nerdtonurse?

nerdtonurse? BSN, RN

ICU, Telemetry

Member

All Content by nerdtonurse?

  1. *Easy* things I just hate doing

    nerdtonurse? replied to SolaireSolstice's topic in General Nursing

    Finding out "call the doctor"--worthy lab or radiology results at 0300....when it was resulted at 3 PM....which is why I now come in early to check my charts for "surprises" Labels on IV tubes... DKA...

  2. To those that have a long commute

    nerdtonurse? replied to BettyBoop01's topic in General Nursing

    The rough part of that job will be if you work 12s. Say 1 hour to get ready, 1 1/2 to drive, not counting stopping for gas/food, and at least another 1 1/2 to get home. That's 16 hours out of 24....

  3. Check Hb post-transfusion?

    nerdtonurse? replied to talaxandra's topic in General Nursing

    With us, it's 4 hours, unless the patient is unstable (heavy GI bleed, for example). Then we get the blood in as fast as possible, recheck between the units, and keep transfusing. The problem with...

  4. Do you have a resident you cant stand?

    nerdtonurse? replied to sarafina's topic in Geriatric, LTC

    My aunt is just like that; if she was my patient in the ICU, I think I'd call in sick. The only thing I've ever, EVER seen work with her is setting very, very firm boundaries....the nicer you are to...

  5. North-East Blizzard - Everyone Becareful Reporting and Leaving Duty

    nerdtonurse? replied to DoGoodThenGo's topic in General Nursing

    I go in tonight...we've got 7 inches on the ground, and d/t low temps (23 right now), it's going to be a sheet of ice, and I'm 20 miles away. Packing a bag to take, prepared to get stuck. You guys...

  6. Punched in face, kicked by resident

    nerdtonurse? replied to favthing's topic in Geriatric, LTC

    Before I was in ICU, I worked telemetry. We had a guy for 3 months, same situation, brought in because he attacked a pizza delivery guy while naked and screaming at the time. So crazy yet so strong...

  7. Punched in face, kicked by resident

    nerdtonurse? replied to favthing's topic in Geriatric, LTC

    This is honestly one of the things that scares me about the next 50 years...we've got that huge "baby boomer" cohort that's going to be hitting the prime time for Alzheimers, dementia, etc. I spent...

  8. Pt choking and DNR....

    nerdtonurse? replied to Beachbum2010's topic in Geriatric, LTC

    Put on a lawyer hat for a second... "Nurse, did you initiate CPR on this patient or not?" "Yes, but they were choking." "Did you know the patient was a DNR?" "Yes, but they were choking." "And knowing...

  9. Adenosine vs. Cardizem in tachy med/surg pt.

    nerdtonurse? replied to RaziRN's topic in General Nursing

    It's hard to understand without seeing the pt's strip prior to the adenosine -- what's the baseline rhythm? Do they have afib, or a block going on? I've seen a doc jump straight to adenosine when...

  10. Just Need To Vent

    nerdtonurse? replied to king_of_the_hill_fan's topic in General Nursing

    Venting is a good thing. It keeps us from strangling the life out of the PITA people in our

  11. Nurses with Psych/Mental Health Issues

    nerdtonurse? replied to TexasNurseEducator's topic in General Nursing

    In my old life as a computer engineer, we'd occasionally get people who were just nuts. I mean, what I recognized now as clinically bipolar, major depressive disorder, personality disorder, full...

  12. When to hold bp medications

    nerdtonurse? replied to MelissaLPN's topic in Geriatric, LTC

    It depends. I have had patients that their best effort SBP was 90. You'd have to put them on Levophed or Dopamine to try to drive up the systolic. I've had docs who weren't concerned with a SBP of...

  13. Residents of LTC who abuse the staff

    nerdtonurse? replied to BVUstudent's topic in General Nursing

    I'm with you, Ruby. If they acted in WalMart like they act with us, they'd get arrested and nobody'd care that pawpaw's in ICU for the 10th time this year because nobody gives him his meds....they'd...

  14. What med should not be given prior to a CT scan with contrast and for 48 hours after?

    nerdtonurse? replied to sunnyskies9's topic in General Nursing

    FYI, you'd better look at creatinine, too. We've had radiology refuse to do contrast based on the patient's labs...so, look up it's effect on kidney function (med listed above, and creatinine). If...

  15. Leaving Meds at the Bedside?

    nerdtonurse? replied to joanna73's topic in Patient Medications

    With inhalers or drops, I get the doc to write me an order "may leave at bedside for patient use" and then have it taken off the MAR, if the patient wants to take them on their own schedule. With...

  16. Help. Is my outrage justified?

    nerdtonurse? replied to fairandbalanced's topic in General Students

    In a word, no. When you go to nursing school, on your first day, look around the class. Probably 30% of the people around you will not make it to graduation. People may bomb out by 1 point; they may...

  17. Should I tattle?

    nerdtonurse? replied to beachmom's topic in General Nursing

    Watch your back; it seems like those nurses you talked to want to get you in trouble. I mean, what's the complaint? When I was on the floor, I had nights like that all the time, and I was thrown...

  18. Just get out of nursing already

    nerdtonurse? replied to NurseLoveJoy88's topic in General Nursing

    Everybody has a bad day, nurses, doctors, lawyers, the guys on the cleaning crew, everyone. Everyone's had the day where they wonder, "why the heck did I take this job?" We've all got a need to...

  19. Report giving dread.

    nerdtonurse? replied to NocturneNrse's topic in General Nursing

    Yeah, we've got one that if you told them everything that had ever happened to them from birth onwards, they'd snap, "well, don't you know when they shed their baby teeth? Why not?" I mean, complete...

  20. MD Quote of the Week

    nerdtonurse? replied to blondy2061h's topic in General Nursing

    We had a surgeon who was an idiot. Had a patient who was a BKA, fell and broke his hip on the "good" leg. Patient was with us because he had all kinds of funky heart rhythms during the surgery. I...

  21. Some people should just stay quiet!!!

    nerdtonurse? replied to StephRN08's topic in General Nursing

    God, I wish you'd had the option to go in the back room, and come out absolutely CLANKING with 50 dozen ribbons in different colors. Of course, then she'd complain about all the noise....and another...

  22. Advice on how to return to workplace after traumatic experience?

    nerdtonurse? replied to ROSYJO11's topic in General Nursing

    I'd also suggest a grief and bereavement support group. There are a lot of people who've lost family, and sometimes it helps to be in a real or "virtual" community of people who are in your shoes....

  23. Too Short for ICU Nursing?

    nerdtonurse? replied to sixthwannabe's topic in CCU, Coronary, Cardiac

    I love it when we have a petite nurse on shift -- you can get in around the equipment and lines, chasing down a power cord or lead better than I can; I'm not fat, I'm tall and built like a Clydesdale....

  24. How to calculate continuous bladder irrigation?

    nerdtonurse? replied to ERsn's topic in General Nursing

    And for Pete's sake, never drop one of those bags. I was helping someone else, and the bag hit the floor after it had been spiked (but we hadn't completed the hook up to the patient, we were just...

  25. Tell me this doesn't happen all the time.

    nerdtonurse? replied to grannyrn65's topic in General Nursing

    I've seen a lot of post ops on my old floor; and as others have pointed out, a nurse is usually instructed NOT to do anything but reinforce a dressing until the first time the surgeon looks at the...