nurse42long

nurse42long RN

L&D, OR, ICU, Management, QA-UR, HHC

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About nurse42long

nurse42long has 40 years experience as a RN and specializes in L&D, OR, ICU, Management, QA-UR, HHC.


Latest Activity

  1. hiring older nurses

    Several years back I was hired into a smallish Labor and Delivery Department at the age of 57. Every nurse that I met was eager to work with a "very seasoned" L&D nurse except our one doctor. When he heard that the manager (also my age) had hired...
  2. What thrills you/what terrifies you?

    Thrilling - seeing the crowning head emerge with each push Terrifying - not seeing the rest of the baby emerge, due to shoulder dystocia
  3. What did you do before nursing?

    I was a bartender/cocktail waitress in a hole in the wall joint. Tips were decent but always had to watch for the ABC guys (alcohol & beverage control) because I was underage (19). I worked there while in nursing school as well as Church secretar...
  4. I had a moment!

    This is how it's supposed to feel. You did good. Store this one away in your data bank for the day when it doesn't work out so well. I love that your charge nurse said "you've arrived". Soon you'll have more of these than not. Congrats.
  5. Most Ridiculous Med Order

    Had an elderly physician who covered nights in rural small OB. Not sure who thought that was a good idea. But he was quite the horticulturist. He grew award winning roses and Africian violets. Anyway one night I called him about an early labor patien...
  6. Switching to day shift blues

    If you have been on nights for over two years and you love it. Stay there. If you can sleep during the day and feel good physically, stay on nights. I've worked everything there is in 40 years and nights with a good crew was the best. We raised our k...
  7. When to have the patient sign consent

    I usually get the paperwork done first. I think it is easier to establish a rapport with the patient and family to ask the non-personal questions first, insurance etc. Also talk about what the agency can do for the patient, pt rights and responsibili...
  8. thinking of quitting nursing

    Take an art class through the community or at a local art museum, then take another. Maybe find a part-time job at a gallery or some other area in a creative field. Even if it's just answering phones and helping out. Then when you find something that...
  9. I hate it when parents use nurses, doctors, etc. to threaten their children to behave. For instance, "if you're bad, that nurse will give you a shot". Not good. Well, now I've heard it all. I got to my little old patient's home and the sister/caregiv...
  10. I've been a nurse since.....(fill in the blank)

    I've been a nurse since temperatures were taken with glass/mercury thermometers. We had fifty that we kept in a metal pan in Cidex solution and went from one end of the floor putting them under tongues. Then we went back and collected, checking the t...
  11. That person

    When my daughter-in-law was in labor, my son made sure everyone knew I was a labor and delivery nurse and that the other grandma was a lawyer. I don't know which one of us was the most intimidating, but she got excellent care.
  12. Hanging It Up

    I hear you. After 39 years of nursing, it has finally beat me as well. I've done L&D, NICU, OR, ER, LTC, etc. I did some great work but I can't take the "customer service" approach anymore. Doing more with less until there is nothing left to wor...
  13. How does increased access to healthcare affect nursing?

    You could also look at it as more patient access to care may be great for hospital nursing. For example, patients who waited until condition was so bad that it required emergency care and hospitalization may now see a PCP or NP and have the problem d...
  14. Homemade Saline?

    Medicare and some insurances will pay for Home Health wound care supplies, but in most states Medicaid will not. If patients can't afford wound care supplies, we have to sometimes "MacGyver" it. Usually wound care in the home is aseptic not sterile....
  15. Lesson Learned!!!!!

    I think this could be the future considering all the fuss about Press-Gainey scores. The patient "prefers" applesauce with her meds even though is NPO. Nurses who know better let the patient have her way. Easier to go along to get along. I was taught...