Babynurse78

I'm opposite, lol! I can usually start an IV but my luck is not as good when doing venous sticks with a butterfly. In fact, if it's a kid I just *know* I'll have a problem with, I'll stick for labs with the angiocath, withdraw the needle and drip the blood into the microtainer (or suck it out of the hub with a sterile syringe/blunt tip needle for a blood culture.) I think it's just one of those things that becomes easier with practice. I was in NICU for almost a year before I even attempted starting an IV without backup standing by to help me hold or flush etc. - I was just so awkward with it I'd get it in but then blow the vein or pull out the catheter when trying to advance or flush. Practices makes it better! Volunteer to start IV's for other nurses. A new admit (non-volume depleted!) with "fresh" veins can be a real confidence booster! My one "real tip" - try loosening the hub before sticking, it makes it easier to advance!

We generally put a piece of silk tape across the hub close to the insertion site. Our catheters have wings, so we then chevron tape down over the wing with another piece of silk tape, imagine it forming a "U" shape. (If your catheter is wingless, you could do the "classic" chevron taping where each end crosses the hub.) Then the whole site is covered with a tegaderm, and the t-connector tubing is looped and taped down over the top of the tegaderm for extra security. This keeps the iv in securely for most babies and the site remains visible. The silk tape is my favorite - holds better than the paper tape, but doesn't tear up the skin like the "plastic" tape.

We do footprints of the infant and thumbprint of mom at delivery on all infants for the Hollister record. We use the inkless wipes. We also do footprints on a "keepsake" birth certificate when the infant is stable, that is sent to medical records to have all the information typed in. Med. records then mails it to the parents.

We start weaning once the infant reaches 1800 grams. We decrease 0.5-1 degree Celsius each assessment to 27 degrees. The infant starts out dressed in a onesie or sleeper and a hat. We swaddle them once the isolette temp is down to 29 degrees.

Thanks! I'd forgotten all about Baylor All Saints. I do like the idea of Baylor's TDA/weekend program, which is why I'm considering Baylor Grapevine too. I did clinicals at Plaza when I was in nursing school, but it always worries me when a place is offering huge sign-on bonuses. If they have to pay that much money in sign-on to entice new nurses, I imagine the experienced nurses must be leaving in droves to get away from a bad situation. Thanks for the heads-up! One thing I forgot to ask about in my initial post is contracts. Here in LA, or at least the area I'm in, no hospital requires contracts. There are a few that offer sign-on bonuses, and I believe you'd have to sign a contract there, but you can forego the bonus and not have to sign a contract. So, are there hospitals in that area that don't require contracts, or allow you to refuse the sign-on bonus to avoid signing a contract? I just hate the thought of commiting to work somewhere for a certain number of years upfront, without knowing much about the hospital, unit or manager yet. Thanks for the info about the PRN pay. Your suggestion is exactly what I'm considering doing, maybe not right away, but definitely at some time in the near future. My husband is also a RN, so that would work well for us. Is it easy to find PRN work 36 hrs/wk there, or do you have to worry about being short on hours because you're not needed frequently?

My husband and I are planning to move back to Texas from Louisiana. I am a RN in newborn nursery now, and I'd like to find a job in nursery or NICU. My husband is a cardiac telemetry RN at a heart specialty hospital and he's looking for a similar position, at a place where he could eventually grow into a position in a CVICU at the same facility. We'll be living in the HEB area and I'm hoping to work in Fort Worth rather than Dallas. I have worked at Baylor and Methodist before (not as a nurse though), and enjoyed both for the most part, but I'd prefer to stick to Fort Worth this time. We're both really interested in Harris Methodist Fort Worth, and I'm also considering Harris Methodist HEB or Baylor Grapevine myself. Does anyone have any input on these hospitals or suggestions of other hospitals we should consider? Also, what could we expect as far as pay from these hospitals with 1-2yrs experience as RNs? I'm thinking $23-24/hr from what I've read, but I don't know if that's accurate or not.