smg

okay. That makes sense. Thanks everyone.

Thanks- Do you happen to know why the initial chest x-rays are initally normal when they are diagnosed with a PE?

Can someone please assist me with my question,, What tests are performed to show that someone may have a pulmonary embolism? And how is a pulmonary embolism treated?

I have been a nurse for almost 8 years. During these years, I have worked in many different areas at two different hospitals. What I do not understand is the bitterness, bickering, and unprofessional behavior that happens on the floor. I think this has always been a problem, but it seems to have become increasingly worse. Yesterday I witnessed a colleague rip apart another nurse, the director, and a nursing assistant. The other nurses on the floor then began to tear into the first nurse and it became a very tense working environment. Nurses are in such great demand and I see why. Unless you have thick skin and can take being harassed by coworkers, you will leave the profession too. Nurses not only eat their young, but also their old, strong, weak, and whoever else. Yesterday, I was ashamed to call myself a nurse. I am a second career nurse and I have never witnessed behavior in coworkers in my life. The incident yesterday was just one example there have been many others of nurses bring each other down. I needed to vent about this because it makes me sad. I have a niece and nephew that both were thinking about the nursing profession while in school. Thanks heavens that I was able to talk them out of it. They deserve more out of their career.

One more thing, the individual hospitals are not able to control if they pay overtime or not. It's federal regulations so every hospital cannot pay overtime.

What I think is going to happen is that if a facility typically has a nurse work a lot of over time the overall base salary will be higher. I know the we will see an increase in salary because of this new legislation.

I made the switch from working in Human Resources into Nursing and I regret that decision everyday. My thought process was that I would have more flexiblity in nursing, more time with my family, more freetime. I was COMPLETELY WRONG. I work .7 nights and I am so exhausted at the end of my shift that I need to sleep, I can't take care of my family. I missed Christmas, Easter, and I'm going to miss Labor Day (which is when my extended family all takes a vacation together). It is very difficult to switch with co-workers. I thought that I would be doing something rewarding in nursing, but most patients and doctors are oblivious to all of the hard work that I (we) do. The rest of the world works the normal 8-5 and I miss it more than I ever thought I would. I would never go into nursing if I knew then what I know now. Just think about it. I haven't read all of the posts for this message, but I had to put my 2cents out there. I did exactly what you are thinking about doing and the benefits are just not there. sorry.

I posted a message about 2 months ago about the working conditions at my hospital. Not only are we poorly staffed (sometimes on nights I have 12 patients) but the bickering and backstabbing that goes on btw. the nurses is crazy. I am a 2nd career nurse and I've never been exposed to a workplace such as this. The nurses are overworked and they seem to prey on each other. Well I'm finally sick of it. I have worked 6 nights in a row with too many patients each night. I feel like I have no support at work. I've seen other posts that people have made and there situation seems to be the same as mine. Is there any good place to work? Somewhere where I can pee sometime within a 12 hour shift? And a place where I can come to a co-worker for advice without being looked down upon??

Thanks everyone for your responses. I am going to look more throughly into the next place that I interview at. I have been there for about 3 weeks and there is not one person who is safe from the bad mouthing. Every person that I have met has had something said about them. I am so frustrated. I can't believe that these are adults who care for others, and they can not be civil in the work environment. It isn't difficult to keep your opinions to yourself when they have no relevance to the patients you are caring for. How does anyone deal with this? I haven't heard back from any of the hospitals that I sent resumes to, so I have probably at least 3 more weeks here.

I recently was hired on a Med/Surg. floor. I've been working for about 3 weeks and I am floored at the nurses who work on the floor. They are catty, back-stabbing, and manipultive. I'm new so I don't know everyone and I am on orientation but I hear many negative comments about my fellow nurses. Everyone I meet, tells me who to look out for and why, who is sleeping with who, who is not a good nurse and etc. And now because I do not participate in all the chatting, they have started on me. I've been told that people are unhappy with my performace, which is crazy because I've had nothing but positive respones from my work. They say that I am stuck up and unfriendly, because I do not participate in the hurtful words about my co-workers. I don't know what to do, especially because the charge nurse and clinical director take part in this type of behavior! Seriously this is another reason that nurses do not want to work in the hospitals. If there is not a postive work environment, it makes the work much more difficult. I need suggestions, I'm going to put my resume out to other hospitals!

So would a suit jacket and pants be ok. I've been looking on the internet and it says that women, when interviewing, should always wear a skirt. What do you think?

I have an interview for a Med./Surg. position tomorrow. I am wondering what should I wear to the interview?

For the most part I like Minnesota. For example today it is beautiful, sunny and 75, But a week ago it was only about 32. I like the change of seasons. I love the snow, although driving can be tricky, especially the first snow fall. It seems like people forget how to drive in the snow! You should come and visit. I live in Minneapolis and I love it during the summer. There are a ton of things to do in the summer, like festivals and such. But beware, once you come here you'll never want to leave!! That's what happened to me!

I was a little skeptical until I was in a car accident. I didn't think about going to a chiropractor until my best friend started dating one. We were all together for dinner when evening and my back was so sore I could barely get out of the chair. So he adjusted me on my living room floor. Now I swear by it. I haven't gone to him in about 6 months but my back doesn't hurt nearly as much as it did before. I think they are great.

State Calls Hospital, Nurses Negligent in Patient Death in Minnesota State health officials say a Burnsville hospital and its nurses were negligent in the death of a Prior Lake man who received a possibly toxic dose of morphine after elective surgery. The man, 37-year-old Edward Kyllonen, died suddenly following hip surgery in November 2001. The state released the results of its investigation earlier this week. While the report says Kyllonen received a high dose of the pain killer morphine, it stops short of blaming the death on the drug. The Minnesota Health Department found that two nurses at Fairview Ridges Hospital failed to properly monitor Kyllonen as he received morphine and other painkillers following hip surgery. They reportedly administered a total of fifty milligrams of morphine in a 12-hour period, without documenting the dosages, or even asking Kyllonen if he needed more pain medication. At six o'clock the next morning a lab technician found Kyllonen unconscious, and not breathing. "We never thought this would ever be the outcome," says Mike Kyllonen, the dead man's younger brother. "The surgery itself, yeah, went fine, he came out of the surgery well." Investigators also say the hospital and the Dakota County Coroner's Office missed the cause of death-calling it "sudden unexpected death following left hip surgery." Kyllonen's widow sought the investigation by the state's Office of Health Facility Complaints. State investigators questioned the results of the autopsy results because it showed no morphine in Kyllonen's blood, despite hospital records that show he had received several doses. A new blood test was ordered. It found Kyllonen's blood had toxic levels of morphine that, according to one medical expert, "probably contributed to his death," the report said. Again, the report stopped short of saying the drugs caused the death. Kyllonen's family is suing. "It is basic nursing practice to properly assess a patient before administer any kind of medication," says Kathleen Flynn Peterson, a former nurse and an attorney representing the family. "This was a totally unnecessary death, this tragedy could have been prevented if they would have just followed their own policies and procedures." Story first posted: 7/25/2002 10:37:50 PM (Copyright 2002 by KARE. All Rights Reserved.)

Wouldn't you rather have the hospitals save the money that they spend on these gifts and use it for raises. I know the money that they set aside is small, but it seems as if nurses do not appreciate the small effort that administration puts in regarding the gifts. I would rather have a simple thank you card or a manager that seems truly gratiful then any small gift anyways. I would just like to have a lunch break in peace or be able to take a walk with out worrying that we are so understaffed that the critical patients are going to be left alone. Gifts are not what is important, it is the fact that we need to be appreciated for what we do on our 8 or 12 hours shifts and usually go at least an hour past that.