meannana

one day at a time and each day you will get better

I am on a much needed vacation and my DON called today and left a message for me to call when i got home. That was 6 hrs. ago and guess what, I'm still not home. I work lots of OT, but not when I'm on vaction. Other times I just don't answer the phone if I don't want to work and my DON knows that if I don't return her call in 2-3 hrs. I don't want to work

what's it like to work with alz pts.--------------frustrating, biggggggggg challange, fun.. heartbreaking, and not everyone can do it. But if you are one of the ones that can handle this job then go for it because it is sooooooooo very rewarding.

also old school,but we have some new LPNs and they have been taught all the sites and when they are in doubt they will ask and older nurse if they are right before they give the injection. I work LTC and there aren't too many deltoids in our facility that I would want to stick a needle into

I wish I had a great story to tell, but I don't. Did I want to be a nurse when I was 6, no I Wanted a BeBe gun like my brothers had. Did I want to be a nurse because someone close to me had a dramatic illness, no. I wanted to join the Navy when I finished highschool, but my Mom said no, decent girls didn't do that, I wasn't sure I wanted to be a decent girl either. So, I got married and went to work in a factory and I hated it, so my sister-in-law said go to work at the nursing home with me. So I did and I made $1.25 an hour, wow. See how long ago that was. But, I loved it and did it for most of the next 19 years. I went home from work one day and told my husband[ not the first one, because I was a widow at 22, and not the second one , he was an abuser,but the third one , he was a keeper] that I just could not take care of my pts. anymore because it was too hard and I was too old. He asked what I would do if I could do anything I wanted and I said go back to school. He asked what I wanted to be when I "grew up" and I said an LPN. He picked uo the phone and called the local VO-TECH and started pushing me through school. Was it hard? Yes, We had two teenage daughters, but they got me through. Have I ever regretted it , no, I love what I do . I have spent most of the last 18 years in LTC. I have thought about getting my RN, but they don' have nearly as much fun as I do. But that fun will end before I am ready I fear. You see I am a bad arthritic and Probably want be able to walk many more years, but I guess I could always get a scooter lol. So all you gals and guys that are just starting out, hang tuff, it's worth every pain, every insult and every missed Holiday.

This is good info. Have had only one LDS pt. and her daughter is our Admin.

I have worked about every shift you can imagine in LTC and just in the past year went to 11-7, my choice, because after 20 years of running the halls my feet are rebelling and the stress level on days is awful. i am much more relaxed now and my family like me better. Lso more hands on and belive it or not a lot of my pts. are up for hours at night because they don't need 8 or 10 hours of sleep

I have worked LTC most of my 20 year career in nursing and have been at the facility I am with now for 3 years, all Ltc has problems, some more then others. You just have to decide where you are needed the most and make where you are the very best that you can after all the pts. are the #1 priority to nurses

and guess what , looks like I can't spell

Isn't it wonderful that someone took the time to bring a smie to the faces of your Pt. I would be all for it, just not sure how admin. would feel about it and as for as the stae goes,you could have pleded the 5th

I also thought about ER as my choice, but knew in my heart it had to beLCT, but it isn't easy either, there is no easy place in nursing

:welcome: tell all about Arkansas, Gee I only have a week of vacation,but I will start by saying this is a beautiful place to live, the people are ,as a rule ,very nice, helpful and friendly. The LPN pay is probably not the best but there are other states that pay less. Education for your children is pretty good, at least in the smaller towns. We have alot of things going on here, state parks etc. What else would you like to know?