deehaverrn

janfrn...what are CPers? not familiar with that one, also as far as the people going to neonatal instead..do they have a choice? just asking because when i was on light duty, some of my coworkers were outright rude and nasty to me over my restrictions, while i had no control over where i was assigned on our unit..admittedly many of them didn't want me around because granted, i couldn't lift, but even hurt, i was better than many of them, and i needed my paycheck so the alternative of just quitting my job wasn't an option--now that my injury got worse and i don't work some express concern..but it is some of the ones who were the nastiest--even trying to get me to do things that i wasn't properly trained for back then..plus since i often could only work part of the shift due to restrictions in work hours, they would get mad at me for the employer not covering the rest of my shift, and of course the boss encouraged that practice and sue...i thought an IME was an independent medical exam..which is actually where a doctor who is not your regular provider but IS paid for and employed By the insurance carrier does an exam for the express purpose of the insurance company then using the findings to file a petition to terminate, suspend or otherwise decrease your compensation..they were hoping the findings would support their side..if you want something done..go to your own doctor and ask for the procedure or for a recommendation of someone who can do it..choose a neurosurgeon of your own not the one employed by your insurance company that is a conflict of interest, and he is making a lot more money doing their bidding than looking out for your interests, in most cases the IME doc wiill and should explain to you that he is NOT your doc and will not be providing treatment for you, also, always get your own docs opinion of anything they recommend..their aim is to decrease the insurance company's cost bottom line

I have back issues which led to me losing my job, since i am unable to sit or stand without pain, at least for any good amount of time (say more than an hour total), I can't work..although of course the workers comp ins. agendy and my former employer will keep disputing that..although my employer a large medical center terminated me and isn't offering me any job they have..they say that i could be employed in many areas, including many phone jobs..as well as non nursing ones..this is complicated by the fact that i actually have always..always disliked talking on the telephone...but somehow that makes no difference..although for them neither do my pain complaints which they describe as purely subjective despite my ample evidence of spinal abnormalities on MRI as well as a positive discogram. Unlike you , i do feel like my pain meds affect my cognition, not even trusting myself to drive if I need to take my narcotics..and the neurontin makes me constantly feel exhausted (i tried not taking it, and felt more awake..but kept having terrible electic shock like pain in my legs..so i restarted it). Anyway, more education never hurts...so if you are able to then get your masters (can you do that while on disability in your state..cuz in minne you can't i don't think). doing nursing education might be really good for you, i think it would be good to have someone who has actually worked as a nurse teaching new ones instead of people who have only a book education which is often the case. Good luck.

i have a spinal condition (too many things to go into detail) but it means than the only position that i'm reasonably comfortable in is reclining..i have pain meds ( a fentanyl patch continuously as narcotics for breakthrough pain), i don't go out much but i do have a handicapped placard, and yes i have had the same reaction, although most people just give me dirty looks, while some say things loudly enough for me to hear like "she shouldn't be parking there" and worse..thank goodness though none have confronted me..i have had to become conscious of waiting until i have left a parking area BEFORE i leave a parking area..since by law you are not supposed to drive with the placard still affixed to the rearview mirror, i would get in m car and then drive off...now i wait because before people used to even beep at me and give me dirty looks when i was backing out of the spot..its ironic because even my own sister was talking about being at disney world and how people "who didn't even look disabled" were going around in wheelchairs and getting right onto the rides through a disability access...i told her "well people could say the same about me",,,the thing is that i won't even go to a park like that...some don't make any allowances..and i would really need than to be able to accomadate my disability..even with all my meds..i can't tolerate being up and about for even 4 hours..so i would need to be able to have quick transportation and get right onto rides and stuff with my family although many rides i wouldn't be able to tolerate at all..Anyway..try to get a thicker skin (although i agree that this person was wrong and doesn't have the compassion needed to be a good nurse so the school should know about her treatment of you) but in nursing you need to be able to tolerate a lot of abuse because you are constantly having to deal with problems with docs, family members and patients who are only thinking about their problem and not all the things you are doing! Good luck to you..hope you are now in a different clinical group!

my job..when i was in charge i was usually more busy with patients than other nurses..(300 del month) when it was busy..which was always..charge nurse would need to take the triage area..which basically was everyone coming up from the ECU for pregnancy problems including r/o labor, preterm labor, car accidents, physical abuse, etc...could be the worst assignment of anyone on the unit at times..and docs calling about scheduling issues would get upset that you couldn't solve their problems just because you were preparing for an emergency c section on a MVA person who was abrupting and latex allergic! stuff like that happened all the time,..sometimes i had patients overflowing into other rooms but still all mine..like 7 pts all myself plus in charge...and nurse manager asking why you didn't get replacement for sick call out for that night or go talk to postpartum pt who was unhappy that her lunch tray was late..which is why i stopped doing charge nurse..although it took a while and nurse manager was unhappy and felt it was like i was refusing an assignment since i was more qualified than others to keep being in charge..it was just too stressful...although the new charge nurses still continued to overburden me..like trying to have me have 3 labor pts when other nurses had only one..saying "you can handle it better", and then they wonder why one nurse has more "letters praising her care"--its because she is only ever given one pt at a time! so worst nurses get more thankyous from pts (at least at times)

I have lots wrong in my back..I suspect that my pain is a combination of all of them rather than just one. Until recently, my pain was relatively well controlled if I didn't do much other than resting. I do have Vicodin and Skelaxin to take for breakthrough pain. However, I have never reached a point where I could be active in any way without taking this extra medication. Also, I am constantly drowsy and falling asleep..maybe as a result of the Neurontin that I take. When I take my "breakthrough meds" I am even more sleepy as well as a bit dizzy. I always have issues now with concentration and focus, as well as memory. I really don't believe that I could do any work, much less as a nurse. In addition, recently i have had increased pain..even lying down doesn't help, and I have had to take my extra meds. To me this is a major step backwards. I have all ready lost my job, all those benefits and that seniority. I'm waiting to see if the court will grant the insurance company's request to reduce or suspend my compensation. (due to their vocational experts testimony about jobs that I could supposedly perform..based on their doctor's opinions). Yes, I had my own doctor and expert (for which I had to pay over $5,000 out of pocket), but it is up to the judge who he chooses to believe. If they lose, nothing changes right now...and I get my expenses back. But if I lose, the judge will stop or reduce my compensation, plus I am out the money i spent. ARrgh. Anyway, I'd like to write more..but I am in too much pain right now. At least the anger takes my mind off it slightly!:angryfire

Thanks for all the concern and well wishes. I haven't gone back to work, as my pain is not controlled even with medications. Last time I wrote I was taking Kadian (a kind of long-acting morphine), and experiencing many unpleasant side effects. These ranged from constant nausea and incapacitating constipation, to drowsiness which sometimes meant inability to stay awake. And I still could not do much of anything without being in pain. My Pain management doc finally switched me to the Fentanyl patch..which has been much better. I am still in pain when I do anything other than lie around, but can actually do some light reading and watch television (thank goodness for Tivo because I still fall asleep readily so have to rewind often). About the only other thing I do is family obligations such as occasional dinners at the parents, or one of my kid's activities. Even then I need to supplement with narcotics to get through it.. of course, there are the doctor appointments and worse..the legal proceedings. I think that most of us assume that Worker's Compensation will take care of us if we are injured...what a great fallacy that is. If this is how government regulation works..forget about the health care issues now in Congress! I get 2/3 of my 2004 salary (since that was the year before I was injured), but my lawyer receives 20 % of that ..which is standard in my state. And I needed that lawyer because the insurance company filed to stop my compensation, despite that even their initial doctor agreed with me! I have been to court about six times and so far have always won..but it only takes once for the worker to lose benefits. On the other hand, the insurance company can just keep refiling every six months with a new issue. They generally have paid what they owe as far as medical costs, although if the doctor's office or pharmacy doesn't fill out their forms just right they will not. Also, they have sometimes been behind thousands of dollars in compensation at a time. And keep in mind that the worker never gets any increase in payments regardless of inflation. The strategy for the insurance company is to keep harassing people until they feel it isn't worth continuing, and also offering a pittance as a settlement just to get them to leave you alone. And once they have decided that you have reached "maximum medical improvement", if you arent judged to be over 50% impaired they only have to pay you for a maximum of 500 weeks. (and with a back injury it is pretty much impossible to go over 25%) It doesn't matter that you can't work..they don't really consider that in their formula. In fact, they don't consider many things..like inability to sleep, or focus, or medication side effects... Anyway, more workers should be aware of this stuff. I know that I would have refused to do a lot of things. As far as my injury ..I just was pushed backwards when a stretcher bumped my leg...with immediate sharp severe pain in my back. My MRIs show many things wrong with my back...multiple bulging discs, degeneration, annular tears, pretty much a result of the daily stress which was put on my back in my nursing career. ..and make no mistake..I was told by a physical therapist years earlier..when I had strained my back..that I had great body mechanics! This is a complete fallacy that they tell you..that being strong and fit and using good body mechanics will prevent back injury..it won't! 120 lb women are just not meant to be lifting and turning 200 plus lbs! Since I worked in a delivery room, I often lifted and pulled women of all sizes, not to mention all the bending ..and since my hospital had antiquated beds and stretchers it was even worse. :angryfire Since I can't even tolerate sitting at the computer for an hour, it is impossible to even consider getting employment..although of course the insurance company doesn't agree. They are now claiming that I can return to work..although at a light or sedentary job. I guess that I should be happy that they are finally conceding something..but it is still too much. And guess what...to reduce my payments, they only have to convince the govt. that their doctor is correct in my being able to work a sedentary job, and that there are jobs that I can do. They don't even have to show a job being offered to me. Its hard to believe in this economy. Like any employer would chose to me rather than someone without issues! Anyway...I'm in way too much pain to come back to this again tonight! Thanks for caring!:heartbeat

what is the regular rate for nurses ...like without any rotation..say with 20 years experience?

I can appreciate the thought here, however some states don't completely bar narcotics use in their NPA. Then what happens (at least when it is worker's compensation and the insurance companies are completely in charge) is that the doctors clear you to work..and you then have to either work or be fired. Right now they are trying to get me to the point where my back is not hurting but I am able to work. I'm up to 40mg of Kadian given twice a day right now. Its not controlling the pain and it makes me feel nauseated, achy, a little dizzy and extremely fatigued. Part of this could be also that I am unable to sleep through the night. Last night I slept from 12-2, then awake all morning until fell asleep again at 12 until 3, now still awake and gave up on sleeping for a little while. (Its depressing to lie in bed just trying to sleep but in a pain..especially when I feel soooo exhausted). My pain management doc feels that it is just taking a little longer than usual for me to be able to tolerate the medication. When I express my concerns with the idea of driving or working he brushes it off and says he has many pts on narcotics who are docs and nurses. I know that he will shortly clear me to work too. I've checked with my state board and they say it is up to me to decide whether I'm competant. My hospital says that they have no policies against it. My nurse manager says that if my doctor clears me to work she will assign me accordingly. I seem to be the only one who thinks that it is unreasonable...but I really do need the income so what exactly am I supposed to do? Right now I can't even go out of the room to get something and remember what I was looking for!! Anyway, I just keep hoping it will work out. I do think that the pain also made it difficult for me to concentrate and do my job. At this point, my pain has worsened to the point where I simply could not work with it. I have actually broken down and cried in patient rooms and while charting, I've had to call my family to drive me home because I was in so much pain that I could simply not do it on my own. Despite that, my previous doctor wanted to increase my hours and decrease my restrictions. He also couldn't understand why I didn't just take my Vicodin while at work. In fact, he acted like I was just malingering by not doing so since that meant my pain was unbearable after only a few hours of work. It would really help if the whole system was actually fair. If I do end up going back while I still am "impaired", I plan to make sure my argument is clearly on record (when I have read some of my old doctor and treatment records I am appalled at how inaccurate they are). I'll try to be assigned to nonpatient care but I doubt it. I will meet with our Nurse Executive and Human Resource Vice President (hopefully) and finally write to JCAHO and the Health Dept. I really don't want to have to do the final step and even moreso I don't want to have to involve the state board. I've written to them anonymously and their response was that they don't have a rule against it..but that if they have a complaint they will investigate. The thing is..I don't want to lose my license either..then the WC will probably make me work as a clerk or something with less salary. Its so extremely depressing and frustrating!

I do think that it is interesting that our state BON and ANA have policies and assistance for impaired nurses who have addictions, while in my case they have nothing. I require medicaton to treat my pain from a back injury suffered at work. My doctor clears me to work, and thinks it is okay for me to take my narcotic medication to control my pain level. Even though I have continually told everyone that my medications make me drowsy and interfere with my ability to concentrate and focus, since there is no rule against it in my hospital or from the state BON, the worker's compensation system says that if I don't work as ordered ..I will forgo my other compensation and eventually my job. Instead, I am forced to go to work despite the pain,, because I am afreaid to make a mistake. I sometimes am unable to even control my tears while in a pt room and the pain is terrible. While I recognize that addicts need help, I think that it is terrible that nurses who have been injured are left with absolutely no where to turn. I have tried everything...different doctors, different procedures, different medications...nothing has stopped the pain, Unfortunately, even though my hosptial adamantly adheres to strict policies to deal with alleviating patient's pain complaints, they have no such compunction when dealing with their own employees. IT is easy to say, that I should find a new employer...but who is going to hire someone with my physical impairments? Right now I would be in too much pain just after driving to work and walking to my department to even consider working...unfortunately, soon I will have an "IME" with the worker's compensation doctor and who knows what I will be told. I'm also now trying to find a new physiatrist because my last one "concentrates his practice in acute pain and people who he can utillize treatment modalities with.." he's not interested in caring for patients who will require "chronic pain medications". Since I work for my town's hospital it is difficult to find doctors who will treat me with the proper regard for myself as a pt..and not instead be considering the "politically correct" way of considering the hospitals perspective instead of what is right for me. Since it is painful to drive, I have avoided going to another area to access impartial providers. Also, if I take my pain meds and get someone to drive me..it would interfere with their exam...kind of Catch 22. Anyway, since soo many nurses that I know have been injured on the job, it would seem that our BON would have a better way to deal with us.

must first confess that i didn't read every page..just first and page 6, so i apologize if i missed important stuff if you are an "at will state" they can fire you whenever they want. but it does sound like overkill to report to the bon i know someone who gave a po med IV and she had absolutely no consequences (the pt required extra monitoring but was thankfully unharmed), i thought she should at least be suspended and have to take a medication safety course since she ignored many safeguards in the whole process.. I only give prn meds 5 minutes early...otherwise i call and get an order for the change. I have come across nurses who thought if the order called for "two capsules every four hours" they could give "one every two hours"--even had patients argue with me that this was the way they wanted it.

Land D can be extremely stressful, its not really "a day at the beach". I worked med surg for five years before changing to labor. While on med surg, I only ever had 3 surgical emergencies...which required patient transfer to the OR, plus some codes and the inevitable deaths. In almost every case, these deaths were expected and came after long illness and to elderly peoople. When death comes on an obstetric floor it is always a tragedy. Babies born too soon or with abnormalities or those who had unforeseen complications during the pregnancy or birth process...their passing is life changing for their families. As the nurse you have to cope with the medical issues as well as the emotional ones. The detachment which is sometimes possible on a med surg unit can't be maintained--you cry along with your work. I couldn't even attempt to count the numbers of women whom I have rushed to the operating room for an emergent delivery. The women who I have helped to deliver stillborn babies after someone couldn't find a heartbeat in the doctors office or by ultrasound. The women whose water broke at 20 weeks. Especially if your facility is at all short staffed, basic needs become a problem. You can't simply take a break to eat or even use the restroom, unless help is available. YOu can't really plan your day to organize duties and schedule your lunch or break. Laboring women can be very unpredictable and are sure to need you right when you sit down to eat. You also need to consider the physical strain...needing to turn and lift women of sometimes greatly enlarged size...often further compromised in their helpfulness in this endeavor by either pain or anesthesia. Many of the nurses that I have worked with now have orthopedic problems attributable to these duties. I don't want to be completely negative. There is absolutely nothing so rewarding as to be there while a new life comes into the world. As the nurse, you are often the lifeline these patients and families cling to while they navigate unknown and shark infested waters. while waiting for the "ship captain" to come and deliver them to safety. Families NEVER forget you..they have your picture in their baby albums. Right now I am coping with a work related back injury..and I can tell you that THIS is the one thing that I truly miss! It makes me weep when I think about the fact that this is something I will most likely never be a part of again. Even though you may have been there as a student, it is not the same at all. I know that some of our longtime nurses aides who went to school and became nurses...had severe reality shock when they came back and worked as a nurse, even working with us for years..they had no idea of the skill and responsiblity that we had. I would say that you should try it..but only if your hospital allows you to transfer if you don't like it. Sometimes after all the time it takes to train for this specialty, the hospital requires a certain amount of time spent working there before you can transfer. Good luck, let me know how it goes.

Actually, she was perfectly qualified for her scholarship because it was written at the time as for "spanish surname" which she did have as her name was Rodrigues. I'm not taking "one incident" because there are many as I said. I feel that giving out scholarships simply on the basis of one's race or ethnicity is WRONG. This is definitely reverse discrimination. Seeing my daughters friends get full scholarships simply because they are hispanic despite her being a harder worker and better student is ridiculous. Now she has a huge amount of student loans to pay back while they do not. How can anyone say that this is fair? These are not impoverished people but rather they come from equal (in one case) and far superior (in the other) incomes. One's father is an anesthesiologist who pays cash for cars and houses..I don't think that they needed the scholarship. All discrimination is simply wrong. I believe that scholarships should be given out for achievement and financial need, not because of race.

My point was that "minority" scholarships and affirmative actions programs are supposedly established to promote diversity and provide opportunities for the disadvantaged. The fact that my friend who was NOT hispanic could qualify for that scholarship, and that others that are NOT disadvantaged can qualify for scholarships even if they really don't need them just demonstrates how ridiculous these practices are. Of course, these are positive programs (at least for those who qualify) while discrimination is at the other end of the same spectrum. I think we shouldn't label peoople at all. Doing so for ANY reason just seems wrong to me. You should be given neither advantage nor disadvantage on the basis of your skin color or ethnic background. One article that I read said that many African-Americans of more needy backgrounds are losing out in scholarships and college admissions to the children of foreign nationals who are in this country for their occupations. These children are often in the upper echelons for income level but qualify due to their race. This shows the falsity of the argument that they provide economically disadvantaged inner-city students with opportunity. I also think that more scholarships (think about what the root word means) should be given for actually doing well in your schoolwork. My husband and I are sacrificing our retirements to put our kids through school. We don't qualify for federal or state grants or subsidized loans because of our income level. Therefore, we are forced to take out loans to pay the tuition. Our savings pretty much only lasted for one year of a private university tuition. I realize that we could have insisted that our children attend state colleges, but when they have done everything that you've asked by being exemplary students, I think that they deserve the reward of going to the college of their choice. They are both getting straight As..so they continue to strive hard to be the best...its just annoying that our country rewards money based on color rather than actual scholarly attributes. And as far as providing more "diversity", if this is so over-riding-ly important, than why is a nation like Japan which is so homogenous doing so very well both in education of its citizens and the world economic arena? I'm not against diversity, just the artificial creation of it.

I agree absolutely that NO ONE should be discriminated against. I grew up with people around me of all colors--red, brown,yellow, black and WHITE and I think we should treat everyone with fairness and dignity. That being said, and I must admit that I read only the first and last pages of this posting, I'd like to point out that WHITE is a color too. Why do I say that? Because I don't like the terminology being used..."""" of color. Whether its people of color, women of color or nurses of color. I once had a long discussion about this topic with two friends..one who happens to be African-American and one who is Hispanic. When I said that I thought the term was exclusive and stereoptypical they both said that they didn't find it so, but were surprised when I said that they were not understanding my point! I meant, rather, that it was offensive to me, since it unfairly then excluded me from being a "person of color". My friend, who is African american said that she understood that indeed I was MANY colors..tan,pink, greenish blue(where my veins show through),as well as white..that it referred more to the "darkness" of one's skin. They agreed that this was why they were both "persons of color", until we noticed that my skin color is actually darker than my hispanic friend!! I'm not trying to trivialize discrimination, I know it is unfortunately out there. This is obviously just plain wrong. I'm also not of the opinion that placing people into boxes and labeling them is a good thing. For example, I happen to be of Italian descent. I don't consider myself Italian-American but just American. I have been discriminated against, on the basis of my color...by various groups. I lived in a neighborhood once where we were on of the few "white" families. My best friend's family told her that she and her brother should stay away from me. Riding my bike or walking around the block was impossible because we would be called names. This was immediately after my father had retired from the Army and it came as a complete shock to me! The only other time that we had been the recipients of such hatred was when the "peace protesters" in the 60's chose to make even the school bus bringing us back to the base a target for their veggie throwing and such. Years later, I had a boyfriend who was Hispanic. We tended to stay away from his friends and family because they ALL hated me..because I wasn't hispanic. (ironically back then hispanic was considered white but I digress) Yet, in other places I was often mistaken for being hispanic ..let's face it people from Spain (hiSPANic0 and people from Italy have very similar coloring, languages, and cultures..in fact Italians used to be considered to be Latina in the past but it is no longer politically correct..we've been disenfranchised from that label. I actually was also discriminated against by a boss when I was a teenager who thought that I was hispanic because of my coloring and that I had many friends who were Puerto Rican as well as my boyfriend at that time. We only went by our first names so my lack of a spanish surname was not evident. Anyway, she always gave us the worst assignments. Ironically, another friend of mine married someone whose last name was "rodrigues" who was from Spain. My friend was a blue eyed blond. She ended up getting a full scholarship offer from a college because the minority designation at the time was "spanish surname" so she qualified. They didn't actually meet her until after it was too late, and couldn't rescind it. This is one reason that I am against minority scholarships..I think that such things should be colorblind. And don't try to tell me that that is retribution for "white" people getting so much more because I have worked for everything I have. Despite great grades, test scores and financial need I had to pay the entire cost of my education myself. The same goes for my children. Meanwhile, my daughter has two good friends..both hispanic who grew up going to the same schools and in the same or better neighborhood. The girls parents make about the same amount as we do, the boy's make much more. Despite my daughter having more extracurricular activities, better grades, more challenging courses (AP and honors), and superior SAT scores..they both received almost full scholarships to area colleges. This is just plain wrong...who is being judged on skin color here? Anyway, I have seen discrimination from both sides and it is just plain wrong from any direction. How about when people ask what race we are..we just say HUMAN.

While I don't practice in a LTC area, this issue has come up often in our area..Maternity. Some of my coworkers have refused to even care for these famiilies. I chose to care for anyone without discrimination to the best of my ability, regardless of their differences. Our policies have not always coincided with their requests and I have always tried to adjust as much as I could while maintaining patient safety. The only time that I have ever run into any problem is when a woman being induced was permitted to shower with the doctor's order saying that she was to be allowed off monitoring for 20 minutes total. She and her female partner were showering together ( and most obviously engaging in heavy petting), they refused my request to leave the shower..which tried twice. I explained to them that they were jeopardizing the safety of mom and baby, especially since this stimulation could increase her contractions, and then finally left them alone. She was off the monitor for at least an hour ( my shift had ended by the time they left the shower room). I'm not sure if I wasn't "culturally competent" enough to care for them. Yes, I was offended at their behavior, but I would have been just at offended if they were a female/male couple. I just don't believe that intimate behavior is a public thing. This particular couple continued to stretch the limits of acceptable behavior throughout their stay. My biggest problem with them, however, was that they had a problem with me! They actually complained about me interferring with their relationship and told my supervisor that I was prejudicial towards gay relationships! Anyway, I have refused to let "one bad apple spoil the whole bunch". I have been part of some truly special births with both men who have engaged a surrogate mother and lesbian couples. They were more supportive and loving towards the birthing mother and newborn than many traditional couples. The thing is ..I try to do my best for my patients, and meet her needs, in conjuction with her family and partner, as best as I can. I'm not saying that I always know every cultural nuance, or agree with them. I'm just there to help her have the best birth experience possible.,not to pass judgement. The only thing is...I don't think that I need to learn every cultural situation for example I refuse to learn Spanish even though we have a large population here although I do know some pertaining to childbirth. My personal beliefs are often in conflict with the situation of many of my patients as far as their lifestyle choices, but I do not allow that to interfere with competent caring nursing. The only assignment that I do refuse is termination of pregnancy. I deserve some cultural understanding too..and in my state this is a protected personal choice for nursing staff.