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by tam-tam

and you may share your experiences..

[TeleRNer]

Re: what field in nursing are you into?

As my title suggests Telemetry is my hangout, the place "I'm into." I am a keen observer that Tele nurses are always heads up on the patient's rythm and magnesium, potassium and phoshorus levels. Not covering electrolites especially those that have to do with the heart reigns supreme (for the exception of renal pts, leave that to the dialysis nurse!) Ignoring a critical level can be very embarassing when faced with a scary code blue and a meticulous ER MD. We do our fair share of medsurge duties including: ambulate Pt, change dressings, and document reams of web space paper. We are the step, the door out of ICU or the step into ICU (for a pt with cardiac hx) so we can get a little frantic with a patient that is not doing so well ordering ABGs,CBCs BMPs Xrays, EKGs and MAG and Phos...to get a clearer picture of what's going on before calling the DOC, of course current vital signs don't hurt any.

PS. I think very cool coworkers that treat one another well with respect can really help to sway a nurse's opinion as to what area of nursing she/he's into.

[alex1]

Re: what field in nursing are you into?

Med/Surg ICU is what i'm into. We handle patient loads up to 3 stable icu patients. If unstable and on CVVHD we go 1:1 but normally we all get 2 patients. We closely monitor v/s, temps, reactions to unstable medications. Some of us are chemo certified to administer new chemotherapies that could cause severe life threatening reactions. Our specialty is mostly pulmonary diseases such as pulmonary hypertension, double lung transplants, TB, pneumonia, sepsis, anything lung/respiratory related. We get our fair share of codes. The best thing about our unit is because we a closed unit, we are a tight group. We have our own Resp Therapist and pharmacist. When codes happen everyone jumps on the code and the teamwork is amazing. Everyone helping each other out while one or two nurses will round the unit to make sure everyone elses patients are ok.

alex1

[Drifternurse]

Re: what field in nursing are you into?

Psych nursing

[TazziRN]

Re: what field in nursing are you into?

I started out in ER, fresh out of nursing school, and was there for 19 years. I loved the adrenaline rush, and being part of a crucial team that makes differences in a matter of seconds. Recently I jumped ship and went into home health. I'm two months old and I love it! I love being able to spend one-on-one time with my patients. I see that I make a difference in ways that I'm not used to......teaching a very overwhelmed military retiree how to manage his Alzheimer's wife's medications. Seeing a young girl who had been ill for months with what turned out to be a rare problem, and watching her recover. The smile that lights up the faces when the door opens and they see me on their doorsteps.