[irishnurse123]

Hello everyone,

I am brand new to home care and am a recent graduate, BSN. I am going through training and will be interning for a year. I have been reading through the posts and value all the interesting information here. Thanks so much and I look forward to contributing once I get my feet wet! Regards,

[dhyser96]

Irish - Welcome!!! and good luck! Keep us informed of how you are doing and do not be afraid to shoot any questions our way!

[Silverblitzen]

Hi Irishnurse!

I just entered HH and I'm still being oriented, but from what I've seen, it's one of the few places you actually get to use all your nursing skills. By this I mean assessment, patient advocacy, communication skills; it's the whole package. The experience I've had over the past week and a half has used all my senses, what I learned in school, and then more! You walk into a patient's home and you use your sight and smell - what do they register? Stuffiness? Mold? Is it safe for the patient? You assess your patient, listening to family as well for any nuances you may pick up. Then there's the patient; auscultation, verbal content, etc. You touch them to check for skin temp, clamminess, skin turgor. Never, never underestimate the need for human touch. That little pat on the arm may well be the only touch that patient gets that day and may mean the difference between a good day and a bad one.

I think that HH may well be nursing's best kept secret and we need to get the word out. This is the way of the future and I'm so glad I made the jump. I hope you like it. Welcome to the new world!



Sue

[caliotter3]

Glad to hear that you are in home health and hope you find it to be rewarding. Consider yourself lucky because a one year internship is rare. Sounds like you are in an excellent agency where they take good care of their nurses. Hope to hear from you in the months to come.