RN ColbyJack

I'm very interested in cardiac rehab (currently work at the bedside in a cardiovascular unit.) I'll talk with the RNs at my facility and see what they know.

I've worked for the same hospital since graduating from nursing school five years ago. I'd like to update my resume but need help getting started. Anyone have tips or suggestions, on-line resources, examples of experienced nurses' resumes? Thanks! :redbeathe

Thanks all! Happy breakfast!

Just bought some almonds today! Thanks!

I work day shift and often eat breakfast before morning report at 7am. Usually an English muffin egg sandwich. I find that I'm hungry again by 9am, sometimes before my morning assessments and med passes are done. The hunger just grows until I'm distracted and irritable, ugh! Does anybody with the same problem have a suggestion for a power breakfast that will last me more than a couple of hours? Thanks!

Airborne! A lifesaver during cold season.

My nursing school accepted all of my previous college credits but like the person above said, best to check with the specific schools you're considering. Good luck!

I was in a similar situation. I had a bachelors in biology & sociology. A few years later I wanted to pursue nursing and I chose to get an associates degree in nursing. I feel very, very good about my ASN training and stand by my decision. However, I have noticed that the nursing profession does not much honor bachelors degrees in outside fields, even those in related areas. It's all about the bachelors in nursing. Even though the liberal arts and other course work you already completed is identical to that of a BSN and even though an associates program's nursing classes & clinical time would comparable to a BSN's, your current bachelors isn't in nursing and that's what matters. Even though I feel strongly about how well prepared, qualified, & awesome we ASN nurses are, one can't deny that the general nursing movement is shifting toward BSN prepared nurses. So before making a decision either way, sit down with someone from the bachelors program with your transcript from your previous degree and see if they can create a personalized package, so you wouldn't have to duplicate classes and can just pick up the nursing course work. This would likely leave you with the same amount of time in school as an ASN program but with a BSN in the end. Whatever you decide, you're going to be a nurse and you're going to touch lives! You can't go wrong with that as the outcome! Good luck!

Hi folks, I'm a nurse in Pennsylvania. I'm coming to California this spring to check out the area (considering moving out west) and look into getting my license. My question is more of a fun thing. If, say, any of you nurses get a few days in a row off (ha!), where might you recommend camping & hiking? I'll take any suggestions, but now I'm thinking northern California... like Redwood Park, Mt. Shasta, that area. Thanks!

Any helpful hints for treating and preventing dry, cracked winter hands? All the handwashing has left mine dry with cracks along the nail beds. They look terrible, hurt like crazy, and probably leave me prone to infection. Please help! Sorry if this is a repeat thread.... I haven't logged on in a while. :)

Yes, thanks for the great link! I plan on printing it and sharing it with as many people as I can. I totally see the benefits of better ratios. So now I'm trying to imagine... Say your med surg unit has 35 beds. There are 30 patients at the start of day shift and 6 nurses, 5 patients apiece. What happens when someone's admitted to the ED and needs a spot on your unit before anyone is discharged or transferred? That would mean someone would have to take a 6th patient. Right? Or does your unit always staff with the assumption that the unit could be full on any given shift and so there'd always be enough RNs? I'm trying to picture how it all works. Where I work we make staffing decisions for the next shift two hours prior. So the census at 1pm determines the number of RNs who'll work the 3-11pm shift. If we get tons of admissions at 7pm, oh well, you suck it up even if it means having 6-7 pts on a tele unit. Again, thanks for anyone willing to humor me and explain how it works for you.

I'm just learning the details about CA's laws about hospital, licensed nurse to patient ratios. If someone has time to humor me and explain that'd be great! On my tele (pseudo med-surg) unit in PA RNs take 5-6 patients on days and 6 on evenings. That's the goal anyway. Lately we haven't had the staff to manage that, and it's become acceptable for us to take up to 7 patients on these shifts. Like many places, we just don't have the resources (RNs) to meet the demands of the hospital census and the "ideal" RN-patient ratios go by the wayside. Granted, it's NOT the safest for the patients and not safe for us nurses. How do CA hospitals manage to keep the mandated ratios? Is the RN shortage less severe there, do hospitals turn patients away if there aren't enough RNs on staff. I admire the safe numbers you all maintain but just can't imagine how it really works. Thanks!

Had a patient ask if she'd be getting her heart pill, "End-it-all!" Took the nurse a minute to realize she meant Atenolol. And of course, the patient who said she's on antibiotics for that "nasty ammonia" instead of pnemonia. That's a classic!

Patients at my hospital need an order to be transported w/o telemetry monitoring. Most MDs are willing to put in the order, but it does take the nurse the extra step of contacted the doctor to get the order.

My unit is notoriously poor at measuring and recording I & O. We take care of a lot of folks with CHF and those post CABG. I frequently find myself at the end of the shift with incomplete I & O recorded. Anyone have any helpful hints for getting better I & Os?

My unit, a telemetry step-down ish unit, routinely gets low patient satisfaction scores on noise at the nurses station. Besides getting staff to lower their voices, anyone got advice on ways to decrease the racket? Maybe somebody has a creative idea or something simple I might be overlooking.

Yeh, I remember in nursing school we had to follow a strict diabetic diet- getting in all the exchanges. We were taught that really ALL people should be on this type of balanced regimen, not just diabetics, and that it's a better guide than the pyramid. I also remember being amazed at how few fruits and veggies I really consume during a day and that overall I lacked balance and variety. It was a real eye opener as are most food journals.

For me, one of my most important roles as a nurse is to assess and respond to the spiritual and emotional needs of my patients. (Mypatients' needs, not my own). Spirituality and religion may or may not overlap. Some of the biggest questions patients, especially those who are quite ill, face are emotional and spiritual questions. What is the meaning of life; what is the purpose of this struggle, etc. They may be answered in context of religion or they may not. Regardless of the answer, the questions themselves are pretty much universal. Isn't our job to support our patients in understanding and clarifying their own answers, or at the least to allow space for that? As best as I'm able, I'm much less focused on religious specifics and more on the individual spiritual needs of my patients. Good discussion going on here...

Yup, first born here.

Favorite stress relievers............... A steamy shower A bowl of egg noodles A massage

Have you also shared this info with the folks on the Travel nursing section of this forum?

I remember how overwhelmed I felt about chosing my first nursing job. It really can feel all consuming. Having said that, I want to reassure you that at this point you really can't make a wrong choice. That's the wonderful thing about nursing right now is that there are so many opportunities. A year on the job will give you good experience, period. My suggestion would be to find something that interests you, really listen to your gut on this one. Even if you choose something entirely different after this first job, you'll have learned much and gotten the confidence you'll need to adapt to whatever is next on your path. Good luck and be light of heart!

Heard of both too. Usually though I've heard it in reference to orienting new employees.

I recently heard a collegue talk about visiting a hospital she said was a Plain Tree facility. She decscribed a lot of its philosophies on patient care. It sounded very innovated and patient-focused. Anyone know any more about this?

Resolutions? Hmmmmmmm.... Drink more water. Listen to more live music. Exercise: Endurance, flexibility, and strength.