OptimusPrime

OptimusPrime

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About OptimusPrime

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  1. Cardiac Cath Lab... What's it like??

    Obviously, not all new grads are created equally. So it's not unheard of for a new nurse to be hired in the cath lab, pick it up and do well. However, I do not recommend it o the nurses that rotate through as students. I started out as a paramedic...
  2. Anybody ever see an IABP balloon failure?

    You'd be better off doing your own research http://www.datascope.com/ca/ed_materials.html
  3. question about radiation exposure

    We used technetium almost exclusively, barring the times the nuclear reactor in Canada failed, then we used Thallium. I would personally do anywhere from 15-20 stress tests/day. Each receiving technetium. I would stand only a few feet from the pe...
  4. anyone working with VAD patients?

    Contact the manufacturer and see if they'll send a rep out for an inservice. they are usually great about this. We had a VAD patient in the city I worked as a paramedic in and they sent out a rep and did one for all of our medics. Worth a shot.
  5. Ideal qualities of an ICU nurse

    Staying calm is great, if you're calm because you have a handle on whats going on. I've seen some very "funcionally frantic" nurses that are awesome, but there's not a calm bone in their body when it comes to emergencies, but they rock. I've also see...
  6. Ideal qualities of an ICU nurse

    Keep the room clean... thats all I can think of
  7. question about radiation exposure

    not true... The amount of radiation THEY are exposed to is usually about the same as an xray. And how could the amount they emit be dangerous for you, when the amount receive is so much larger, and it's safe for them? I worked in nuclear medicine doi...
  8. Chest tubes: air leak or no air leak?

    Well, kinda and kinda not. A chest tube is placed to drain either fluid and/or air. Even after CABG's, you will see an air leak sometimes, and that is fine. You just need to be aware of it and make sure it doesn't get worse. It means that there is...
  9. Low Hgb

    Thats lower than what I've seen. I've seen 4.8, and we were coding her. lab kept calling us wanting a re-draw. lol, bless their little hearts.
  10. What do you do if your patient partially self extubates?

    Assess your patient. o2 sats, WOB, lung sounds, HR, RR/min, and eye color... Maybe they're fine without being intubated and all they need is some oxygen. Maybe they need an ambu, maybe not. Why were they intubated initially? Where and how much of...
  11. Confused patients and fem lines

    We very rarely use femoral A-lines. Infection being the biggest reason. Almost all of our post-op hearts have a radial A-line. But, occasionally they will come back with a femoral a-line. When this happens, most of the time it's fine, pt's wake u...
  12. ABG question.

    The pt is in a respiratory alkalosis. pH > 7.45 with a low pCO2. There's no such thing as overcompensating, the body just doesnt do it when it comes to acid/base and ABG's. Bicarb could be low d/t renal function.
  13. Serum potassium levels in code situation

    Yes, the high potassium could have been a result of the code. Acidotic environments tend to draw K+ out of the cell and lead to hyperkalemia, and Im sure this pt was acidotic. Also, the sample may have been hemolyzed, but if that was the case, the ...
  14. opiates and large Vts

    hmmm, The only thing that is coming to my mind is with CABG pt's. These pt's might have a lower tidal volume and pain is the limiting factor with them. So, by giving them an opiate and relieving the pain, they're able to breathe deeper. Other than ...
  15. IABP and CPR

    Well, it is a pretty simple explanation, it was a misunderstanding on my part. They were saying that on the newer models, there is no need to manually switch from EKG to pressure triggering, the IABP will do that automatically, if in the auto mode....