Burn unit interview, HELP!!

awb4130578 · Mar 16, 2011

Dress nice, ask questions, and relax!! You'll do fine=] :heartbeat

canesdukegirl, BSN, RN · Mar 16, 2011

Working on a burn unit is very demanding physically, emotionally and mentally. There are so many areas of nursing that you must delve into in order to give your patient the best care that you can. You must know the physiological effects of burns, you must know how to calculate fluids in relation to percentage of burn to the body, and you must know how to do dressing changes in a very hot room while you have all of your PPE on.

You must understand therapies involved with burns; i.e. sequential I&D's, wound vacs and how to use them, hydrotherapy, skin grafts, xenografts, Versajet (that is typically used only in the OR), and then you must know about nutrition and what the burn patient needs in regards to calorie intake. Get familiar with Silver Sulfadene cream. It is used by the gallon in burn units!

After all of that, you must also be very understanding with the amount of mental and physical pain the burn patient is experiencing. Patients who suffer burns have lost so much-both physically and materially. The burn pts that I have taken care of are usually victims of grease fires. The "fry daddy" cookware has been the culprit in most of these cases.

Some of the pts that I have taken care of are Hispanic, and the way that they prepare meals is a little different than you would expect. For example, many of my Hispanic pts will boil things and then set the pot on the floor. The kids then burn themselves while trying to see what is in the pot. I had never run into this before, and it has been eye opening.

As I stated before, most of my burn pts have been splattered or have had grease spill on them. A few of the most heinous cases I have seen have been the result of domestic violence where the boyfriend set the girlfriend on fire. I have had a few pts that have suffered burns from meth lab explosions. I had one pt who was burning trash and then had an MI and fell into the fire.

You must be able to work in a HOT environment. These rooms are set at "subtropical" temps, meaning their rooms are about 90 degrees. It takes a lot out of you to deliver total care to these pts while being dressed in an isolation gown, gloves, sometimes a mask. A lot of our pts get infected with acinetobacter, and this bacteria is resistant to many of our ABX. Most will develop MRSA.

You will see many disfiguring burns. The kids are the saddest cases. These pts require so much PT and it is PAINFUL for them. You must have the qualities of a patient, encouraging and understanding nurse. It is a tough job, but rewarding when you see the pt walk out of the unit with a big smile on their face!

Good luck to you. This is not an easy unit to work on. However, my experience has been that the docs and the nurses that work on burn units are outstanding people. I hope you experience the same.

BluegrassRN · Mar 16, 2011

The one burn unit I know (didn't work there, just spent a day) did more than burns. It also took a lot of complex wounds. They took all ages, from infant to elderly. There were a lot of chemical burns and combination burns (think portable meth labs in the back seat of a car exploding). They took care of patients from the time they were admitted until they were discharged, so they had complex, critical patients, and patients who were doing really well and could do a lot for themselves.

Honestly, it looked like something I would love. If it wouldn't have meant uprooting my family, I would have applied and begged for a job on the spot.

You will do a lot of critical care. You may have a patient from weeks and weeks. You'll do a lot of wound care and post surgical care. You'll work closely with a diverse team.

I think the questions they ask will be general questions. They might also be interested in your future plans...it takes a while to train a nurse at that level, and if you make it clear you are planning on sticking around, that might earn you a few stars. Good luck!

canesdukegirl, BSN, RN · Mar 16, 2011

The one burn unit I know (didn't work there, just spent a day) did more than burns. It also took a lot of complex wounds. They took all ages, from infant to elderly. There were a lot of chemical burns and combination burns (think portable meth labs in the back seat of a car exploding). They took care of patients from the time they were admitted until they were discharged, so they had complex, critical patients, and patients who were doing really well and could do a lot for themselves.
Honestly, it looked like something I would love. If it wouldn't have meant uprooting my family, I would have applied and begged for a job on the spot.
You will do a lot of critical care. You may have a patient from weeks and weeks. You'll do a lot of wound care and post surgical care. You'll work closely with a diverse team.
I think the questions they ask will be general questions. They might also be interested in your future plans...it takes a while to train a nurse at that level, and if you make it clear you are planning on sticking around, that might earn you a few stars. Good luck!

Right on target, Blue!

yehboy · Mar 16, 2011

thank you for all the informations everyone!!! i know that these things will help me! A LOT!!! thank you again for your time! wish me luck tomorrow! :)

leslie :-D · Mar 16, 2011

yehboy, i've never worked on a burn unit, but have been on interviews where i was asked, "what do you think the implications of the job are?" ...or words to that effect.

other than the most obvious implications (infection, fluids/circulation, resp), i might add something about their psychosocial status....

have burns resulted in disfiguring/disabling injury? any amputations? any self-image issues? depression? coping mechanisms?

while physiological trauma would always trump emotional needs, there remains a palpable component of the latter that warrants addressing.

by including a psychosocial need, it shows the interviewer that you see beyond the physical injuries. :twocents:

well...that's what i would do anyway.

much luck to you!

leslie

yehboy · Mar 16, 2011

yehboy, i've never worked on a burn unit, but have been on interviews where i was asked, "what do you think the implications of the job are?" ...or words to that effect.
other than the most obvious implications (infection, fluids/circulation, resp), i might add something about their psychosocial status....
have burns resulted in disfiguring/disabling injury? any amputations? any self-image issues? depression? coping mechanisms?
while physiological trauma would always trump emotional needs, there remains a palpable component of the latter that warrants addressing.
by including a psychosocial need, it shows the interviewer that you see beyond the physical injuries.
well...that's what i would do anyway.
much luck to you!
leslie

thank you leslie! i know that this info. that you gave me will help a lot!