10MG-IV

I know this is late, but There, there, Sug, Bless your little Heart!:redbeathe

WE have a certified LSU nut MD, certified FLA GATORS P.A., the registration ladies are Vols Orange from head to toe, along with TN Titan fans, 2-3 nurses and 1 MD are UAB 'Bama Crimson Tide all the way. Now the 5 Georgia Bulldog fans are another story. I think there is some one above the Mason Dixon line for New York........I am STILL pulling for the Saints and LSU of course. Tulane, Green Wave too. and that is just part of day shift. Lockers are decorated, Flags are out, bobble heads are on the desks on game day and yes we are wearing our colors. Game day usually is not quiet in the ER..... Shhhhh.....

In a NYsecond, I would leave, but while I am still in it I am giving 110%. BTW, it is not getting me anywhere with the new crowd of nurses, new thinking Gen X nurses. Where did this group come from? I would say 1 out of 5 have made it on our unit. Don't go into Nursing for the money, your heart has to lead you into being a nurse. A shift does not go by that I don't lament, "Florence and Clara would roll over in their graves if they were to see nursing today".

E**exor. The worst drug IMHO. my CHO went up to 300 on it, took me a year of weaning brain zaps, ups and downs to get off and now the CHO is >120 I was crying after 9-11 and they though I needed it. once on hard to get off.

regarding the Le-a name. my best friend a teacher in Louisiana has a Le-a in her class. and if you look on the strange name blog Le-a sightings are posted.

Oncology Unit I had a patient call the desk " your nurse is passed out in here" I (charge RN) ran in the room and sure enough, out on the floor,look listen feel, pulse present, slow resp. grunting, and there it was a IV INT lock in her upper rt arm with his empty Dilaudid Pain med syringe in it. I should have just called a code so all could see, but I pulled her out to the hall by her heels, called all supervisors, got her on a stretcher to the ER and put on a pot of coffee. Oh, once I could not find one of the nurses for a hour or so. We had a rest room right out by the elevators and lots of us used it. I ran out there to partake of the facilities and look for my nurse. I pulled open the door and there he was sitting on the toilet pants around his ankles smoking a joint. GREAT! This was back in the day when yes believe it or not nurses smoked in the break room, and patients smoked in their rooms. HOLY COW. I think we ran our needles through cotton to see if there were barbs before putting them in the autoclave. HA!

I agree with Canoehead, everyone falls, not everyone gets up, dusts themselves off, holds their head up high and goes on. All those trials and tribulations become experience. You now have the experience to recognize the signs and symptoms... you know first hand. You are stronger for it and will be able to help the next panic ridden soul through their experience. As for Depression and Effexor, watch your cholesterol levels!check out the side effects listed. My MD said I was crazy when I told him my lipids were over 300 because of Effexor. I was right. I took a YEAR to wean off. read up about it. It was a horrible year of nursing for me, all my staff and my supervisors, but they helped me through it menopause on top of it all too. ARRRrrrGGGaahhhhhhh Glad you are up... and at em.

I have a 15 year old Littmann Master Cardiology Stethoscope and low and behold I found it in the drawer with a STIFF tubing. So, what do I have to loose but a refurbish fee and or buying a new tubing for 80 bucks. I got the purple degreaser and the hottest water and soaked the tubing for 20 min or so I drip dried it and it is considerably less 'stiff'. I think I will repeat the procedure. Now for the disclaimer 4 lawyers. If you attempe this procedure you are doing it on your own freewill. I am not responsible for your results. I do not make any money from this website, I do not own stock or companies that sell degreaser or stethoscopes. I am telling you what I did to save a few bucks and my results.

Well, here is one for you. I warm the Salem sump tube! Curl it in a styro cup of very warm water. It becomes very flexible and easy to navigate the curves. Have the Pt sit straight up chin on chest with a cup of ice / water in a cup with a straw handy. Have your tape torn and the bulb syringe already attached to the end of the tube. Have your suction ready and a towel or sheet over the pts lap. Reassure the patient, Lube that puppy up with viscous lidocaine and slowly gently slide it in. Stop if you meet resistance. Don't keep on shoving, wait for the "swallow" and coordinate the insertion with the "swallow" I found if the tube is flexible, it manuvers on down. Coach them on swallowing and check the back of the mouth throat for curling. I have had great luck with this method a "old nurse" showed me. Let me know if this works for you!

RANT: I resent the 1-10 pain scale. we have to "ASK" which in my opinion is a "PROMPT" " on a scale of 1-10, 10 being the worst pain you ever have experienced, what is your pain now?" Of course the answer is 10/10. NOW I don't ask..... I chart what I see. I went to 4 years of school and have 30 years of critical care, I THINK I KNOW HOW to assess PAIN. SO,I chart what I see or hear, "none stated by "client" no facial grimace, skin w/d, watching TV talking on phone, no resp distress, chewing gum, eating chips, drinking coke,playing gameboy, listening to I-Pod, no vomiting, etc. you get the picture... and record the vitals which we trend. and I trend EVERYONE q 15 min I want them to get their $$$'s worth. :chuckle HA HA HA now, I know my Patient Demographics are different than yours and I have been selective on my rant. Not all Patients in pain are this way... THESE make me crazy, that is why it is a rant..... @ Triage is insane! CHEST PAIN w/ back pain w/SORE THROATx3wks .. 10/10 THEY are talking on the cell, chewing chips,gum, drinking cola no obvious distress, no difficulty w/sitting standing,smooth steady gait. PAIN??? oh its a 10 yeah 10.(the day before the rock concert) Since they c/o CHEST PAIN....We do a "TIMI RISK card" boot them back to the waiting room ACCORDINGLY. now the Acute MI,:redbeathe presents with SYMPTOMS nausea, diaphoretic, ashen, anxious,shallow or labored respirations, syncope, but they are in DENIAL BUT THEY tell me it is a dull ache, 3 or 4 "I think it's indigestion that burger I ate" GET THEM BACK NOW.... OH all the rooms are full of sore throats and back pains.......GO FIGURE!!!!! Become a real EMERGENCY ROOM NOT A CLINIC. MY OPINION..& vent..NOT A HUMBLE ONE EITHER....

When in the situation of a terminal dying human, most are not comfortable. We at times avoid the room, do the q 1 hour turn and assessment, look at the family gathered around the bedside and offer words of comfort some how. We have all the tools we need to allay suffering. we know the outcome, yet we are never ready. I have pushed more morphine Diprovan ativan inapsine than a narc box can hold and until the soul/spirit is ready to leave the body, will death occur. just my observations of watching the last breath sitting at bedside and being there with the families. I have seen patients receive ungodly amounts of the above and none have taken their last breath while large doses of morphine was pushed. Many refused to die till they were good and ready... till a wedding was over, and the bride and groom came to their room, till the day of their pension would go into effect so their spouse could get benefits, till a brother sister mother father made it to the bedside. We give so much credit to ourselves and the medications we administer. We tear each other down with out seeing the whole picture. You have to live with yourself and your actions. Be true to yourself. Just remember the spirit is strong even though the shell is weak. Slow down and hold their hand talk softly and don't be afraid of the dying, don't be afraid to give the medication to keep them out of pain, physical or mental. That is what being a nurse is. relieving fear, pain and anxiety and helping one die with dignity. NurseCutie it sounds like you have insight and concern for your patients. Asking 4 opinions will get you many.

Hey, I have worked with her too! I have taken care of Louisiana Bacon, Pink Lemons, and Precious and her sister Delicious there was a third sister I can't recall her name. it wasn't Nutritious... Oh I almost forgot..... Bambi..... who could forget Bambi. the dancer.

A friend that works in the BAYOU sent this to me. How do you pronounce this name Le-a? Leah?? NO Lee - A?? NOPE Lay - a?? NO Lei?? Guess Again. It's pronounced "Ledasha" Oh yes...you read it right. This child attends a school in Livingston Parish, LA. Her mother is irate because everyone is getting her name wrong. SO, if you see something come across your desk like this please remember to pronounce it correctly. When the mother was asked about the pronunciation of the name, she said "the dash don't be silent". OMG!!!!!!