jbjfan

good for you! thanks for sharing your story! i am so excited to be a part of this profession! i am so fortunate. thanks for the inspiration! keep up the good work, you are truely an asset to your patients, your hospital and to the nursing profession! :roll

I am a new grad (8/06) and I just did my L&D rotation in October. The only advice or pointers that I have to share is to remember to watch for "late decelerations" and reposition the mother. Also try not to dismiss a persons pain rate. While I was in that rotation, some of the "seasoned" nurses made comments like "yeah, its gonna hurt, thats why they call it labor" or "you should of thought about the delivery before you got pregnant". Like anyone could explain what labor is really like! Just try not to judge or form opinions about the person in labor, they are probably goin through something that was totally unexpected (the delivery), and even if this isn't their first delivery, everyone is different, and they are probably a little nervous about everything thats going on. It can be a very frightening experience. Keep an open mind. I remember one young woman I was caring for, she was scheduled for a c-sec, and was nervous because she knew her baby had hydroceph., but really didn't understand what that meant. I could tell when she went to the OR that she was really nervous, and I observed several medical staff all moving around and setting things up, that they kinda forgot that there was a person there, and she was scared, and had no idea what was about to happen to her or her baby. I just went over and held her hand and talked to her about all the "setting things up" that was going on around her. She looked at me with tears in her eyes and asked me to stay with her because there was nobody else to hold her hand. As a student I felt so fortunate - you are in an awesome position to show compassion to the patient, and still observe what the nurses are doing. When you are asking questions on the patients behalf, you can learn so much too. Good luck with your L&D rotation, I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. It is a wonderful experience and a privlige to be predent when a new life is delivered! :nuke:

Congrats! Great job! Best wishes on your job search!

I'm almost peeing myself reading this! And I have one to add that hasn't been mentioned yet, when I was about 15 years old, my parents had these christmas lights around their doorway, ,the little twinkle kind, but they were multi colored. I wondered what the different colors would look like shining through my nose, so I proceded to put one up there, it sorta got stuck and when I laughed through my nose I got a terrible skock that knocked me on my butt! My family reminds me of this every christmas when put up the lights!

thanks for the NCLEX tips! I don't know when I'll be testing, wish it was next week! I feel prepared now, but I don't know how long that feeling will last. Thanks for the reply! jbjfan

congrats on passing your exam! Still waiting to take mine - any advice? I just graduated from a diploma program 8/3. I'm trying to study but I don't even know what to study! I think you should look for the unit you want to work on. I know I have heard the same thing from some "seasoned" nurses, that all grads should start in med/surg. I think thats why so many reach burn out so quickly, they're not concentrating on what they are interrested in. Personally, I am interrested in the ED and eventually I'd love to get on a helicopter. I know I have lots to learn, so I found an intership (paid) in a critical care/trauma position. I am excited to start, because its what I'm interrested in doing, I have that "passion" for this type of medicine. I think if I had to start in med/surg, I would not be as excited to start, therefore I probably would not do as well. Follow your passion - it will drive you to continue even when things get tough. Good luck!