brewerpaul

brewerpaul's Latest Activity

1. 

   Over time limit call coverage.

   brewerpaul replied to brewerpaul's topic in Operating Room

   My feeling is that staffing is a management issue, so they should manage it instead of passing the buck downstream.
2. 

   add on cases for kidney stones

   brewerpaul replied to soccergal14's topic in Operating Room

   An obstructed kidneys, one or two, is always an emergency. Leaving it til the next day could lead to damage, especially if the patient has a history of recurrent obstructions. Luckily, as call cases go, they're pretty short.
3. 

   Over time limit call coverage.

   brewerpaul posted a topic in Operating Room

   Here in NY state there's a law that when a nurse's time on the job exceeds 16 hours in a 24 hr period, he/she must be relieved. This may apply to other workers too- I just don't know. Yesterday I was on call. Worked 7a-3p regular time and then ended up staying on call until 10:30p. That put me very close to my 16hr limit. If I got called in again last night, I'd definitely go overtime. I texted my manager, who was supervisor last night, and told her of the situation. She reminded me that when we're on call, we're supposed to have a "call buddy" who agrees to come in if we go over the 16 hours. I'd never set up a buddy. Is this how most hospitals do this? To me it seems ridiculous. In essence, when I'm on call, my buddy is really on call too. It means that they can't go away for that weekend, can't have a couple of beers with friends, etc. In essence this doubles our call! Any better suggestions? Thanks
4. 

   CNOR sample questions online?

   brewerpaul posted a topic in Operating Room

   Just submitted my app for the CNOR exam. A while back when I was looking into this, I came across a website where you could buy access to a couple of hundred sample questions for about $50 for three day's access. Now I can't find that site: anyone know a link to it? I don't want to pay a fortune for a review course,just take some sample tests to get a feel for what they'll ask and HOW they ask it. Just like the NCLEX, I get a feeling that the wording of the questions for the CNOR is just as important as the content.
5. 

   Funny scrub story...

   brewerpaul replied to brewerpaul's topic in Operating Room

   Yeah, if you work with a Doc who can take a joke, the battle is half over.
6. 

   Funny scrub story...

   brewerpaul posted a topic in Operating Room

   One of the things I'm qualified to do in our OR is run the CO2 and Holmium laser. When I have a laser case scheduled, I'll often say "I'm Laser Man" tomorrow, so my kids got me a scrub top with "Laser Man" embroidered over the pocket. I wore it today for the first time for a laser lithotripsy of a ureteral stone. The urologist has a good sense of humor and he looked at it closely, then looked at the manufacturer's name on the sleeve. He asked me if that was my logo. I checked and told him "No, it's YOURS". The manufacturer? Dickies...
7. 

   Shoes?

   brewerpaul replied to Aneroo's topic in Operating Room

   I tried Danskos and found them too heavy for comfort. I usually wear Crocs (without holes on top) which are light and easy to slip off when I sit down. Otherwise I wear running shoes with custom orthotics and shoe covers.
8. 

   New and tired

   brewerpaul replied to FlyOR's topic in Operating Room

   Yes, the OR is VERY intense, especially for a newbie. There is so much to learn that bears practically no relation to any floor nursing you may have done. For months, I felt like I was drinking out of a fire hose... Hang in there and it WILL get easier. OR nursing is well worth the effort. BTW-- I always prided myself that I never took naps but now I often take one when I get home. I have a schedule similar to yours, and by quitting time I'm pooped!
9. 

   how you do charting???

   brewerpaul replied to Lasoniamacaroni's topic in Operating Room

   We use Meditech too. It IS ancient, but it has all the stuff we need and it's pretty easy. For some routine cases, we even have it set up so we can load a lot of the default values right up front rather than entering them all by hand. Makes it nice when the case is something fast like a straight cystoscopy where the chart would otherwise take longer than the actual procedure.
10. 

    OR Nurse t-shirts?

    brewerpaul replied to brewerpaul's topic in Operating Room

    Answered my own question: Cafepress already HAS OR nurse shirts and other stuff.
11. 

    OR Nurse t-shirts?

    brewerpaul posted a topic in Operating Room

    I've seen a lot of great nursing t-shirts for other specialties, but none for OR nurses.. Anyone here have any sources? Thanks. If not, maybe we could design our own on Cafepress or some similar place...
12. 

    Colonoscopy - sterile water or tap water?

    brewerpaul replied to CDNORRN's topic in Operating Room

    If there was ever a problem and a malpractice case was started, you'd be glad your record said "sterile", even though it might not make any difference medically. Imagine a prosecuting attorney asking you"Yes or no: did you or did you not use sterile water during this procedure?" I rest my case ;-)
13. 

    Counting for organ harvest?

    brewerpaul replied to Rose_Queen's topic in Operating Room

    Jeez... if the possibility of leaving a sponge on the floor is an issue for your OR, whoever turns your rooms over REALLY needs a good talking to!!
14. 

    Do you miss patient contact?

    brewerpaul replied to Irene joy's topic in Operating Room

    Fook'em! I just do it whenever possible. The waiting area is very near the OR and right on the way to where we pick up our next patient anyway. Besides, I'm the nurse who gets the most positive patient satisfaction feedback despite being in the OR for a relatively short time, so I guess management thinks I'm doing something right...
15. 

    What is the best "Team" to go on

    brewerpaul replied to spadesgirl's topic in Operating Room

    I agree that you should try to train in as many areas as you can. We have a small OR, so we all do everything (we don't do open heart,major trauma) If you can only do one, general might give you the most variety and should be pretty marketable, since just about any OR will do general cases.
16. 

    Do you miss patient contact?

    brewerpaul replied to Irene joy's topic in Operating Room

    Very well said (you others too). I came to OR nursing from a totally different world: I was a practicing Podiatrist for 30 years. Podiatry is ALL ABOUT patient contact since you see many of your patients month in, month out. I've treated as many as 4 generations in one family-- you almost become a part of the family. I do miss that long term contact, but the quick intimate contact of the OR is very satisfying indeed. One thing that I do (although most of my colleagues don't) is try to go to the waiting area after the case and have a brief chat with the patient's family. Even though the Doc has been out to tell them the outcome of the case, the family invariably REALLY appreciates hearing it from the nurse. Give it a try if you don't already do this.