Jonesskky RN

I work in Michigan and the "flu-shot" policies are just ridiculous! They don't mandate it for the paramedics, doctors will NEVER get fired, and if you have allergies or the flu shot is contraindicated than these "FBI" looking people will still try to force you to get one! Anyone getting fired should automatically sue the hospital cause that's not fair.

Congrats on passing your boards! Working in the ER, nurses know how to expected the unexpected and enjoy the adventure. That includes having new nurses around because you truly never know what to expect from new grad and that's okay! My only advice to new nurses is make sure you are truly receiving a decent orientation and make the most of it. Learning about IV's and basic care should not be intimidating because it gets better/easier with time. Good Luck and have fun :)

Great information.

There is nothing wrong with teaching and being a staff nurse at the same time. Several of my co-workers have taught clinicals or have worked at universities but the biggest concern they mention is being able to maintain and handle both stresses. The balance of being responsible for students, caring for patients and the demands of work, and your personal life (not including emergencies) can be very difficult but not impossible. Try to take your transitions one step at a time, making sure you get PLENTY of experiences as a nurse and start your teaching journey as a preceptor than try out colleges/universities...that's my plan but everyone is different- good luck to you!

What qualities or traits do a new nurse want to see in a preceptor and why? I will be starting my preceptor training soon and really want to know some good ideals.

I had a nurse who didn't want to give someone a Catapress patch because the blood pressure was like 100/50 but the doctors were concerned about rebound hypertension and sometimes Catapress is given for withdrawal symptoms so critical thinking skills must always be used...not just for medications.

There are several more general tips for studying: 1. talk/meet with your professor about your concerns and see what advice they can offer. 2. If you don't like groups than try just one person and asked if they can be your study partner. Even though you are not good in groups, you still have to try your best because I know you can. 3. Go over previous questions that you got wrong to fully grasp an understanding and always anticipate seeing the information again. 4. Generally speaking, focus on prioritizing to rule out incorrect answers...safety, ABC's, when to call the doctor...etc. is very important to know for getting questions right or having better test results

Congratulations!!! any words of advice?

Hi Jessica, you honestly get MORE experience with MORE hours. Imagine being a nurse there and having the same (little to no) nursing experience and you've been there for a couple of months...it's unacceptable and the DON should trust you enough to give you more hours or give you more training. So I'm saying all of that to say it might be bad to abruptly leave but it's understandable and almost necessary. Just try to leave on good terms and keep it simple, say you have personal obligations or demands that prevent you from meeting the job requirements and focus on the next job. Good Luck.

some nurses are not aware of the 9 Rights of Medications but it's helpful if you want to decease the errors associated with dispensing medications and improve your nursing care. I'm sharing this information because it's great for new nurses and nursing students to be aware of... Furthermore, every medication given should at least follow the first 5 rights but some medications are very important in other areas so more rights were added: right patient right time and frequency right dose right route of admission right drug right dilution or compatibility (important for antibiotics) right flow rate (important for insulin and Heparin drips) right monitoring (important for potassium, Dilantin, nitrogen drips, etc.) right documentation (very important for tPa, conscious sedation) and the right documentation usually includes forms to help or know the "right monitoring" Teaching the 9 rights of medications could decrease problems or med errors and I believe it should be practice more often, I'm just curious about what others may think will help since it's becoming a bigger problem in my hospital

In my ER department, the latest updates in treating stroke patients includes: doing the blood work, especially a pt/ptt level BEFORE the patient goes to ct scan because the delay of tPa treatment was related to the these important labs not getting done. It is "slowly" becoming a requirement so I don't believe you need a doctor's order but always check you policies and protocols...stroke requirements are changing frequently.

Congratulations and continue making the nursing field proud!

Hello, I've been working in the ER for about 3years, generally speaking I like to work with people who are proactive. My advice for anybody new to the ER is letting people know it's okay to feel overwhelm and frustrated. Make people aware when you don't feel comfortable about a situation and be prepared to learn something new everyday. I'm sure you'll be okay, good luck!

I wanted to create a resource for nurses and I like to make websites. Right now I'm working in the ER and have little time available to work on it but I feel like its worth it b/c I've never seen a website like mine-anyway I'm kind of torn between nursing, creating websites, and other stuff but anyway check it out http://www.nursingelement.com and let me know if you feel stuck between 2 completely different careers or how to handle it?