Day in the life of a nurse

noelia23RN · Mar 18, 2009

I guess the best way to shadow a nurse is to know one. I don't regret going to nursing school at all, but I can see how other people question this profession. Everyday is different. You have your good days and your bad ones. On a typical good day I'm able to do everything that I'm supposed to do for my patient, take a break, write my note, and maybe even have time to check my email within my 12 hour shift. That's a good day. A bad day is no bathroom break, no lunch, and staying at least 2 hours over my shift to finish everything else.

Magsulfate, BSN, RN · Mar 18, 2009

What about volunteering at a local hospital?? Really, this would even look good on your application to nursing school if you decide to do it. :)

nyrn5125 · Mar 18, 2009

i work in a hospital on tele med surg and can give a rundown( sorry it's so long)

1. get report at about 7a on 8 pt- history -surgery what they have had done or need for the day OR plans tests..

2 start meds and head to toe assessments about 8am can take about 10-30 min depending on pt needs or functioning level. if I need another person to help roll them to check skin. Also they probably need help going to the bathroom and you can't find an aide to help, family asking questions demanding your attention to the point you have to tell them you cannot drop what you are doing to get their Mom a box of tissues-they do not care how busy you are. I once had a pt in the hall struggling to breathe and a pt family interrupted to tell me she needed a prescription for her mom's pill right now so she could go home- no sympathy

doctors coming in questioning you about pt's that you havent even assessed yet (they only think you have their pt's-they forget you have 8) In the middle of it you have bells going off on the monitors pt bathroom bells call bells possibly pt's falling or anything else that can go wrong, trouble breathing, chest pain, pulse ox of 83%, then OR calling to get pt down for operation or procedures. IV being pulled out. G tubes clogged. Blood sugars of 37. The list goes on. You can't get anything done w/o someone interrupting your concentration. Trying your patience constantly. Need to be a saint and not give dirty looks like you want to. Customer svc is everything-be pleasant and smile they remember you for being the kind person that took care of them.

3 then when done with that you check your labs, MD orders-try to figure out what they wrote-p/u meds get consents, you will be starving at this point. call bell again everyone on lasix has to pee constantly

4 then do my dressings. Some depending on if they were debrieded or if pt leg very heavy and no can help hold them up can take 45min give or take. I do my chest tube checks at this point fluid check for leaks change dressing. Call md for any issues orders that i need. then start meds again. meds are an all day thing. Do D/C which sometimes can take over an hour depending on pt meds,if they need diabetic teaching

5 recieving pt from pacu or cath labs, endoscopic/ colonosopies.

trying to make sure pt gets ambulated

6 take 5 min to eat then try to prepare so things are done for next shift like hanging new iv fluid bags changing old IV's. doing my paperwork

There is alot more to our job that I wont overwhelm you with and take more room. I hope this helps you in your determining where to work.

Chewie_123 · Mar 18, 2009

Getting the chance to shadow is getting hard these days because of HIPPA and everything else. Good luck!

Other than that, volunteer or see if you can become a Unit Clerk. Its a great way to see how a unit is run and how everyone (hopefully) works together in the hospital environment.

And if all else fails, the book Nursing Against the Odds by Suzanne Gordon, presents a scary, but realistic picture of the job.

Jean1313 · Mar 18, 2009

Funny you mentioned that book. I saw the cover of it for the first time while in nursing school, and wouldn't allow myself to read it until I graduated. I didn't want to waste the time/$ I had already put into school if I had a major freak out :-)

Not a bad idea to read before you make the decision to go to school...

Tait, MSN, RN · Mar 18, 2009

A quick "Day in the Life..." of a night nurse.

1830-1900: Arrive, prep papers, say "hullo!", ignore incoming grumbles and fusses.

1900-1945/2000: Receive report/walking rounds.

2000-2200/2300: Normal Night: Assessments, tuck-ins, medications, order clarification, calls for sleeping meds, pain meds, HS snacks, accuchecks, education, pre-op teaching/consents, admissions, rare discharges, conversation with patients, charting, quick scan over charts for day orders.

Intense Night: Critical care, ICU bed calls, crash carts, doctor's orders, fluid boluses, family calls so on and so forth.

2300-0130: 12 hour Chart checks, midnight meds/accuchecks, teaching, calling for sleeping meds, chasing off family members, calling pharm about compatabilities, calling the Chaplain for patient support, SNACK (must have cheese at this point or variable other high protein quick foods), more charting.

0130: Eat, fast. 15-30mins. (We have a breakroom on the unit so we tend to hold our teams, just keep the door open a bit in case a patient needs something.)

0200-0600: Charting, late chart checks, meds, chase family off again, tell arguing husband and wife to go to bed, refuse to give anymore sleeping pills, walk patients, give emotional support to patients, clean up charts, double check labs, hang meds, accuchecks, research new procedure (such as the STARR for rectal stricture), print out more daily flowsheets/admit sheets for myself, stock med carts, stock insulin carts, wipe down counters, swap out sharps boxes, help others with chart checks/patients, give baths, wash hair, lotion backs, tidy rooms, organize IV poles, take IV pumps and other assorted devices to dirty utility.

0600-0700: Final meds, check in on all patients for positioning, cleanliness, pain management.

0700-0800: Give report and walking rounds, try not to give off grumbles and fusses.

Now take all these things, throw them in a hat, shake them up really well, toss out and that might be another night!!

Tait

PS. I am sure I missed something super normal in there, but it was more for humor than anything else :)

Tait, MSN, RN · Mar 18, 2009

Oh wait...are there two of these threads?