Ellekat

Latest Activity

1. Are you going to work tommorow in the big storm?

   Ellekat replied to Blackheartednurse's topic in General Nursing

   I'm not scheduled tomorrow. I'll be in Thursday, no matter what. I won't volunteer, however. I used to do that, until I found out that while I didn't get time and a half because I volunteered to come in, others that they had to cajole to come in g...

2. Going from Hospice to Medsurg..HELP.worried

   Ellekat replied to dixiesnurse's topic in Med-Surg

   I work on a surgical/ortho floor. We take report, check lab values, pass meds, then start dismissing/admitting like mad. We assess head-to-toe once, but assess continuously for changes with each patient contact. If it's a small hospital, learning ...

3. Can Nursing student working in a Doctors office draw blood?

   Ellekat replied to kgl22's topic in General Nursing

   It will vary by state. In Kansas you would be considered to be working under the physician's license as long as your are working in his/her office/clinic. Just draw a clear line between your job as a phlebotomist/patient tech (or whatever you are c...

4. what do u say to pts when they ask where u live?

   Ellekat replied to JadeRN722's topic in General Nursing

   Like Christine, I give a vague answer; Over by _____ school, on ____ street. Never an exact address. They are just trying to make conversation and "place" me in the community. I often get asked my husband's name, too. We don't have a listed phon...

5. Nursing in the next 10 years

   Ellekat replied to linguine's topic in General Nursing

   I believe that nurses SHOULD have a BSN and that gradually we will see that change. If most computer charting is like ours, I see the nurse getting further and further from the bedside. I've found that in the last three years I've moved from the b...

6. What does your username mean?

   Ellekat replied to LifesAJourney's topic in Humor

   My name is Elle...and I have a cat. Lol.

7. Cause for HUGE blisters on feet?

   Ellekat replied to ws582's topic in Med-Surg

   Just curious. Did he have SCD's on at any time? We've had several patients lately who have developed large, fluid-filled blisters on the top of their feet; we think it is the SCDs.

8. Do give up your seat for a doctor?

   Ellekat replied to Pmkn10RN's topic in General Nursing

   I guess I'm "old school" because yes, I will. Our doctors put in long hours and need access to the patient records. We have one computer for the doctors, and usually 4-5 doctors on the floor at the time. I do my assessments and take notes on the c...

9. Post op Admissions During Shift Change?

   Ellekat replied to All4Seasons's topic in Med-Surg

   Admits from OR or ED are assumed to be stable; the aide takes vitals and the nurse sees them as soon as possible. It does keep us from seeing patients. Getting an admit at shift change can put a nurse behind by several hours throughout the day. Wh...

10. Most Common Patient Diagnoses

    Ellekat replied to beauty912's topic in Med-Surg

    I work surgical, ortho and peds. Most of our pediatric patients are respiratory. We occasionally have a tonsilectomy that the physician wants to have watched overnight or an appendectomy, and a fair number of viral patients that need supportive ca...

11. Renal question

    Ellekat replied to licha's topic in General Nursing

    Dialysis can (but does not have to) remove fluid from the circulatory system. Most patients are assigned a "dry weight" that is the weight the patient should be when he/she comes off the dialysis machine. I don't know where the fluid in the bladd...

12. Could this have been a blood transfusion reaction?

    Ellekat replied to 09NewGrad's topic in General Nursing

    My one experience with suspected blood transfusion reaction was from an autologous infusion. I called the physician, who insisted the blood should continue. After conferring with the house supervisor, I followed protocol and stopped the infusion. A...

13. Favorite CEU sites?

    Ellekat posted a topic in Med-Surg

    What are your favorite nursing CEU sites? I like inexpensive/free, so I use Medscape and PowerPak most often. I'd like to expand my list to include a variety of sites.

14. What is the maximum number of patients per nurse?

    Ellekat replied to Info(RN)matics's topic in Med-Surg

    We usually start out with six, although it's supposed to be four. We'll have 4 nurses and two aides for 18-24 patients. We've had up to 15 admissions on one shift with just three nurses (and that obviously means we've had many dismissals, too). Ye...

15. how many nursing jobs have you had/how long have you been a nurse?

    Ellekat replied to HappyNurse2005's topic in General Nursing

    Job 1 - 3 years; remarried and relocated Job 2 - 3.5 years; needed days for special needs of a child, so Job 3 - 2.5 years; husband relocated, so Job 4 - 8 years I keep thinking I need a new job but don't have the energy to look!