agent66

Well i find it terribly stressful, is tough and expensive to find daycare for the hours i work where i live, almost makes it not worth the while of going to work when you add in the cost of parking etc. I have been saying for years that an onsite daycare even just at night would be so great, would likely enable more girls to pick up shifts when they are short as daycare is often the issue we cannot come in. I do only nights, ship the kids to their dad's for most of the nights, but i still have to take them to and from school. Picking up shifts last minute is out of the question, as my family are not close by and all my friends are nurses as well , and i hate to impose on them on their days off to look after my kids. Pay wise is great, but i am exhausted with the long hours plus managing everything else , ie school and extracurriculars. Kids are busy no matter what the age, and lucky for you your family are close by and willing to help you out. Best of luck to you.......try to remember to take time for yourself with the busy schedule if you are able

At our hospital for a twelve hour shift we get 45minutes paid and 45 minutes unpaid as per the union contract. 15minutes coffee , 30min lunch and 15 minute mid afternoon , 30 minute supper. The afternoon break never a consideration so lumped into a 45 minute supperbreak. Our difficulty comes when we miss supper break and try to sign in for overtime since it was missed, management argues that it is unpaid and therefore do not have to pay OT on it. So basically the issue goes to the fact that you have to take your break and stay after hours to finish the work, which of course no one is going to do right? I think in the long run it all works out anyways for there are days we have certainly taken longer than 15 minutes for coffee and 30 for lunch. Nights however when it is so busy that there is no break at all, i don't hesitate to sign in for the OT.

Well i would have to vote for Ottawa of course since i live here, it is a great city, big enough to have lots to do, but small enough to get from one end to the next in 30-40minutes without traffic. Crime rate has been getting worse over the years, but certainly no where near the numbers in Toronto and Vancouver. Outlying subburbs are very affordable and yet i am still only 15 minutes from downtown core. The only big thing with regards to getting a job is that we are an officially bilingual city, and it is sometimes difficult to get work unless your french is up to par. But in saying that , it also depends on on the time of year and how desperate for staff they are. We are only 2 hours from Montreal and about 4-5 from Toronto. And 3 hours from Syracuse if you happen to love to cross border shop! Feel free to message me if you have any more questions. agent66:up:

i have been doing the twelve hour shifts as well with two kids. the daycare is a big big issue. we only have one overnight place in the city, that charges $8/hour per child so what would be the point of sending them? and for the dayshift , pickup at most places is 6pm at the latest if you are really lucky. i find the nightshift easier to cover than days to just get a friend to come sleep over or my out of town family will cover one every week. they are also able to go to their dads for some of those nights as well. at least i am at home during the day, even if i am asleep, so if something happens at school, they can call and i can go get them etc. also i am home for them when they come home from school and then for supper. i am part time but do about 5 shifts every two weeks , and i try really hard not to do two in a row just for the sanity of the kids and myself too as we also have extra curricular activities which of course run in the evenings. i have a high needs little guy too . good luck to you, it can be done, but it sure isn't easy. make sure to make time for yourself and it will be a lot easier. 66:paw::paw::paw: ps i have the added bonus of a toddler dog who needs company at least once in the night, but thankfully have great neighbours. other pets too, but they are not so much work. it helps to be ultra organized!

Oh likely the one that pulls her foley out fully inflated just for fun, ouchie!! Or watches till after the nurse rounds at night, then takes off out the front door most likely headed for a mall!! tammy 66

we have started something similar, calculating the creatinine clearance, and holding metformin for 48hours post procedure. it is still doc dependant if they want the hydration orders or not with the bicarb infusions. some just still go for the mucomyst , some want the mucomyst and hydration. why must protocols be so difficult? the docs don't check it , they think is standard, but actually they have to check it off if they want it, oh boy so much confusion. you would think also they could calculate the number themselves on their order sheet and do the orders right away if the number warrants it. but they leave it for nursing to do and call them back later . oh and did i mention often the crcl is not even calculated , but found in the middle of the night, pre procedure? that gets a 7am call to the doc in his car who doesn't even know the patient. great system.

I wish that patients that can walk outside to have a smoke, would not ring me for a glass of juice!! tammy 66

By the way minusing a spouse makes it even more difficult!!!

Only $4000 a month, hmmm... impossible for most of us to put aside into savings. Wow, but good for you if you make that much that you can do that and still have fun too. I obviously work in the wrong country?

Well said cardiac!!! That 60 hour workweek for 8 years sounds like the fast track to burnout by 30, not retirement. You are only planning on 2days off a week? Plan on one of those for sleeping because you are going to be exhausted. Think you will feel like housework etc on that one extra day off?? Not likely, but if you can, sure sounds like a fun day off!! If you figured a family into that equation anywhere, I can tell you they will not appreciate those hours. And on the patient side of your workweek, I don't think I would want to be under your care on that 5th shift. Fatigue does show, not only in your appearance and demeanour but also in your care!

Common drugs just for tele, probably all the blockers, beta and calcium channels, ace inhibitors, dig, amiodarone, milrinone, heart failure drugs in general, potassium, magnesium, calcium drips, many more I imagine but those are the ones that come to mind quickly. Now these just floor drugs right??

I think the big deal is that he is rude is it not??

Definately would not have gotten it for him , taking into account his rudeness, otherwise wouldn't have minded. Probably would have added though that it was still in the backroom, unpoured beside his jar of happy pills which he obviously hadn't taken today yet either.

I really need nothing BUT... a night out with good friends would be great. Oh, and for my kids to be happy. Well maybe a pool heater too so summer can last just a wee bit longer up here.

I would absolutely hand it in to HR in person just to make sure the right people got it. Guess I don't completely trust fax machines, or managers for that matter! Take a copy for yourself as well just in case. Don't want any miscommunications following you to the next job. 66

Your ventricular rate will only be regular in A-flutter if your flutter rate is constant , ie 4:1 , 3:1 etc., that is 4 flutter waves to every one ventricular complex.(or 3 or whatever the ratio is) If the f-waves are conducting at different ratios then the qrs cannot be regular. So yes, aflutter can be irregular if the f-waves are conducting at varying ratios to the qrs.

By contract our schedule has to be out by now. Is my year to work Christmas, but again lucked out, am working christmas eve days and boxing day night, and New years off. Is not so bad, I don't think as not travelling too far out of town for dinner.

Great thread Zoe, I must be the odd man out. I sleep great, night time, daytime. Have never had to use gravol, benadryl or anything. I can drink coffee all day long and does not bother me to go to sleep. Tea on the other hand makes me travel to bathroom way too many times after dozing off so now avoid it. I have been doing 12 hour nights only for almost 20 years and have no trouble switching back to day mode for my days off . To boot I can sleep after nights , get up at 3ish and go back to bed at 10pm and sleep right through the night! As for background noise does the kids yelling and the dog barking count?? Perhaps it is because I am high energy person while awake that I fall asleep so easily when I do crash, who knows. I sympathize with those of you that do not sleep well, have worked a night or two with those who have only slept an hour or two before coming in for their second nightshift, not pleasant!! Tammy 66

I would disagree not for myself personally because I have preceptored and enjoyed it, BUT there are nurses who don't do well in the student/preceptor role. They either don't have the personality for it, and by that I mean the patience it takes to answer alot of questions and show someone a procedure or routine that they have been doing for years with one eye closed. And if we were all honest, we would admit there are people we work with that we wouldn't wish even our least favorite students on. Of course there are also those in our profession who take on students so they have someone else doing their work for a said amount of time, and they can have a break. Yes, that is the truth also. Would I do it again? For sure, because I really like being in the teacher role and feel I have a lot of experience and insight to offer newbies. But it is not for everyone, and shouldn't be forced on someone that is not comfortable or appropriate to take on that role. Tammy 66

I would really have to agree with Sarasota, I cannot stand being called maam at the grocery store, OMG, am I like 100 years old?? Pretty sure I am only turning 41 this year. When I went down to New York to shop last month, all the girls and I thought it nice that all the waitresses called us "hon" or "honey". They made us feel really welcome, and it was the women our age as well as the younger girls. We gave them a hefty tip just because they made us feel so special. Now "darling" I don't think I would stand from a patient or otherwise, just not an endearment I have ever warmed up to. As for "baby", yikes that reminds me of bad pick up lines from college, no thanks then and no thanks now.

I also work in a telemetry unit, and I work only nightshift. 2hours later than your shift is way too much time. Unless your patient needs transferring to a critical area at the time of shift change etc then you shouldn't have to spend more than 15 minutes past your time to get loose ends tied up. I always chart the nursing notes as I go and sign off meds as I go. If MARS need recopying or charts stocked, I make sure the wardclerk is aware before she takes off at 2200. There is always unexpected events that you cannot plan into your night so your charting always needs to be up to date. This is something I always , always reinforce with the students. Things change quickly, "always expect the unexpected". You need your breaks as well, so plan them into your night. Delegate some tasks to others if they are sitting around and you find yourself overwhelmed, some nurses don't offer, but are willing to help you out if asked. Your time management will improve with experience but consistently getting out more than 15-20 mins past your shift is not good for your well being.

Thanks for all the posts, makes me want to run out and get one!! NOT!!

i work cardiac, I am female, my pets are mixed. 3cats: 2male and 1female 1dog, mix collie/shepard female who I have big issues with who is the queen of the castle , but she does leave my shoes alone !! 1rabbit, think he is a he, the kid at the petstore said so but I haven't checked and don't really care. and i am bad, they all sleep whereever whenever:o:lol2:

Were you by chance showing your nervousness around the patient? That could account for the increase in BP. Those pauses aren't too long, but if they were increasing in frequency , I would have called the doc to come assess the strips and probably send her elsewhere for closer monitoring. Was she a sick sinus syndrome patient, or in some kind of block from the Cardizem?? True enough her BP was holding and she was obviously alert enough from what you said in post, but if the pauses were getting longer and more frequent then I would also had her assessed and possibly shipped elsewhere. Not my favorite thing to have to pace a person with the pads at the last minute. Were they considering a permanent pacer or just going to watch her rhythm a few days off the drugs? I would hope she also had a big fat line in somewhere. Always better to go with your gut, you did the right thing for your patient.

Hip check buddy and his cart out of line, oops sorry i must have tripped (in my usual 4inch shopping boots of course), then give him the "tammy look" which would undoubtedly scare him and his gifts rights out of the mall.