marcicatherine

Latest Activity

1. ER vs ICU, how did we get there?

   marcicatherine replied to RNin92's topic in Emergency

   I had a patient come in the ER a few days ago. CP, diaphoresis, vomiting, SOB, and ST elevations through the roof. We did the whole nine yards on her, NTG, Heparin, and Retavase. Finally by the second dose of Retavase she started to reprofuse........

2. mandatory scrubs?

   marcicatherine replied to NativeTexan's topic in Emergency

   In our ER, we wear surgical scrubs which are provided to us. Get a pair off the cart, change, work, change, go home. It is very convient, especially with body fluids flying on a daily basis. We have the option of 2 colors, surgical blue or surgica...

3. negative attitude

   marcicatherine replied to Uptoherern's topic in Emergency

   Helicopter brings in a 27 y/o OD on a Saturday morning. Pt took undetermined amount of Xanax, Lorcet and Methadone the night before. On arrival pt was intubated, he had aspirated huge amount of vomit. His lungs were about 3/4 full. We did what w...

4. patient lingo...

   marcicatherine replied to athomas91's topic in Emergency

   Ok, man comes in today. C/O shortness of breath. I ask him if he is taking any meds. "Yes, I am taking an anniebioctic for my problem with barnacles" ??????????? Barnacles, barnacles, what the hell are barnacles? Daughter walks in, i ask what the...

5. whats your nurse pt ratio for ED?

   marcicatherine replied to E.D.ucated's topic in Emergency

   I had another one of those extremely unsafe days in the ER. Trauma 1: acute MI, bp too high for Retavase, needs NTG and heparin and prep for the cath lab Trauma 3: Severely dehydrated elderly man, BP 60 by doppler, needs fluids and careful monitor...

6. just another burning question......

   marcicatherine replied to MAGIK GIRL's topic in Emergency

   I'm been on both sides of the fence. I worked ICU before I came to the ER. Yes, there are lots of skills and monitoring done in ICU that we seldom do in the ER. There are also lots of skills that I do more of (and better for that matter) in the ER...

7. residents in the er

   marcicatherine replied to RN92's topic in Emergency

   We rarely have residents in the ER. My post is, I witnessed a bad incident when a nurse gave succs and the doc couldn't intubate and the pt died. From that moment on I vowed to only give succs if the anesthesiologist is there to tube and maybe a sel...

8. To all the ER nurses...

   marcicatherine replied to I_Love_Donuts's topic in Emergency

   When I transferred to the ER from ICU I was terrified of starting IV's on children and babies. There were other skills that I wasn't that confident in either....NGT, foley caths, and believe it or not IM injections. We just didn't do a lot of those...

9. Another vent!

   marcicatherine replied to marcicatherine's topic in Emergency

   Thanks for the support. Actually my nurse manager did get a laugh out of the complaint, she was just trying to get a point of view and wanted to know what I remembered about the patient. And your comments are exactly right. If I complained everytim...

10. The ER has become a restaurant.....

    marcicatherine replied to harry Krishna's topic in Emergency

    Not to worry! I just guide the starving patients to our lovely assortment of crackers.....we have regular saltines, low sodium saltines, graham crackers, and for the high society clients who are accustomed to fine dining...we have club crackers. So...

11. Another vent!

    marcicatherine replied to marcicatherine's topic in Emergency

    That's a great policy in a perfect world and a perfect ER. Our policy is....if you or your family asks for food, you get it. Otherwise we are stretched too thin to feed all the nursing home patients that we hold everyday. My point was...we provid...

12. Another vent!

    marcicatherine posted a topic in Emergency

    Today I was called into the nurse managers's office. She had received a complaint from the director of a nursing home. They had sent us a patient several weeks ago with a head lac 2nd being pushed out of her wheelchair. I was not the patients prim...

13. why do we baby our pts

    marcicatherine replied to MAGIK GIRL's topic in Emergency

    I totally agree Magik Girl. When I first started working in the ER, I babied the difficult patients. I talked them into tests, blood work, taking meds, staying for treatment........Needless to say, that lasted about 2 months. I'm a little slow, it...

14. patient lingo...

    marcicatherine replied to athomas91's topic in Emergency

    Along the same lines...a few years ago when i was still working in ICU, I was helping an elderly woman (78) take a bath. She let me do most of the scrubbing. When it came time to wash her genitals, she said "here let me have that rag, you don't wa...

15. Your last day in the ER

    marcicatherine replied to teeituptom's topic in Emergency

    I think on my last day in the ER I would: Tell the parents who think it is OK that their 14y/o daughter smokes a pack a day (and they buy them for her) "get the h&*# out of my ER The parents who don't give their baby Tylenol because they wanted ...