zoo*moon

Holy cow just sitting and watching monitors? What the heck? I was on my feet 8 straight hours taking care of 2 fresh generals at the same time,trying to get pain and BP under control. I don't ever JUST SIT! Also dang, PACU nurses generally HAVE to take call. It's rare to find an opening where you don't have to. There are middle of the night cases and weekend cases.

Met a nursing student the other day. She says she wants to work in ICU. A few minutes later she mentions working in the ICU again and says yeah I want to be a Nurse Anesthetist (but totally mangles the word) and you have to have a year ICU experience first. I'm shaking my head, feeling sad. Side note though how should I correct her and teach her how to say "Anesthetist" correctly? It was shocking how she mispronounced it.

i can't believe a manager would think that. omg, babies don't count? that's crazy! yeah, they're choking, gagging, turning gray, not pooping or peeing, have to spend so much time with them because they won't latch on, bleeding from their circumcision. right, they don't count. sheesh. what are pds?

i moved away from my husband and kids for a new job. you won't believe my commute-- 2 1/2 hours away (120 miles). crazy? yeah. it has been really hard. but i did it for the new experience. so, no kids yet? go for it? (the miles sounds good to me right now.) unless you can find something closer. there are a lot of rns that commute 45 min to an hour, even an hour and a half where i work. a larger hospital should provide you with better experience. i'd wait a year though before trying for a family. get at least a year's experience first. just my opinion. it's a lot harder to manage childcare and commute too.

i just got off orientation and am overwhelmed with 4 couplets. and i have worked on a med/surg telemetry floor with 8 to 10 patients. when i voiced my frustration, i was told up to 5 couplets was standard so in other words, it could be worse. pts/beds are assigned by the previous shift and i don't think they all look at the acuity of the patients to balance the load. i also want to know about nursery staffing-- ours until recently had just one nurse for 1 to 20-some babies. now they have decided to put a tech in there to help if census is high, decision up to the shift charge. for an almost 30 bed unit, i don't understand how one nurse with the possibility of twenty some babies is safe. if there is only one tech on for the shift then the nurse will be in the nursery alone. and yes there are many parents who take their baby to the nursery for the night. (apparently they want sleep.)

i left my med-surg position because the 30-bed floor was regularly staffed with only 3 or 4 nurses. if one called in sick, they never found a replacement so it was one nurse with up to 10 patients. that was way too much for me. i worked there about 10 years. well so i found a new job to get new experience. i am on a postpartum floor, about the same size, but really double with both moms and babies. the usual assignment is 4 couplets. i was told standard of care allowed up to 5. i cannot believe this and thought i'd type my question on this board. last night, of my 4, i had two fresh c-sections and one had complications. mom and baby assessments are every 4 hours. it is way too much, too busy, too much to juggle. so much going on. not really much better than med-surg. i hoped to get at least a year experience but i don't think i can make it.

i'm curious too-- how old are you? i graduated from nursing school in the mid-90s and we were taught to chart that way that looks totally foreign to you. two dots over a horizontal line then two vertical lines under that horizontal line. that's how i chart "2" when i get an order, for example for 2 tablets of percocet.

i hear you about getting awful reports... some nurses just don't do much more than pass meds. it seems. (oh but they get all their charting done/their boxes checked.) wonder what kind of assessment they do. they don't try to learn more about the patient. when i get to work they're always sitting down. always the first one "done". what kind of care are their patients getting? so these nurses usually have no useful/helpful info to pass on in report. sometimes i just get "i haven't heard much from this one. they ate. they're okay." huh???

oh, wow. thank you all so much for your replies. it is so nice to talk to others who understand and who can offer different points of view. i just saw a coworker (yesterday) who was also there that shift i mentioned. she said she just wanted to quit too. and she's been there almost 20 years. it is sad that it has to be that way. there are good people who work there and they're just almost "used up" you know? i appreciate all the words of encouragement. i spoke to a recruiter yesterday-- i had applied for an l&d position. she said they won't hire anyone without experience. but she did say i could get an icu position. the floor is just too intense, too much. i've thought some nights i can't do this anymore but there's so much to do in nursing i know i can find something to do that's fulfilling and not so much of stressor. i really don't want to give up on nursing. thanks again! :)

Hi, I'm an RN and I'm needing some advice. I've done med/surg for about 9 1/2 years. My username was "ihatemedsurg" but that was just too negative so I changed it. But I still feel it. What should I do now? I still want to be nurse. The last time I worked was crazy and I was so relieved to leave early. I had just signed up for part of a shift and felt guilty leaving my coworkers. Some meds didn't get passed until after 10. Some patients didn't get assessed until then too. 10 patients to assess and pass meds on-- I've had it. Well my first choice is postpartum-- don't really want to do L & D. Hardly anyone will hire without experience though. Second choice is ICU. I'd like to know what ICU would be like. Thanks!

i've been there. i hated my first year in med/surg job and so i quit after working exactly a year. but i ended up going back, working only once a week. still hate it but at least i have more of a choice of when i work. i too dread going to work, feel just the way you describe. i hate charting, i hate the smells, i hate to hear all the other nurses griping about the job. (at least i'm not alone in hating the job.) i hate being responsible for sometimes 10 patients. chest pains, fresh surgeries-- too much going on and not enough of me. will it get better? it may. how long have you been working? find a compassionate (experienced) coworker to talk to. there is a very good nurse i work with who has been a nurse for over 25 years. it was shocking to hear but this nurse said the nausea and dread i feel before, during and after the shift (though more relief at the end of course)-- this nurse feels the same way. and this nurse knows sooooo much. i would trust my life with this nurse more so than any other coworker. good luck to you. you are not alone. think of what kind of nursing you want to go into and pursue it. there are so many different types of units you can work in.

well, hate to admit it but you typed how i feel many times when i go to work. so many patients to take care of, it is too much stress and pressure. having to pass meds and do assessments by 10pm then all the charting-- so much that you really don't have time to check on the patients. what else? stinky old women's crotches, stinky large men's rolls-- the smells are just so gross. then there are rude demanding patients, patients, who despite my ignoring other staff's reports that they are "drug seekers", really are that and are quite rude about it. rude families who think they are the only ones i'm taking care of. patients who complain because they don't get their evening meds by 8:00. give me a break! patients who complain because we check their vitals at midnight and 4am... sometimes i too just don't want to be with other people. i wish i had lab credentials. i'm thinking working in a lab would be a nice change. i feel how you feel. i hate med/surg. i hate going to work. i hate being at work. i hope you find something different to do. i'm looking too.

i loved echo heron's books. intensive care, the story of a nurse and condition critical were two i'm really glad i read. i found them very educational and i was touched by her writing. i wanted more. too bad she's no longer writing. i remember thinking i wish she could have been my preceptor! or one of my instructors in nursing school. i highly recommend her books.

No duh so everyone's going to Ivy Tech. Thanks for the super friendly answer. I wasn't trying to be mean. I am wondering why there are no nurses posting. Hoping to hear from working/non Ivy Tech people. What was the point of your nasty answer? I hope you'll be a more patient nurse when you graduate!

How do the hospitals in Indy compare? Is there one known to pay better than the others?

sheesh, why is this indiana board all about ivy tech? where are all the active nurses? i would like to hear about monroe hospital vs. bloomington hospital anyone?

right, if you have a long line, the med you are putting in (e.g. morphine) has to clear the line first, so when you flush with saline, also go slow-- look and see how far before it reaches the patient. if iv fluids are compatible they can carry the drug in (after you release your pinch) but can take too long depending on the rate and where your port you used was on the line. also, when using a picc or any central line, be sure to use no less than a 10cc syringe. our pyxis dispenses morphine in prefilled syringes so these have to be transferred to a 10cc. less than 10cc is too much pressure for central lines.

right, i agree. that is just crazy. yeah, like the restroom checks at target or mcdonald's. a bit demeaning for nursing. our charting is electronic and so much of it is checking things off. and the "suits" sitting at their desks keep finding things to add on. unfortunately, though, as they tried to pound in our heads in nursing school-- if it's not charted, it's not been done. but just checking/initialing really doesn't mean it's been done because you know there are nurses/techs out there who'll sign off/initial even though it wasn't really done. so same with these papers in the room or out in the hall. but the administration have to keep coming up with these "quality control" items to show they are "always trying to improve"... which means ever more charting and checking off. forgetting actually taking care of the patient... just be sure you do all your charting.

what??? you all weren't alerted by the tele alarms??? oh my god. that is a horrible story. lucky it was a 96 yr old with a family who didn't care. what if it was someone else? p.s. it is "suffice" not surfice... as in "sufficient" :)

i know, i wanted to avoid "tacky". yes i am considering relocating. no, a one time trek is not a big deal. thanks, just what i needed. a smack to the head.

i work one weekend night every week and just that one shift messes up our lives so i would say to you--don't do it! it may pay well but oh my it would be sad and lonely. if i worked the whole weekend every weekend it would mean no time to do family things. (hubby works m-f, have 3 kids under 9) agreeing to total weekends esp. since your hubby works m-f would be really hard for you guys. unless he's a super guy and if your kids are older-- (12 and over) unless you have no other choice, yikes, i think a total weekend option is a poor choice for someone with a family. i may consider if no children. husband would be more flexible by himself.

wish you could have been my manager! :) sounds like you tried to be a great manager. (that's the problem.) night shift rarely sees our um. the previous one was super-- she came in early enough to see the night shift. this one- eh. she is gone before nights came in and hardly came out to the floor before nights left. she would be in her office! and heck she wouldn't come in if we were short. ha! help solve personal problems? another ha! i know i've not been in her shoes. but i think she has it easy because she can decide what to care about and it's much less than it should be. vacation all the time. it seems every other month she takes a week off. i guess if you did all that needed/should be done it would almost kill you. congratulations on a doing your best as a manager and welcome back to the floor! i hope it works better for you.

The concern is I don't want to drive 2 1/2 to 4 hours then find out I'll be making less. I know, it depends. I might accept a position that pays less-- depends on the position. But generally speaking, I wouldn't interview at a place if it would mean I'd be making less. Why don't they offer up that information up front? I've looked around and so far only one hospital posted their starting rate with the job descriptions. But I'm afraid to ask if it'll mean no interview. P.S. Sorry for the negative user name. Anyone know if it can be changed?

i do not think you were "out of line". geez, you asked her to give one pain med! that preceptor is being mean and unfair, unreasonable, uncaring. it makes me think of the old saying about nurses eating their young. like she "suffered" somehow so she wants to take it out on you. she said she's not supposed to help you? she's your preceptor! what does she do then? precepting is teaching is helping. what the heck is her problem? okay, the pumping. she considers your pumping unnecessary, doesn't get it. (she must not have breastfed her children if she had any.) there are those who did not nurse their babies who just don't understand this "pumping" thing breastfeeding mothers do. if she had any idea the pain you are in after not pumping for 6 hours would it help? (eh, maybe not.) she sounds like a nasty person all around. it is sad to realize there are cold heartless people like her out there. and she's a preceptor! she needs to be reprimanded. really, it sounds like no matter what you ask for (a tissue if your nose was bleeding?) she would give you a hard time. it's not you. good luck finding a better situation. :wink2:

i understand your worries. your story sounds like mine. i worked med/surg for a full year, hated it, left after one year. then i had my children and didn't work in a hospital for two years. my boss was super nice and rehired me as prn. she told me i could have as much orientation as i wanted/needed. just ask. you might be surprised. also, i worked nights which is a little bit less stressful than days and found it easier to go pump. but if i nursed right before i had to leave for work around 6 and it was super busy, i was ready to die if i couldn't pump by 10 or so. so just keep that in mind. if you can wait maybe a few more months, until the baby is 6 months? i don't know if that would make it a little easier. just don't let anyone make you feel guilty about going to go pump. heck, smokers get to go out all the time. you have a right to pump and your hospital is required to provide you breaks and a room to do it in. good luck! you can do it!