Barbara63

agree that rales sound like hair rubbing together and rhonci usually clears with coughing...wheezing is different

Our hospital now has a policy that spells out what to do. Before the policy was written several years ago a Mom brought her Baby to the ED, and since we have police in our ED at all times they tried to talk to the Mom and frighted her. She did relinquish the baby to us, and she was allowed to leave, but it was a very confusing situation. It is important to not frighten the Mom as she might run with the baby, and the whole purpose of the law is for the protection of the baby. Our 24/7 social worker is called in to help, and an attempt is made to get as much of the baby's medical history as possible from the Mom before she leaves. If the Mom does not want to give any information about the baby then no information is obtained. No attempt is made to get information on the Mom or restrain her in any way. Barbara

RN Susan, I'm not sure but I believe the Bird was the first ventilator developed for an infant. It was not volume dependant like the adult ones were. If it is the one I am thinking about it was developed by a Neonatologist in San Antonio Texas at the Air Force Hospital. He did a lot of research there and had to build the first one from parts he invented. Prior to that we used a ventilator called a Jade which was just a small version of the adults ones. To put a child on a ventilator before the Bird was pretty much the kiss of death because of all the lung damange they received. As was a tracheotomy for a child back in the 60's.....they only had a 50% survival rate. The equipment used for Pediatrics has changed radically thanks to NASA and their need for making everything small to fit in the space capsule. Barbara

I remember the clip on buttons. To this day I can't imagine sitting on a patient's bed....it's hard enough to sit in the chair while I give discharge instructions. In the ER most of the nurses call the physicians by their first name, but I can't do that....it was never allowed and some habits are really hard to break. How things have changed, and in some ways things have not changed at all. Thanks for this trip down memory lane. Barbara

Any of you remember as students when you lived in the dorm and ate in the hospital cafeteria and had to wear your uniform to meals? And your uniform was a pink (or blue) dress with a white apron. The apron was starched really stiff and you pulled it from the back and crossed it in the front when you sat down so it wouldn't be wrinkled? Talking about dorms and liquor reminds me that when you finished off a bottle of liquor you left at least an inch of it in the bottom so when you put it down the laundry chute in the dorm the housekeepers wouldn't report you to the Dorm Mother. Dorms were quite an experience but they did build up a camaraderie that I think is missing from nursing school now. The Dorm Mother was the Queen Bee and ruled with an iron fist. You dared not upset her. If she wasn't happy with you she might fail to buzz your room to let you know you had company, or she would hand out demerits if you were so much as a minute late getting in past curfew. Barbara

The first one of those is close, but her's was taller with a point and the dust ruffle went to the middle of her back. I'm delighted to see my cap is an antique...it's the last one the first page Barbara

The picture can't be too old. The caps don't have a dust ruffle on them. I had an instructor in nursing school whose cap had the dust ruffle. Now that is old. Barbara

We have a quick look nurse who talks with the patient upon their arrival at triage. Based upon their complaint and appearance he/she makes a quick judgment call as to which ESI Level he/she thinks they will be The patients are registered at the same time and then sent to triage based on the presumed ESI Level. The triage nurse can change the ESI Level once she completes the triage. This gets the ESI Level 1 and 2 patients directly to a bed in a very timely manner. Barbara

My starting salary was $2.85 an hour as a GN. I am a Pedi Nurse and when the IV pumps came along it was such a blessing....no more dry solusets and having to restart IV's in the middle of the night. Barbara

Thanks for the trip down memory lane. I remember the no ICU and you did rotating tourniquets on the floor. As a student the arrest cart was a glass case on the wall holding a knife blade and handle to open the chest with. In NICU the isolette that functioned like an iron lung (can't remember the name for it), and you weaned the babies by how they looked....no sats. And sad to say but I do remember sharpening the needles. You kept them in a little metal container in the medicine room and used forcepts to get them out of the container. Barbara