kaylaRN

Ask the patient pre-op what doses they take at home of both long acting and breakthrough pain meds. Then use an equianalgesic chart to find out what dose of IV medication they would need to equal what they take at home. If you are using a PCA, this dose would be their continuous, or baseline requirement. Basically, you want to get them at the level of opiod that they are used to. Additional pain meds would have to be ordered post op to account for surgical pain, which will be in addition to their chronic pain. Another REALLY important tip is to make sure they take their long acting pain meds (or the equivalent) pre-op on the day of the procedure... if they are NPO they should take it with a sip of water. If they miss their regular long acting med they will be way behind on their pain by the time their surgery is over.

I can only speak for my unit at the FMC... team nursing is really the decision of individual managers. On my unit, I will have an assignment of 3-4 patients on the day and evening shift, and 5-6 for nights. We are really struggling with staffing right now though, so more often than not we are short and have to take on extra patients. The nurses I work with are fantastic, brilliant, and incredibly supportive. I started there as an undergrad and am now an RN, and everyone has always been available to answer questions or drop what they are doing to give me a hand. The relationships between RNs and NAs on our unit has been a bit tense in the past, but I think that was mostly a personality issue and things right now are pretty good. Our patient population tends to be very acute, so occasionally patients will get to you... but there is always the ear of another RN to listen to you vent! Some patients stick around for a long time (months) and you have the opportunity to form a professional relationship with them... but unforunately, most of the time you are too busy and task-oriented to focus on much psycho-social. Hope this helps!

Any nurses from the Okanagan region? I am looking at relocating there, possibly Kelowna... Any advice? I would like to know about safe, quiet communities in Kelowna, and what the conditions are like for an RN there. Thanks!

I just saw the new offers this weekend-- Am I supposed to be comforted that even though the RRSP contributions will be eliminated, I will now have hearing aids covered?? Not likely that I will need those during the proposed 4 year contract! It is insulting and disheartening that the employer is refusing to acknowledge the insane growth of our province, not to mention the money that seems to be floating around Alberta! This is Alberta's chance to provide us with compensation that will lure RNs to the province... Unbelievable.

I am a new RN in Calgary, and I am very interested in our contract and negotiations. Can anyone tell me how to stay current with the negotiations? I have found it difficult to get any information about the direction of our discussions! Thanks!

Unfortunately, although we are desperate for nurses, the nursing colleges make it quite difficult for foreign-trained nurses to work here as RNs. A friend of mine, trained in Finland, came over here in the Fall after working as an RN in the UK and Australia, and is still waiting for permission to work as an RN. I am afraid a year will probably not be long enough, unless you start your paperwork long before you arrive! You would have no trouble finding an employer, but you will have a long wait (and plenty of hoop-jumping) ahead of you if you want to be recognized as an RN.