Susan9608

I just had my first baby 2 weeks ago, and I also work in pediatrics (pedi ICU.) It is a difficult population to work with when you're pregnant - not just because of the infections, but also because you see *everything* that can be wrong or go wrong with kids, and it makes you worry even more than you already are. My OB wanted me to avoid H1N1 patients, even after I had the vaccine. She also wanted me to avoid TORCH diseases, radiation, and chemo drugs. It was difficult to get safe assignments, but since I had documentation from my doctor, my unit worked really hard to accommodate me. I would ask your OB specifically what kinds of assignments would be unsafe for you. Also watch out for the "curse of the nurse" ... according to my OB, lots of nurses, for one reason or another, end up on bed rest. Take care of yourself and congrats on your baby!

My baby son is currently 13 days old. He's perfect and wonderful and everything I dreamed he would be. He got circ'd on day 3 by my ob. I was there. He got a penile block 15 minutes prior to the procedure, and a dose of tylenol 30 minutes prior. They don't use the papoose board anymore - his top half was swaddled and another nurse and I held his feet. He got a sucrose pacifier. He didn't cry at all during the circ. We kept his diaper lubed up with vaseline, and the circ. site never seemed to bother him. He never cried with cleaning. He never had problems eating immediately post-circ. He never had a problem with poop getting into the site. It healed in less than a week. In short - it went as perfectly as a circ. can go. Now, if other people don't want to circ. their boys, that's certainly their option. Who the hell am I to try to talk anyone into or out of a procedure for their child? As a nurse, it's not my business to give my opinion, even when asked for it. And I have been asked. My standard answer is, "It doesn't matter what I think/believe - what matters is what *you* think/believe." And that's the truth. What we as nurses think/feel/believe about our patients and their decisions isn't important - it's the patient's perception and feelings and beliefs that matter. To the original poster, I'd have to say that starting your nursing career with such a judgmental attitude doesn't bode well for you. What are you going to do when you come across other situations where you feel a patient is making a bad/immoral choice? Are you going to refuse to provide care? Are you going to inflict your own value system on your patients? Are you going to burden your co-workers by dumping your assignments on them because you don't agree with a patient's choice? You might think about these things and whether or not nursing is really the right career for you.

It makes me feel better to know other people have done stupid stuff like this, too. I was really freaked out last night, thinking any moment I'm going to stop breathing ... intellectually I knew better, but still. Thanks for all the congrats on my baby! We were infertility patients - told we had a 1:30,000 of ever conceiving and were in the process of saving money for in vitro when we had a spontaneous pregnancy. It was rough - I was sick as a dog for the first 14 weeks, then had problems with my joints (psoriatic arthritis) during the second trimester, and then had gestational diabetes and severe preeclampsia during the third trimester, making me be on bedrest for a month, followed by induction. But it was all worth it - baby is the most perfect, fabulous thing ever! And I have now separated my norco from the darvocet, so at least I won't make *that* mistake again (though I'm sure I'll do something else stupid, but at least it won't be the same thing.)

So I just had a baby 1 week ago. He's totally wonderful and perfect in every way, but it's quite an adjustment, most notably in the sleep department. Because I have arthritis, before he was born, my OB was treating me with darvocet. Then I had a C-Section, and got a prescription for norco for pain. Being tired and not paying attention, I took a norco for pain. After about 30 minutes, I realized I was hurting worse than I thought, so I went to grab a second norco (prescription is for 1-2 every 4-6 hours). I grabbed my darvocet bottle by mistake and popped one down before I thought about it. When I realized what I had done, I started freaking out. Called the pharmacy, and they said it should be fine - I just might be sleepy, and if my breathing gets shallow, then there's a problem. I can't imagine that a darvocet is going to make me sleepy, especially since I was taking it for awhile, but it still freaks me out. I always have wondered how people do such stupid stuff with medications ... well, now I know. I'm even a nurse, and wasn't careful enough to separate my medications or look closely enough at the bottles to verify what I was taking. Hopefully I'm lucky enough to not have anything bad happen to me, but I have a lot more empathy for the stupid things other people do.

Your assumptions that if people thoroughly researched circumcision and how it was done would lead them NOT to circumcise their boys are erroneous. I'm a nurse; I have been for 8 years. I've worked in general pediatrics, NICU, and currently PICU. I have assisted with more circs than I can count. I'm currently 37 weeks pregnant with my first child, a boy. My husband and I *thoroughly* discussed the issue of circumcision with each other, our OB, the pediatrician we chose, and the PICU doctors I work with. (Incidentally, everyone from my OB to the pediatrician to my PICU intensivists recommended we circ. our baby.) We watched several videos of different circ. methods, and discussed analgesia/anesthetics for the procedure. It's hard for me to imagine how much more thorough we could have been in researching this issue. And we have decided to go ahead and circ. our baby. I certainly hope you aren't this judgemental about too many other areas/issues in nursing ... otherwise, I feel very sorry for your future patients.

I was doing trach teaching with a patient's mother and father, and had been sitting for about an hour. I was 26 weeks pregnant at the time, showing a little, but unwilling to go to the expense of maternity scrub pants. So I was wearing my old drawstring pants, tied loosely. Some how, during my teaching, my pants became totally untied. When I got up to leave the room, they slowly started slipping down and got all the way to my knees before I noticed. At that point, I grabbed them, said, "OOPS!", and ran out of the room. Of course, I was wearing holey underwear that day. The parents laughed every time I went into the room for the rest of the day.

I'm currently pregnant (32 weeks), and I work in pediatric intensive care. It's been very difficult to find appropriate patient assignments without effecting the workings of my unit. I spoke to my OB first and foremost about what patients are appropriate for me. In the very beginning, I had no weight limit, so that wasn't an issue. However, H1N1 was a big concern, as we had an abundance of it in my unit, and as the CDC was reporting it to be very dangerous to pregnant women. My OB wrote me a medical excuse, saying "NO H1N1 patients." As far as CMV, my ob tested me for it - I thought for sure I'd have antibodies already and have nothing to worry about, but surprisingly, I don't. So I am excused from taking CMV patients as well. CMV is one of the TORCH diseases, so it's really not worth the risk to care for them when you have no immunity. The only other things I avoid are patients receiving chemo and patients who need to be taken to radiology procedures (CTs, extensive x-rays, etc.) Also, since my uterus is now out of my pelvis, I am not to solely lift more than 30 pounds, so they try to assign me lighter patients. The end result is that I have to be very flexible about everything else - I have to take up the slack some how, and that usually occurs by me taking more admits, taking more of the chronic patients, etc - those things that aren't the most fabulous assignments, but are safe and free up everyone else to do what I can't.

Thanks for all the opinions and suggestions. I realize that there have to be damages in order for someone to be compensated in a lawsuit. However, just because they aren't likely to prevail doesn't mean that they can't try and make my life miserable in the process. I'm waiting to hear back from my supervisor at this point.

Thanks. I did document everything, from being called into the patient's room, to finding the trach dislodged, to the aftermath that followed. The MDs have done a great job trying to explain that trachs become dislodged often, which is why we do such extensive training with the families on how to handle trach emergencies. I'm going to email my supervisor right now.

I have concerns that a patient family might try to sue me. There was an event with their child, in which the child's trach became dislodged, causing the child to desat and brady. Child required about 1 minute of CPR and 1 round of epi. Post-episode, all MRIs and CT scans have been at child's baseline, so it seems there was no permanent ischemic injury. I have not been assigned to this child again. Whenever I come across the parents, they make comments to me about how I'm the nurse who wrenched [child's] trach out. Or they accuse me of blaming the episode on their family (as in the family pulled the trach out.) They say something every time they pass me in the hall, in the waiting room, or even in front of other families. These are not the most stable people. They are from out of town, have other kids, and a history of drug abuse. They also don't seem to be the most book-smart. While this may seem like a terrible stereo type, they seem like exactly the type of family who would pursue a lawsuit over any perceived error in their child's care. I'm not sure what to do with my concerns about this. I know that I did not pull the child's trach out; rather, I was called into the room for something unrelated, noticed the child's sats dropping, and upon assessment, discovered the trach was dislodged. So I know I didn't do anything wrong, but that doesn't mean that the family doesn't think I did something wrong. I don't know if I should consult with my manager or supervisor or possibly the hospital's legal department. Has anyone else ever been sued or thought they were going to be sued? Possibly I'm worrying about nothing, but I'd rather be prepared.

I am not popular. I get along well with everyone I work with, have no interpersonal conflicts with anyone, and people seem to respect the job I do. But socially, I usually eat lunch alone. I hear of my co workers having parties and such, and I'm not invited. When a group of people goes out after work, they don't really ask if I'd like to join. So ... I guess professionally, things are ok, but not personally. I do care, kind of. It hurts a little to see people being so friendly and to be left out. I have to always remind myself that I have a life outside of work, so it doesn't matter so much.

Amen! If I had any idea where to start, I'd begin trying immediately to bring one to Texas.

I did specifically tell the management that I'm afraid of what these people will do when the child dies. Management still maintains that we have nothing to fear physically from this family. I have no idea what makes them so sure, but I sure wish they'd share it with the rest of us. Because everyone I've talked to is freaked out and thinks security should have at least been notified.

I spoke with the management again, after they spoke to the family. Apparently, (according to a family member who was not present when the statements were made) there was a misunderstanding about the context of the comments. Whatever. I don't buy that for a second. But, the management did state that this family has been given ever appropriate avenue to address their stress and concerns (which is certainly true. In addition to having the therapist visit them every other day, my manager also lets them come to her office to vent for an hour or so every few days), so that in the future, any inappropriate comment, whether taken out of context or not, will result in the family being escorted off the unit and not allowed back. I am glad that the consequences of further comments were spelled out very clearly. I have to wonder, though, how seriously the family will take it given that they essentially got away with it this time. I'm not sure what the right thing to do here is. I talked to an attorney, who told me I essentially have no rights. I referred the situation to management, which was the right first step, and now, since this is how management has chose to handle it, any further efforts on my part could be considered "insubordination" and I could be fired. Isn't it amazing that I'm the one who was threatened, yet I'm the only one who appears to be facing any consequences? I fully understand now why so many people choose to leave nursing.

I spoke with my manager today. She says she doesn't really feel like any of the staff are in danger from this family, but that she will go and speak to them again and deliver the message a little more firmly. She said if anything inappropriate is said again, security will escort them out and not allow them to return. She also said she'd speak to the therapist and let her know that her approach wasn't the best. So ... from their perspective, the problem is handled. Not quite sure how I feel about it. Why wasn't security notified the first time? Why weren't they escorted out the first time? And why do they not feel like the staff is in jeopardy? I can't help but wonder if it was the management who was threatened, if a bigger deal would have been made ..... So I don't know what to do/think at this point. I guess I'll have security escort me in and out (my manager did say this could be arranged) and wait and see what happens. Seems kind of like a bum deal, but what else can I do, besides quit?

Thanks so much for the support and advice! My husband has been wonderfully supportive and says that if the management doesn't take a stronger stance, then I'll just work some where else and "[bleep] them." I put a call in to my manager today, asking her to call me to discuss ongoing concerns I have about the situation. My husband is going to come with me to talk to her, and he said that if she won't intervene, he'll go to security himself. He also wants to file a restraining order, but I'm not sure how that would work with me continuing to work there and the family continuing to want to see their child. It's not so much that I want to ban them from seeing their child (though I do think the grandfather should have been asked to leave), it's that I want to feel safe. I'm afraid they'll go ballistic when the child dies or gets worse and there will be nothing in place to protect us. I've already gone on record stating I will not care for child anymore. We'll see what comes from talking to my manager.

My fear is that my manager will fire me for making a big stink. They place enormous value on "patient satisfaction." I guess it would tell me something about my work place if they fired me for being concerned about my safety after threats, but still ... who wants to get fired?

That is exactly the kind of thing I"m afraid of. The therapist said that the family "acts up" when their child has a bad day. Well, what's going to happen when the child finally, inevitably dies? If they don't care about alienating the staff while they still need us to care of their child, then who knows what they will be capable of when the child dies? One of them could follow me out to the parking lot, follow me home, or assault me in the hospital itself. I guess I will talk to my manager. ETA: I did tell my supervisor that I didn't appreciate the soft approach and that I would not work at a facility that allowed threats to happen like that. She said she agreed, but eventually went along with the therapists approach.

While helping a co-worker (so she could eat lunch) I was threatened by a patient's family; they made specific, violent treats towards me. I immediately reported this to my supervisor and one of our managers, plus the MD available in the unit. The solution was to have this family therapist (who had been working with the family) come down and speak to them. She wanted to be "gentle" with them, since they are having a stressful time, and said she would approach the issue "through the back door." What she ended up saying to the family was that their "guy talk" was too much for the "young ladies" in the unit, and that they need to tone it down. I was very upset. When I got home, I told my family about this situation, and my husband is incensed. He feels like they didn't take the situation seriously at all, and that at the very least, security should have been called, if not the police. I don't feel particularly safe there, and my husband is concerned for my safety as well. There are no metal detectors at my hospital, plus security wasn't even made aware of the potential for a problem. But as far as my unit is concerned, the matter was taken care of by the therapist telling the family to "tone it down." The therapist said that if the threats continue, she'll have a "family conference" with them to tell them it's not appropriate to talk to the staff that way. I think this is all BS - that they are catering to this family at the expense of their staff. I'm ****** and fearful of these people, given what they said they want to do to me (and all of our nurses.) My husband doesn't want me to go back there unless the family is dealt with a little more stringently and unless security is at least notified that these people are a potential problem. I don't know what to do ... if I should talk to my manager again or if we should go to security ourselves or what. Anyone been in this situation before? Thoughts?

I love this statement! Not everyone feels like nursing is a calling. I certainly don't. It's just a job, something I can do and do well enough. If there was something else that I was qualified to do, which also provided me with the same $$/benefits/flexible schedule, I'd probably go do that. :)

health insurance. If there was anything else I was qualified to do that would give me the same amount of money and the same benefits, I would sure as hell do it.

It's kind of nice to read about other people's errors and realize you aren't the only one who's done something careless or just plain stupid from time to time. :) I took care of a congenital heart patient once who pretty much chronically received blood transfusions. He got one about every 2-3 days. I took care of him one day, and his mother said to me, "When is he going to get his blood today?" I was a little puzzled, because I knew he had just gotten blood the night before, but I went and checked my orders and sure enough, there was a blood order, with that day's date on it, timed for 1200. It was around 1600 or so, so I felt like it was actually late. I ordered the blood, got it, checked with another nurse, and gave it. The next day I came in and got my butt chewed by the night shift doctor because apparently the blood I gave was the order she had written the night before and that was given the night before. Instead of using military time, like she was supposed to and writing 0000 or 2400, she wrote 1200 and didn't specify AM or PM. And then the night nurse who gave it didn't sign it off. And the blood blank didn't notice that it was the exact same order that had been sent to them the night before. I told the night shift doctor that if it was anyone's fault it was hers, because she should have used military time ... and that this proved why hospitals use military time to begin with. And, compounding her error was the fact that the night nurse didn't sign off the order, signaling that it was complete. But the doctor kept insisting that *I* was to blame because I should have recognized her signature on the order and realized that she was the doctor on nights that week and not the one on day shift. Whatever. Luckily, my manager didn't see it that way. It shows you how important it is to sign off your orders after you complete them, though.

My facility has much the same attendance policy as the original poster's. I received a verbal warning about a month ago for calling in sick 3 times in one calender year. I called in once for a migraine headache. I called in once with rota virus. I called in once with RSV. I brought doctor's notes for all my absences. And when I called in, I asked if they had enough staff to cover the day, because if not, I would come in anyways. I think it's a sucky system - so punitive. No one wants to be sick or use their paid time off for legitimate illness, rather than a vacation. I realize that employers have to run their businesses as businesses and count on employees to be there; however, I think the policies could be adjusted to reflect understanding of legitimate illness. For example, they could leave the "point system" the same - at 3 points you get a verbal warning. But instead of having every call-in be worth a point, have a call-in with a doctor's note (or a legitimate illness) only be worth half a point. Or something like that. I think that there would be less people coming to work sick (and making everyone else sick), if the systems were less punitive, and less frivolous call-ins if people were more accountable for those, rather than for legitimate illnesses. As it is, it just makes me angry that I have to be exceptionally careful not to get a headache or cold or sore throat or ANYTHING before April 12, so that I don't - god forbid - incur another point.

Thanks for explaining - again - how your facility functions. I was having a hard time understanding how break times could be predetermined and how multiple people could take a break at the same time. I've never worked in that type of environment; I've always worked in critical care or on a pediatric floor that did not utilize LVNs or nurses' aides, so my co-workers and I always have had to take breaks one at a time. That was where my confusion came in. I agree with you that it is discriminatory to provide something that not everyone has access to. I just wonder if the fact that your contract only states that employees must be allowed to purchase food (without specifying that it be a full meal) will keep your grievance from prevailing. I hope you will be able to work it out, one way or another, either by forcing the facility to provide the same food for everyone or by rotating break times so everyone has the same opportunities.

I'm curious about this (and it really has nothing to do with the original subject) but how does your facility manage if all the members of a particular profession take their break at the exact same time? My unit couldn't survive if all of a particular type of personnel went to lunch at the exact same time ... neither could my hospital. So how does that work?