sleepy247

I have been at a small, medium and large hospital. I started out at a medium hospital It was busy enough to learn and see alot but you never felt like you were all alone. I moved to Tennessee and worked at a small hospital for a few months and hated it. I had seen enough to know all the horrible things that could happen and hated not having any back up....no in-house anesthesia, no in-house ob.....half the time, I was the only labor nurse working! I remember sitting at the nurses station, which was right next to a set of elevators. I would hear the elevator coming up and imagine every possible complication and wonder what was going to be wrong w/ the patient coming off the elevator that I was going to have to handle all by myself. I didn't last long at that hospital. Now I am in charge at a night at a large hospital and love it. I love working w/ a large group of nurses. I also like the in-house anesthesia, 24 hour ob coverage, level 3 nursery....everything! But, that kind of atmosphere is not for everyone. We are almost always busy, w/ very little downtime. And there is a lot of division between the units as Smilingblueeyes pointed out. I guess you have to ask yourself what you do and don't like about the hospital you are currently at and then go from there. Good luck!

Jenny, Thanks so much! I really like the idea about the saline spray. I will be pretty far from running water so it will be a wonderful thing to have on hand. Thanks also for the advice on the OTC stuff. I will check w/ the school nurse at the high school and make sure of the rules in our area. My primary area of nursing is Labor and Delivery so I tend to feel very uncomfortable w/ any patient who isn't pregnant. This should be an adventure! Thanks again, Colleen

Thanks for the great ideas. Hopefully, the weather will cool off enough that I won't have to worry about heat related illnesses and bee stings!

I have to run the First Aid tent for an upcoming event for my kid's high school. I am looking for any advice I can get. Also, I am wondering if there are legal issues I need to be aware of. Is it okay to give people over-the-counter drugs that they sometimes come and ask for, such as Tylenol and Motrin? I'd appreciate any advice I could get. Thanks

Funny how L&D nurses can get pulled all over the hospital but no one ever gets to help us when we are going down the tubes! I don't blame you for not wanting to leave your area of comfort. I feel the same way. But recently at our hospital we have had a string of unusually sick antepartum patients. We had everything from pancreatitis (complete w/ central lines and hyperal) to 2 orthopedic patients (one of which got put on a heparin drip). Those old rusty med/surg skills sure came in handy! Most of the time, when L&D nurses get pulled from our unit to another area, they are used more as a tech than as a nurse. Most of still don't feel comfortable w/ that but feel we don't have much of a choice. That doesn't help you much, does it? But remember that as an L&D nurse you have many skills on your side....like being able to react quickly in an emergency....and NOT being afraid to call doctor in the middle of the night...and attention to detail....and assessment skills, the list goes on. Maybe you could request some additional inservices on equipment you aren't comfortable with. Personally, I pray every night that we are busy enough not to get pulled to another area. I feel extremely lucky to be a labor nurse when I come back to my own area!