ixchel's What I Learned This Week, 12/26: Not a Creature was Stirring

[Farawyn]

Not even a Louse.

Lice.

Nits.

Oh deers!

These words have been known to strike fear into the hearts of every School Nurse. For one reason, and one reason, only. The Teachers.

There are about 5 threads on the SN Board right now talking about lice. For those that don't veer shockingly off topic, the theme that comes up ad nauseum is the teachers' lack of understanding about lice. What is it about lice that strikes fear into the hearts of teachers?

A few fun facts about lice:

They are bugs

They are attracted to clean hair. If you have lice, it does not mean you are dirty.

They lay eggs called "nits"

Nits are tiny white and sesame seed sized. They cling to hair shafts and are difficult to remove. They tend to cluster close to the scalp, behind the ears, and at the nape of the neck.

Yes, if you are scratching, the mere mention of lice does that to all of us SN's as well. We are not immune to the psychosomatic itch.

Lice do NOT jump from person to person. In order to catch lice, you must share grooming utensils, headwear and beds- in other words, a slumber party for 5th grade girls can result in a HUGE lice outbreak.

If your child has lice, we will send her/him home to get treated with the shampoo. I'm not an ad exec, nor am I getting paid as an endorser, so I'm not mentioning brands. "Ask your doctor." I'm also old school, so I like the fine tooth comb.

Most schools now do NOT have a "no nit" policy.

And finally, and this is significant, The whole surrounding world/ classroom/ relatives from Jersey, do NOT have to be checked for lice just because Little Cliffy may have it.

(Now, that other lice? That's a tale for another day. Talk of it can be found on the SN board.

I will say that thanks to all things "retro" there will be a upswing in that other kind of lice.)

Are you itchy now? Me too.

I've also re-learned IV Tylenol is a hell of a drug. I am impressed with how quickly and efficiently I have seen it work not only on pain, but to bring down a fever.

I've re-learned that crazy old people are often crazier when they have a UTI. So, if Ed starts hopping the side rails, check his urine.

I've learned that Risperdal is a hell of a drug and needs to be tapered.

I've learned I can sleep HARD when I'm off, and that my cat sleeps with me because he thinks my snoring is purring.

I've learned Coquito is strong and must be tapered. (Kidding)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coquito

I've learned that smells are one of the biggest triggers to memories, and have been reminded of it several times this week. Some good, some not so good.

I've learned that I am excited for my friends who are students who have time off right now. My Big Kid, too!

I've learned that even when things are changing all around me, if I have my kids and people I love I can get through the holidays. I am glad Christmas is over, though.

Bring on 2016!

Thanks to my girl, ixchel, for trusting me with her thread this week.

For all of you working over the holidays, THANK YOU!!! A close family member of mine is hospitalized and nurses like you all have made all the difference in her care.

What have YOU learned this week?

[Farawyn]

"..."

I've learned I have to sloooooow down.

Thanks, tnbutterfly!

[TriciaJ, RN]

I learned a few things:

5. I learned that dogs will tear the house apart the second you leave, if you're going to be gone for less than an hour. Leave them loose in the house for 8 hours while you have Christmas at someone else's house, and not a thing will be out of place when you return.

"

That's because they've had time to clean up and put everything back and look innocent.

[calivianya, BSN, RN]

Oh lord, I don't even want to know what I've gained over the holidays, because working two jobs meant I worked one on Christmas Eve and one on Christmas Day... and worked five shifts anyway last week... almost all of which had potlucks... I so don't even want to know. Might just go a whole week drinking breakfast shakes and swearing off real food before I even attempt to step on the scale again, except Thursday is New Year's Eve and I'm definitely doing fancy food and a whole lot of beverages for that... and I just got takeout sushi tonight... Well, crap.

I learned that I missed the forum. It's been a while. :)

I also learned that some surgeons decide to go transgastric when they're removing a necrotic pancreas. I'm still waiting for someone to explain this to me, especially when the patient still has a giant midline abdominal incision that dehisces every time they try to remove staples. Seems like it's open enough to me that they could have just taken the pancreas out that way without making a hole in the bottom of the patient's stomach. It also seems like dropping a "NG" tube down the nose, suturing it through the bottom of the stomach, leaving it in the retroperitoneal space, and then attaching a JP drain to that same space so that the retroperitoneal space can be flushed out regularly through the NGT and out the JP is just totally psycho and some kind of nightmare sepsis waiting to happen.

Has anyone else seen that done? I am just thirty kinds of confused as to how anything that is going on with a patient I had this week is a good idea.

[Farawyn]

JUST staples? I'm picturing this with some sort of retention sutures. And duct tape.

(Pssst, you still have your collarbones. No worries about your weight!)

[Spidey's mom, ADN, BSN, RN]

Oh I never said I didn't like them. I LOVE them....especially roasted in the oven with olive oil. But it's what happens when my insides get ahold of them. It's not pretty....well...it's pretty painful

Oh . . . I misunderstood!

GasX works really well. Take them before you eat anything gas-producing.

[ixchel]

I learned that you should not eat the organic salsa that your coworker brought to eat after it's been sitting out on the desk for a while.

Zofran and Reglan are two helluva drugs.

[emoji17][emoji16]

I pray the porcelain gods shall be merciful.

[poppycat, ADN, BSN]

Thank goodness for the SN forum-I need some smiles, as Christmas was a bit melancholy this year.

On Christmas Eve, after consulting with the vet, we essentially placed one of our cats in Kitty Hospice (and yes, I totally played the "I'm a Hospice nurse" card so the vet could go over labs and options without having to explain every. single. thing. Sue me).

Probable terminal diagnosis of gastric lymphoma. He's almost 18, and that's what kitties tend to get at that age. So, definitely no surgery, chemo, or further testing. He's also been hyperthyroid for almost 10 years, with very few problems.

We're treating the vomiting with an oral anti-emetic, letting him eat and drink whatever he wants and giving him plenty of snuggle time. So far, he's comfortable. As soon as he isn't, it will be time for "that talk" with the vet.

I'll miss my little buddy. He's been a part of our family for 18 years. I know some of you won't understand how completely "just a cat" can wrap himself around your heart. That's ok.

[ATTACH]20466[/ATTACH]

I completely understand. Your kitty looks like my baby I had to help over the Rainbow Bridge a few years ago. I still miss him every day.

[kbrn2002, ADN, RN]

I've learned that it is possible to gain 5 pounds in 5 days. I've never done that before. It's a new low.

A

Almost sorry for "liking" this Far. Almost....I am also kind of glad it's not just me!

[Farawyn]

A

Almost sorry for "liking" this Far. Almost....I am also kind of glad it's not just me!

It's okay. I'm making it work. Leggjngs and boots are very forgiving.

[Purple_roses]

Today I learned that I can successfully keep my Alzheimer's client on a 2-hour toileting schedule if we dance our way to the bathroom.

[Wrench Party]

1) Anytime a shift goes well on my floor and I leave early after giving report, it's witchcraft.

2) My yard is starting to turn into a permanent swamp. I wouldn't be surprised if ducks land in the water and start to breed.

3) I don't like when experienced nurses move on to other jobs

4) Not being responsible for planning or cooking on Christmas is awesome. I let other people do it this year and spent Christmas Eve and

Christmas Day chilling and watching Netflix.

[calivianya, BSN, RN]

3) I don't like when experienced nurses move on to other jobs

Feeling you. We just had two more have their last days this week, one has her last day next week, and another's last day is January 12th. I'm happy for them, but I'm starting to get resentful. Nobody stays more than a year anymore. Two of the ones leaving have been hired since *I* started, and I haven't even been here a year and a half yet. It's getting stupid.