Not having a clue

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I really know very little, especially about the specialized stuff, so it was quite a surprise when the agency got me a shift in the bone marrow transplant unit. The nurses knew I knew nothing, but they were so short staffed, they took me on anyway.

They were so nice to me. I got paid a full rate, and all I had to do was spend the day doing everyone's obs every hour - BP, pulse, temp, 02 sats. They also let me give some meds - but not the IV ones as they were drugs I generally had no idea about.

A couple of things I learned

- don't enter through the main door to the room, use the side entrance, it has to do with keeping the bugs out. Quite a lot of them had their immune system compromised.

- they're supposed to spit out the cocaine mouthwash, not swallow it. I'm not sure if some of them were more chatty, or if it was my imagination.

Anyway, I worked here probably about a dozen times in total. It's not an area I'd choose to work in long term, but it certainly was an eye-opener. I feel agency nursing has given me a glimpse into many different areas. I sort of know a little bit of many different things, which is interesting, maybe even useful.

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It guess the upside of working for an agency, is that allows a nurse to experience a jack of all trades type of career without full responsibility, the down side (to me) is that a jack of all trades, is a master of none.

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Specializes in Nurse Leader specializing in Labor & Delivery.

Okay, I'll bite. Sigh.

Cocaine mouthwash?

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Specializes in M/S, LTC, Corrections, PDN & drug rehab.

I wouldn't spit out cocaine mouth wash either, for obvious reason. Duh!

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And coming up on tonight's episode of "The Inmates Are Running the Asylum"...

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Okay, I'll bite. Sigh.

Cocaine mouthwash?

I discovered that the patients get severe mouth ulcers, one of the many side effects of the treatments, and the cocaine mouthwash works the best. It was the first time I had come across it in hospital.

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It guess the upside of working for an agency, is that allows a nurse to experience a jack of all trades type of career without full responsibility, the down side (to me) is that a jack of all trades, is a master of none.

I think that is why I ended up in the emergency room. And as much as I found a big trauma exciting to get involved in with the team, it was the minor injuries side I liked the most, as it was so practical and so many people had such interesting ways of fixing similar problems, some truly unique.

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Specializes in Neuro ICU and Med Surg.

I have seen cocaine in the pyxis at the hospital. It was only stocked in the main pharmacy. I have never heard of cocaine mouthwash though. I have heard of it used to staunch bleeding.

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