Gator,SN

I think that DH should make good money. I'm not sure it should be so much more than nursing BUT, teeth just gross me out. I could never work in a job where I had to scrape people's teeth and the smell....(where's that puking smiley?) Just doing oral care on a vented pt that has pneumonia is enough. Is the high wages because their is a shortage or because they work in small offices that afford to pay more because there are less employees?

Very interesting post. I have often thought that a majority of nurses are trying to heal something in their own past while in the profession of helping others.

I agree with the majority on this one. It makes me mad when management expects you to treat one person better than another and on top of that, the pt gets the idea that everyone is going to wait on them hand and foot. I especially love it when I follow a co-worker who has set the bar so high by bowing and fetching that I just know I'm not going to measure up.

Get a lawyer. Fast.

I reviewed my class notes and the text books before the NCLEX and I finished about 1000-1500 questions from two different review books concentrating on my areas of weakness (pharm, peds). I had 75 questions and passed the first time. You should use your time to work on the areas you feel unsure about because no matter how many questions you answer before the test these will be the same things that trip you up on the exam. Practice thinking things through and reading the rationales for all the choices. This helped me a lot. Good luck to you and try to relax. Keep telling yourself that you are going to do this and that you will not have any trouble with the exam. Best Wishes! Gator

I work in ICU and I love it. I like the fact that I can spend time with my patients and help educate them about their condition. Once in a while I will take care of a terminal patient and the family and the feeling that I might have helped in some small way during a really difficult time, makes it all worth while. On the other hand I love all the drama in the unit. In school I knew that M/S and OB were not the place for me and I was not real crazy about geriatrics either, though at times, depending on the pt ppopulation in the unit, it can feel just like a nursing home. I like where I am but will probably not stay forever.

Congratulations!

I learned a lot about myself during nursing school. I was always pretty patient but sometimes that translated into being a doormat. Now I am more self confident and I know how to set limits and say no. I have also learned not to take everything so personally. Some people/things are just the way they are and most of the time it has nothing to do with me. I have learned that people have to work things out in their own way, in their own time. I am not responsible to fix everything. I am in the process of learning to take better care of myself and more money does not = more happiness. The most important thing that I learned about myself is that it is very important to set goals and to achieve them. It has given me more satisfaction then I ever thought possible. Now I just want to keep learning and growing as both a nurse and a person

To answer your question, YES! I learned a lot about myself during nursing school. I was always pretty patient but sometimes that translated into being a doormat. Now I am more self confident and I know how to set limits and say no. I have also learned not to take everything so personally. Some people/things are just the way they are and most of the time it has nothing to do with me. I have learned that people have to work things out in their own way, in their own time. I am not responsible to fix everything. I am in the process of learning to take better care of myself and more money does not = more happiness. The most important thing that I learned about myself is that it is very important to set goals and to achieve them. It has given me more satisfaction then I ever thought possible. Now I just want to keep learning and growing as both a nurse and a person.

Kevin, I am so sorry to hear that you and your mom have had to go through so much. My thoughts and prayers are with you.

Congratulations! I hope things continue to go well for you! Keep us updated!

Congratulations!!!!!!!

I went straight into ICU/CCU and my orientation was 12 months. My first preceptor thought that it was "unfortunate" that I missed out on M/S experience so she put me in PCU for the first 4 weeks. I had 6 pts each day and and a massive headache at the end of the first week. After a month of this, I felt pretty cocky so went into the ICU. What an eye opener. I was so excited to have pts with vents and a-lines and cvp readings.... At the 6 month point I was basically on my own but with a safety net (her) for new procedures, diseases and other new RN mishaps.(one time, someone plugged the code cart in and as I was running in the room, I tripped over the cord and landed on my rear. The patient made it, but my ego was quite bruised for some time! The laughing of my peers did not help!) At the end of the first year, I had cried a lot, made a few minor med errors, wrote myself up, run my first codes and had a few pts die. I had made some friends and ruffled a few feathers. Many of my clasmates from school thought that my orientation was too long but I was glad for it most of the time. My first day solo, I swear I could actually feel the weight of my license on my shoulders but since I had ample time to get ready, I did OK. I feel bad for nurses who do not get enough orientation time because it really does make all the difference. Two years into this and I can't imagine doing anything else.

Cassinia, I was going to write a post very similar to yours, I totally agree! Unless its a documentary made by another nurse, this is another jab at nurses/nursing. When these types of shows are made the intention is to get ratings, so its hard to tell what the angle will be but lets face it, no one will want to watch a show about hard working females week after week unless it has some kind of sex, backstabbing etc...And someone commented that the nurses on the show wll no doubt be 5'7'' and slim. Either way, nurses are screwed because it is unrealistic that all nurses look that way and it sends the wrong message. On the other hand if the nurse is overweight, at all, the camera will pick up on it and then people will say that nurses should know better and look healthy. When the fights break out (as they always do) on the show, I'm sure we'll see therapeutic communication at its finest as well as a collaborative effort during every group project.

I am so sorry to hear that this is happening to you. Call your surgeon and tell him that you are in pain and that you were sent home without adequate pain medication. He might call in a RX to your local pharmacy and you could get someone to pick it up for you. You should not have to suffer this way. I am surprised with a sat of 75% you were sent home at all. That would have pretty much bought you a bed for the night at my hospital as well as some narcan. Your nurse should not have given you morphine and fentanyl as fentanyl is much more potent than morphine. Don't forget to fill out the survey that they give you about your experience. I hope you remember your nurses name. I hope your feeling better soon! Gator

I don't get a critical care differential...wish I did.

Funny, just about every transfer that I get in CCU from a LTC facility comes with paperwork that is filled out by an LPN who caught the problem and reported it. ...and yet they manage to accomplish all this and then some. Every single day for every single patient. My best friend was an LPN for 20+ years and she did admission assessments and started IV's and had her own patient assignments for decades. Things have changed and I realize that, but instead of making all LPN's sound like brainless twits, I applaud them and all that they do.

I liked Carol Hathaway from ER (in the beginning of the series, before she went to med school and hooked up with Doug Ross)

We have around the clock tech help and they are wonderful. Most of them know what we need and stay one step ahead of us all day. They know what time to get glucochecks, look at the schedule as to what time pts are expected to have tests: ekgs, echos etc.. and have them ready, they give baths, shave, lather them with lostion, they get people up in the chair, set them up for meals or feed them, get VS and TELL us when something is abnormal or changing, weigh the pt, they can start or d/c foleys, d/c IV's, help with transfers or new admits, set pts up on tele, turn and reposition and a whole bunch of other things throughout the day. Yes, we are spoiled, but so is the pt. As the nurse, I do all these things too, but it is nice to have time to actually talk to the pt and educate them and work with the family. The techs allow us to do that. They also have learning mods every month and in-services that are specific to the unit.

I also gained 20 lbs during nursing school and sadly, in the last 2 years as a nurse, I have gained 15 more. I thought for sure that I would lose it all when I started working and became more active again, but then I work 12 hour nightshifts, so sometimes I eat in the middle of the night and then turn around a few days later and eat normally with the family. Other days, I'm up 36 hours before finally going to bed, so my body is really screwed up. I am over and above my highest pregnancy weight by about 10 lbs. Even loose fitting scrubs look terrible on an over weight short person.(me) I couldn't believe it when I saw a copy of the new BMI.(5' 2" @150lbs is obese) I threw that thing away. I often wander what my patients think about the staff cause 80% of us are carrying around extra weight. I too make the mistake of going into the break room for just a "bite" of the goodies that people are always bringing and in and end up packing on unwanted calories. Maybe its because food is comforting and I'm stressed out all day, thats why I fall into it(??) I don't know. Since the weather is so nice now, I know its time to get out and exercise. Hopefully I will lose some.

I had a patient that was a DNR after a major head bleed. Almost two hours post mortum, he was 106 tympanic.

We had a very confused little old lady one day and she was screaming "Somebody help me! Somebody help me!" over and over. It was very frustrating and we had all tried hard to calm her down. Finally one of the RN's went into the room and very firmly said, "Mrs Smith, stop screaming, someone will be in to help you in a little while-we are very busy today, OK?" Bless her heart, she agreed without hesitation and the nurse emerged from the room quite satisfied. As I was walking down the hall I heard her start screaming all over again."Somebody help me in a little while, Somebody help me in a little while!" I just about doubled over with laughter.

By submitting an apology, you are admitting that you did something wrong. I would think that your DON would then (and only then) have a reason to discipline you, otherwise, I'd tell her to prove it. In a busy ER, other people would have heard this type of altercation so I'd ask for witnesses.

I live in PA and my base rate is $24.23