jsu102

We always infuse blood via the Alaris pump (and of course appropriate blood tubing) in our ED. And it's also policy that an RN must accompany the pt on any transfers out of the dept if there is blood hanging.

I worked up until 36 weeks and had very few problems. As previous posters said, co-workers were always willing to help me with lifting and transferring. However, at around 34 weeks our management outlawed having any drinks at the nurses station and being dehydrated really affected me. The contractions hit me big-time, my blood pressure went all out of whack, and I got some nasty edema. 12-hour shifts without drinking anything except on lunch break sucks. My OB pulled me out of work at 36 weeks. I really think the hydration plays a big role because I was fine up until that point.

I started working in the ED in August and although I love being a nurse, my whole experience has been tainted by my preceptor. He's just awful. He's so jaded, thinks the worst of everyone ("that pt must be a drug seeker" is his phrase of choice), takes every short cut in the book, is sarcastic, and isn't even a good teacher. I've gone home in tears half my days there. One day when we had a man die in a code, the daughter came in completely distraught and I hugged her and sat down a few minutes to explain to her what was going on and just held her hand. My preceptor yelled at me afterwards for wasting time and said I had no business to get emotionally involved with patients or their families. He said I had a job to do and I better be thinking about that instead. Ugh, he's just NOT the nurse I want to be. Ever. I spoke with the manager who is assigning me to someone else for half the time starting in October, but I'll still be with this jerk half the time too. So I'm just going to try to make the best of it and learn as much as I can from the other person and ignore this guy when I'm with him.

Ok, this is a silly question, but where do you carry all of your supplies for the day? I always have hemostats, trauma shears, small scissors, tape, notepad, palm pilot, sharpies, pen, highlighter, & alcohol wipes with me in my pockets and my pockets feel like they have boulders in them! Where else can I put things to manage my load a little easier?

I wasn't pregnant when I interviewed but I found out I was about 8 weeks before I was due to start. I went through the struggle, "to tell or not to tell" and just stuck with the same advice I got from everyone else to wait until I started. I was terrified to tell anyone and had no clue how to approach it. My second day of hospital orientation my nurse educator asked if there were any changes with the new grads she should know about and I took that as my cue. So I told her and she basically passed the word around. No one seems to be upset about it (and one of my preceptors is pregnant too), so far so good. However, my other preceptor told me that he wants to push me harder than the other new grads because he doesn't want anyone to ever have an excuse to be negative or hard on me because of being pregnant. So he said his strategy is to try to make me the best in my group. Ugh, that makes me nervous too. I'm only 4 months right now though, so I guess I have 5 more months to prove myself.

I also wish I had the chance to go to something like that! I just started in the ED and all my training is on the job, also I came from a nursing school that does not teach IV insertion. My preceptor had me sticking people my very first day and I was so nervous. I got 2 out of 5 sticks, it's so hard for me to even feel the vein. If I can manage to find one I feel, I have no clue how to approach it. How much of an angle do you go in with? How do you know if it's a deep vein or a shallow vein? How do you know if it will even be a good vein to use? For the 3 that I missed, one was a really large guy and I couldn't feel ANYTHING. One was an older lady and I got the vein but then blew it. The other was a perfectly healthy woman that I really should have gotten, I just couldn't do it. Ugh, it's so discouraging.

1. How many questions did you take on NCLEX? 75 - I passed 2. What study materials did you use? Did you take a test review course? Kaplan review course, Kaplan Question Trainers & Q-Bank 3.(ERI, ATI, HESI)? ATI. My comprehensive predictor gave me a 84% chance of passing. 4. How long did you wait for results of the test, or are you still waiting? Exactly 48 hours from the time I finished my exam. 5. What were your thoughts coming out of the test (total disbelief, certainty you had failed, confident you had passed)? I didn't think I had done badly enough to fail in 75 questions, but I didn't feel at all confident that I definitely passed. 6. Was this your first attempt at NCLEX? Yes.

How do you find out the exact time your results will come in?

My instructor told our class that 65% was the magic number to get in Kaplan to feel definitely ready to pass the NCLEX. I had a 62% on the Diagnostic Test 66% on the Readiness Test Scores of 58% - 69% range on the Question Trainers (with a 67% on QT7) Scores of 56% - 81% on QBank with an average of 66% I just took the NCLEX yesterday and thought it was really hard, though Kaplan did prepare me. I'm still waiting on results!

I've always read that patients can be roommates if they have the same thing (i.e. MRSA can only share with another MRSA patient). But here's a question for you - if two patients have two different types of pneumonia, can they still share a room?

I totally understand where you guys are coming from! I took the NCLEX today at 2pm and even though I was praying for the computer to shut off at 75, I was still so nervous when it did! I had a ton of infection control and prioritization, 11 SATA, 1 math. What got me were about 3 questions with meds I had NEVER heard of!!! I was mostly an A student in school, have studied my butt off the past 2 months, and feel like I really know my major drug classes - then I got these questions and was like "WTH!?!" I had no clue and just had to make a decision based on the answer choices. Talk about freak me out! And now this waiting game SUCKS!

Yep, I was also taught that detached retina is the exception to the rule in positioning after eye surgery. Other surgeries (i.e. cataract) place on unaffected side. Detached retina place on affected side since gravity can help shift things into place. I actually just had this question on my Kaplan QBank 2 days ago and the rationale definitely said place patient on AFFECTED side.

This makes me feel a little better. I was just logging in to post a similar question and I saw this thread! I finally took QT7 and got a 66%. My Qbank average is at 64% right now. Diagnostic test 62% and Readiness test at 66%. But yet I just don't feel ready at all with these scores! I take my test in 2 days and I've been having serious second thoughts and major panic freakouts, but maybe after reading this thread it won't be so bad after all. Ugh!!!!

Explaining surgical procedures/risks is the surgeon's responsibility. Noisy breathing or snoring after general anesthesia may be indicative of obstructed breathing. Can't sign consent after pre-op meds (which alter LOC) are given - must call doctor. Tegretol/anti-convulsants are meds that are ok to give before surgery to prevent seizure activity. Let the anesthesiologist know - they may need to reduce the amount of anesthetic.

We can only hope! Thanks!