ANY AdVICE ABOUT KIDDOS

TexasPediRN · Nov 18, 2005

The main thing to realize is that sometimes, you have to hurt kids

Its sad, I know, but its the only way to make them feel better. If you do love kids though you should be fine. I do- I cant stand working with adults, love the little ones!

A few words of advice though:

Try not to use medical terms: ie:"I'm going to put this IV in your vien"

My favorite thing to say after a kiddo got their tonsils out was " Since your mouth doesnt want to drink we have to make your hand take a drink! Isnt that silly??" (They always wondered why this "thing" was in their hand when they woke up)

Sometimes a hug works, and sometimes you just have to leave them alone. They will cry/kick/scream, just dont get angry! They cant help it- they dont understand why they are there (the littler ones).

Use a soothing voice, make funny faces when listening to heart/lungs, and/or let them try out the stethoscope (or carry an extra with you so they can listen with you do)

Our floor always seemed to run out of peds bandaids, so I made the point of having my own on me for taking out those IV's- nothing fixes a BooBoo better then Spiderman/CareBears/Winnie The Pooh!

Good luck, and just be yourself! If you love kids, you'll do great!

Meghan :nurse:

LIZ_RN · Nov 20, 2005

tnx!!! :) i hope it'll work out for me...

LIZ_RN · Nov 20, 2005

tnx!!! :) i hope it'll work out for me...

TexasPediRN · Nov 20, 2005

Liz_RN:

I'm sure it will work out! I can tell just by your post how much you seem to enjoy kids. :)

Just remember patience is key, get down at eye level (nothing is scarier then havng some 5 foot 6 inch person or so looking down at you with something in their hands) and just relax :)

You might want to think about reading your peds book before you start as well- just the developmental/milestone areas if you dont remember them.

I wish you the best! Let us know how it goes on your first day, which is right around the corner!!

What type of peds unit is this? Med surg/PICU/ etc? Just curious:)!

Room2Move · Nov 20, 2005

Thanks for starting this thread. I graduate in December and start my dream job working in a children's hospital in January (surgical unit). I am very excited, but also nervous because I want to do my best. I love the idea of telling a young one that "your hand has to drink for you". This is the kind of creative communication that I think makes Pedi World lots of fun. Any other suggstions/tips from you experienced pedi nurses will be much appreciated!

Mirai Kangofu · Nov 20, 2005

Wow, are parents as bad as the horror stories I've heard? My friend told me about one kid who was going into surgery and had an NPO order, yet the mom was sneaking food in. She denied it, but then admitted and rationalized, "My baby's hungry and thirsty!" Uh, your baby might be dead if you let him eat before surgery.

Pedi-ER-RN, RN · Nov 21, 2005

I work in a pediatric ER and love it. You will learn (with time and experience) how to approach your patients and have them cooperate. I found it helpful to review my peds text and growth and development. Knowing what stage of development they are in helps alot. I never approach a pedi and tell them I am going to take anything (ex: BP or blood)...you don't get ANY cooperation from them!! I usually tell them that the BP cuff is going to squeeze their muscle and tell me how strong they are. You will learn these things in time.

Some of the parents can be a TRIP, but you have to realize that hospitalization/hosp visit is a stress to them (esp. if they have other kids at home, etc..) Good teaching and attempting to establish rapport with the parents will go a long way.

GOOD LUCK TO YOU:)

LIZ_RN · Nov 23, 2005

thanks for all your support :) il be assigned at the M/S pedia unit...

we had our short visit earlier & was oriented withe unit's set-up.. i got really excited again... i just hope ill not make any variances when im there... :uhoh3:

im halso hoping that my preceptor will be really nice.. ( i read lots of horrible stories about preceptors) well i hope things will work out right...

Beth BS, RN, C, CPAN · Nov 28, 2005

yes, I am sad to say that there are a few parents that just don't get it. I have seen it more often with new immigrants. The concepts just don't translate well

Room2Move · Nov 28, 2005

Beth,

I'm afraid I don't follow the meaning of your comment. Are you talking about problems caused by language barriers, or by cultural differences? Perhaps you could provide an example.

pynky1003 · Dec 5, 2005

I'm a student nurse on my 3rd yr and this is my second course. Pediatric nursing is also the field that i would like to specialize into:balloons: . Kids are really hard to handle but with a lot of patience and genuine love and care for them, it would just be a breeze caring for them:stone . The parents on the other hand is a very different story:uhoh3: ...but we have to understand that they feel the worst pain and stress when they see their child very sick..:imbar

I suggest that a direct approach is best for them so they would understand that the things that they do for their kids that they think would compensate for the hospital stay could add more to the problem. :rolleyes: