jamato8

Life is short and if you can get a second offer then you are ahead of the game of life.

For what we do, it is not enough but up here in northern CA you will make about that your first year and more after that. Get holiday pay at 75 plus and hour and double time at 100 with great benefits. Some areas are half this, which is disgusting, again for all the work we do. I work in ICU.

This is an old thread but interesting. Where I used to work we had the wound vac frequently. I had a sponge that I could tell had been looked over a few times. It was a bear to get out. Plenty of NS and care. I finally got everything cleaned up. I can see whey it wasn't done, due to the depth and size of the wound, but the reason was being lazy because you could see the sponge. The pt turned out ok. Yes the wound vac can do wonders.

Do what you need to. It can and often is healthy to cry. I don't cry very much but did when years ago my son ran away from home. I do tear up when someone dies and I can see strong connections to the family or it someone I have taken care of for a while and the death just didn't seem right at the time. Do what is right for you not what others tell you that you should do as in "men don't cry". If you don't need to then don't but just express what you truly feel is right not some preconceived idea.

It is out of our scope of practice. More grey area? I don't think so. If they want to give us more education, pay at least 3X as much and give a choice on who wants to do this, then maybe but the nurse scope of practice would have to be rewritten. We do not prescribe, and adding or deleting and giving reasoning jumps right into that arena.

Yeah, I worked in ER for a very short time. I was told get them in and out, fast. I had a pt who was a frequent flier and he and his wife had never had his heart condition really explained to them. I took maybe 3 or 4 minutes to give them some important facts and they were very happy with an explanation that finally answered their long lingering questions. I was pulled aside and told that there wasn't time for that. Well we didn't have any other pt's coming in at the time so there was time because I would have been sitting on my butt otherwise but they wanted to make sure I didn't get in the habit of giving explanations. I am in ICU now.

I scoop but most of the time we have some type of a capping device that doesn't require using the same cap. Otherwise years ago I watched in amusement and then, realizing how effective it was, to put the used needled syringe up in the air with my arm extended straight up and walk to the needle bin. It works great no matter what.

Normally you do not want to use the arm with the PICC line and this is a policy at anywhere I have worked. Hep can be given in the stomach area, just note where you give it. Since it was Lovenox there shouldn't be much concern. It can sting a little and I once had a guy get out of bed and start crying. His wife was disgusted and left after saying he always put on a show like that. Maybe he really was ultra sensitive. Anyway, I stay away from PICC lines as I have seen enough that are infected for one reason or another.

Do you really have time to stop and read that? You have seconds that develop into minutes. You have to know what to do and act. It is a good idea to constantly review though.

That is for sure. Even some hospital sections are not up on the current methods and still go with 3 stacked etc of past ACLS. Staying current is our job as professionals.

If your charge nurse was informed she/he should have stepped in, that is part of their job. I never back off calling a doctor and put it squarely on them. Call until you get someone in the chain and if you have to, get the nurse supervisor. It is tough at times with the pt loads and until you get the flow of things. Yes, ACLS is very important and get to all the codes you can as they help you see in a crisis the ebb and flow.

And what happens when it is a male doctor??

Well what happens if it happens to be a male doctor that needs to look in on a female pt? What determines that it is ok for a male doctor to do what is needed but not a male nurse? I worked in L/D for a while with no problems. I have done many foleys on females and again but with rare exception, no problem. I think it is often about being professional. I did have a female say she wanted a female nurse but was told by the charge nurse that the staffing was too tight and could she please work with us. At the end of the day she was very happy and thanked me for the care.

While you are ACLS certified if your hospital or unit operates safely they are not going to expect you to go beyond your ability and that translates into actual experience. With my first ACLS certification I watched a lot and then started to participate. I have been in many codes and pumped on many chests, one for 45 minutes (way too long a code). You should know what to do at first of course but as the code progresses it is time to watch and learn. All the nurses on the floor I worked had to be ACLS certified but not all were comfortable and with pt safety first, this was not a problem but they were expected to watch, and then start to participate.

If I can't read it I call them. I had one that I asked a couple of other nurses if they could read the order and then my clerk, who can read anything and nobody could read it. I called the doctor who got mad. I told him no one could read his order. I think it embarrassed him because he wrote clearer from then on.