AggieQT

Hey guys! I was wondering if you guys could help me out by telling me how your unit handles callbacks for discharged ED patients. My director has assigned me the task of figuring out a way to achieve 100% attempts at all discharged patients. Currently, only staff members on light duty are doing the service call backs. My director wants to have ALL staff members (nurses/techs) participate in callbacks. Our ED daily census is aprox 160-180 patients a day with a high number (40-50) of admissions. So we are looking at 120-140 call backs daily. Any thoughts? Input? Suggestions? Thank you in advance for your response!!!!

My suggestion, remember what it is like to sit through a presentation where someone reads word for word a powerpoint slide... HORRIBLE Be interactive, asking questions, showing pictures (of supplies, LP, ABX, etc) Get interesting statistics that have the "Wow I had no clue" factor And then maybe at the end, because I do agree the subject is the farthest thing from fun that I can imagine, close with "Now that you have learned about Neonatal Sepsis and are utterly depressed here is something to cheer you up" and have a Nursing Comic or a really funny TOTALLY off topic picture to cheer everyone up. Good luck!

I just got off orientation... I was experienced in a Pediatric ER and went to a Level I trauma center with both adults/kids... I got 6 weeks... others are getting between 4-8 depending on how many years experience they have. Good Luck!

Just to answer someones questions a few pages back about the Hep B titer... the only thing they really care about IS the titer. They honestly could care less about proving you had the series, they want proof you have the antibodies for Hep B (which means you did in fact receive the vaccination) You can call the student wellness office to confirm, but EVERYONE must have the titer, if you have a vaccination record then that's just icing on the cake. Oh and you must have the titer to go to clinicals... good thing is- you have at least 4 or more weeks after the start of the semester before your first clinical, so you have time right now to do the rapid series/titer if you have not started. If you have any questions or are worried, call the student wellness office as soon as possible and explain your situation. They are awesomely nice, and will be able to give you direction.

Hey I passed my CPEN today too!!!! Yay us!!!!!

I honestly don't think you need us to tell you our opinions. It seems to me that you already have made a choice but are scared to actually go through with it. What you are looking for is encouragement. I say do what is best for your family. Period. You need to do some soul searching, sit down and actually list out the pros and cons of each job as its related to both your family's financial and emotional future. Don't just give up at your current job because of fears if your family needs the stable income you know you will receive by staying, but also don't stay if your family needs you home more and doesn't need the extra money. It all depends on your current situation and no one on here can assess that but you. Good Luck.

Where I work, you are assigned 2 preceptors (one with less than 2 years of experience and one with 5-10 or more years of experience) We do this for several reasons... 1) While the more experienced nurse may be an invaluable resource of knowledge, they jump from point A to point D within seconds and its sometimes harder for them to think things through like a new grad needs. The newer nurses are still thinking through the whole process and are many times able to verbalize the rationals and such that a new grad needs to develop. 2) Scheduling... it makes it easier when you have 2 different schedules to pick shifts from when you are new. If you need a certain day off, it can easily be done and you aren't stuck with just one schedule 3) Personalities... Sometimes personalities don't click and so the new grad can schedule to be with one preceptor while things are being worked out to switch the other one. All of these things go together to help retention. A happier, more nurturing flexible environment makes it easier to transition to being both a professional and a team member. Our new grads get 22 weeks MINIMUM orientation and we strive hard to give them every opportunity to be successful. I'm completely ok with people with a year of experience being a preceptor, especially how our unit has it set up.

We have an average of 4:1 ratio, sometimes 5:1... BUT we don't have EMTs and our techs are only allowed to place pts in rooms, splints and restock rooms... seriously... so the nurses do EVERYTHING... it can be done and with your license intact... its all about prioritizing, and teamwork :)

Hey now... lets not attack people... just because you don't agree with someones post does not make them "ill informed" They may live in a region of the country that does not have huge masses applying for CRNA school. That poster was stating their perspective, you posted yours. Lets be courteous to one another and respect different opinions.

Met my husband online! A year before I went off to college I started trying to network in the town I was going to be moving to. We talked online for a long time, then when I finally moved, we met, dated, fell in love, married, he supported me through nursing school after he graduated with an economics degree... he entered into the business world, worked for 3 years only to later go to nursing school!

so cute :)

My advice: Stay out of it. Let your friend do her battle and watch out for your future and career by keeping your mouth shut. Don't pick sides and when your friend wants to vent, suggest another topic and explain to her your reasoning for staying out of it.

I don’t know if this is what you are asking or not. This is how I was taught prioritization in school by one of my most favorite professors. Until it was explained in this way, I didn’t get quite get it either. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs First, ask yourself is it a physical or psychosocial need? Physical need goes before psychosocial every time (for NCLEX anyways) And yes, PAIN is considered psychosocial in the NCLEX God’s eyes. After you eliminate any psychosocial answers, then ABCDE the physical needs. Of course airway comes before circulation and so on. Then ALWAYS STOP and ask yourself, if I can only do ONE thing for my patient, and ONE THING ONLY and then I have to walk away and go home, what would have the biggest impact on my patient’s survival/wellbeing? I carried those theories into practice and so far it has REALLY helped me as an emergency room RN. Side note: I plan to teach in the very near future and hope what I just typed isn’t rubbish in the real world of teaching. Good luck!

I'm a new grad in a pediatric ED.... I applied early in February and interviewed in early March to start working in June. There are several new grads in my unit and we all did the same thing and were told there were many more that applied for the positions that we eventually got. I think applying early was the biggest reason we were hired, other than that we all joke that we have no clue why we were chosen. But we are also all extremely gracious and happy that we were the ones to get the spots. My strongest advice though would be to apply asap, have a nice professional resume, and dress professionally during the interview. Also, be excited about the job and the position when you interview. Good Luck!

My opinion... it all depends on the individual and the unit you are applying to... do I think my nursing program prepared me for the ER (even with doing clinicals in 3 ERs and taking an extra elective ER nursing course)? HECK NO... BUT I was blessed to get hired on into a Residency Program that lasts 22 weeks... we get both didactic as well as clinical experience that is unit specific... think of it as 6 months of EXTRA training specific to the ER... I'm a little over halfway through and learning sooo much, but I also have the support from my preceptors as well as the residency program backing me... I take initiative and read up and learn on my own time as well... COuld I handle a level I trauma center? Prob not right now... but I'm doing just fine right now because I have the structured support of the program and unit management. Don't let anyone tell you what you can and can't do... but do realize that they are speaking from experience and do think things through before you make your decision. Good luck!