 8 to give report to the nurse
coming on. When you have 7-8 patients who are so sick, there is a lot of
details to go over with them. After report is done, usually I have to
finish writing notes on my patients, finish goal, finish other
paperwork. I have seen nurses stay 4 hours after their shift is over to
finish work. Yes, you read correctly, <strong>4 hours</strong>! And no
matter what the reason for staying late, even if it's to send a patient
to a procedure, we never get overtime. My shift is 12.5 hours, I get
paid for only 11.5 of those and usually work 13.5-14 hours with no break
and no overtime. And yes, there have been days where I have not eaten
during this time period and have not gone to the bathroom.<br />
<br />
While it is not nurse's week, this sums it up nicely...<br />
<img alt="" data-mce-src="https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/543512_10100175245583430_593950493_n.jpg" src="https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/543512_10100175245583430_593950493_n.jpg" />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8308819273424494555.post-21275198922544033462012-10-07T21:43:00.000-07:002012-10-07T21:43:39.149-07:00For the L&D Nurses<div class="mediaContainer" id="mediaContainer" style="padding: 0px 0px;">
<div class="imgEnv" id="imgEnv-fullSizedImage">
<img alt="" class="media" id="fullSizedImage" src="http://i1099.photobucket.com/albums/g398/CBPotts/midhusbands.jpg" style="height: 320px; width: 305px;" /> </div>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8308819273424494555.post-42108569627596097182012-10-07T15:02:00.003-07:002012-10-07T15:02:41.417-07:00A little humor to start this blog<br />
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<img alt="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMJ1DZ0RWxUfaiMspP8EVZZ4KwcFXbDp0XeDclC165z7nu2TZPqNwAzhDnyjnkl99nCQGl1darn8NZo-MoicwTjN9by8kbNHfzNeSXkOM3xBFXzSLnXHp3uhQlOUUmG9ifMQTO83KrUl69/s1600/nurse+meme+said+doctor+will+be+with+you+in+a+minute.jpg" class="decoded" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMJ1DZ0RWxUfaiMspP8EVZZ4KwcFXbDp0XeDclC165z7nu2TZPqNwAzhDnyjnkl99nCQGl1darn8NZo-MoicwTjN9by8kbNHfzNeSXkOM3xBFXzSLnXHp3uhQlOUUmG9ifMQTO83KrUl69/s1600/nurse+meme+said+doctor+will+be+with+you+in+a+minute.jpg" /><br />
We've all said itUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8308819273424494555.post-4194672493102915272012-10-07T14:38:00.001-07:002012-10-07T14:40:24.808-07:00A little about me...I’d like to begin by telling everyone a little about myself. I only
started my nursing career a year and two months ago. I have always been
able to tell people exactly how many months I have been a nurse for
because I was just waiting to hit that year mark so I could get out of
the med-surg nursing and move to a specialty. Without giving away too
much information, I work on a cardiac medical surgical floor, where the
nurses have 7-8 patients who in any other hospital would be considered
step down or ICU. That’s right, that means there are days where it’s
like taking care of 8 step down patients who are all on drips and can be
just one day out of open heart surgery. This means that the stress is
through the roof. In just the year that I have worked on my floor I have
seen more nurses come and go than most people see in their career. But
the nurses I work with are some of the most amazing, most caring people
that I have ever come across in my life. It is heartbreaking every time
one of them leaves. I do work nights, but I have also worked days, when
my floor was short, so I have perspective from both day and night
shifts. I still am constantly asking questions, because there is always
more to learn. But we have many new nurses who come to me for help and
advice and I absolutely love being able to help them. I would also love
to learn about anyone who happens to read this post. What type of nurse
are you?Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8308819273424494555.post-55956230751094398062012-10-07T13:18:00.001-07:002012-10-07T13:18:55.435-07:00Calling All NursesDon't let the name of this blog fool you. It's not just for night nurses and it's not just for the naughty ones. This is for every nurse out there. If you have ever felt under-appreciated, overworked, underpaid, stressed to the point of breaking, if you have been injured on the job, if you love your job, hate your job, if you're still in school and want to know what it's really like to be a nurse, if you work with babies, children, in the OR, ICU, with the elderly, cardiac, cancer, hospice, home care, if all you do now is paperwork, if you're a male nurse, if you're not even a nurse, but want to read about the crazy things that really happen, this is for you! This will be a place for stories, products, help, stress release, laughter and tears. This is a place for everyone to have a voice, although we all must remember to keep the privacy of our patients because of HIPPA, so let's be careful about that. This blog is just starting up and it will take time to find it's voice, but don't be afraid to follow and share stories and opinions.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0