MedicalLPN

Congrats to you for finding your passion in nursing!! I think too many people don't realize that psychiatric nursing comes with its own valuable set of skills.

I did a very brief search to see if I could find TN's scope of practice for LPN's but was unable to find anything. If you are doubtful of whether or not you are legally able to mix the IV meds please contact your BON. Also check to see what your employer's policy is on who is allowed to mix the IV meds. Remember, it's never a good idea to do anything you're uncomfortable with doing by yourself no matter what your licensure is.

Well, one day when/if she's a nurse I'm sure she'll have a patient throw something at her when all she'll be trying to do is address their needs, that's just how Karma works.

I completely agree with you. It seems that are society has come to a point where death just simply is unacceptable as opposed to be being a part of life. Sadly I'm sure there is some hospital executive somewhere who believes that to allow a patient to die a comfortable and peaceful death is "bad customer service".

Whoa... what? So all you have to do to get someone fired is to literally cry witch? What century are we living in again?? Sorry... that just really saddens me that in this day and age that someone would get fired for something like that.

I agree. I think I'm at higher risk of developing an infection from exposure during patient care versus having a closed container drink at the nurse's station, hmmm maybe if I gloved and gowned before having a swig of my diet Dr. Pepper JCAHO would be happier?

A nurse in white? That's the most unprofessional thing I've ever heard of Some rules were made to be stupid, others like the "No drinks at the nurses' station" one are due to infection control although many people don't follow it. I'm sorry you're having a rough time, I think all facilities have their "moods" where everything seems to be against the rules.

Having issues with anxiety does not make you a weak person, nursing is a high stress profession and high stress professions are prone to contributing to anxiety. Keep in mind medicine is just one facet of treating and controlling anxiety, it is not the only treatment out there. Best of luck to you! :)

I agree that you should see your doctor since your anxiety is starting to interfere with your everyday life. I've had issues with this ever since I began nursing and when the anxiety is at work sometimes it can be a good thing, it puts you on high alert for any subtle changes that occur that can indicate a critical situation arising, in that respect the anxiety is actually a blessing in disguise. However, once you start feeling that way outside of work that's when it is a problem. Sadly, even for those who are used to working night shift and adjust to it tend to have issues with depression/anxiety over the years, just please take care of yourself and see your physician so you can receive whatever treatment it is that you require and retake control over your thoughts and emotions. Hang in there.

Go to work, do your job, and go home and live your life, turning your workplace into a chaotic soap opera for your own enjoyment because you are miserable with your life is NOT okay. No, I don't want to hear about your special connection with the baby Jesus while I'm charting, because honestly I could care less. Don't leave me pamphlets from your church on how to find Jesus in my mailbox, the sanctity of my soul is none of your concern. Don't be surprised when I respond angrily when asked to do an extra shift when you wake me up at 10am after I worked the night before. I know your sex life is exciting, but when I feel like I need to bathe after talking to you it's probably best to keep your stories to yourself. Kids are great, but I just met you five minutes ago and I have seven patients to go take care of, do you have to show me 53 pictures of them and tell me every detail of what has happened to your kids since they were born? Yes, I've been told that I'm easy to talk to but I'm not a licensed therapist. You want my opinion on whether or not you're pregnant? Really? Do we HAVE to go there?

While there are areas of nursing that doesn't have a lot of "bowel care" involved i.e. office nursing, etc. it would be a shame to limit yourself to one particular specialty just to avoid administering an enema or changing a brief. Just remember when giving care to someone, it's not about you, it's about the patient and when cleaning up a patient after an episode of incontinence it shouldn't be about your comfort level, it should be about getting them comfortable with dignity. Please remember too that we often underestimate our own potential, we believe that we won't be able to handle certain situations and yet when they arise we don't freak out the way we thought we would. Please don't take offense to this message, I just think that if you stop and think about it, it's really quite trivial to go into an area of nursing you may not even be interested in order to avoid one minor piece of patient care. One more thing, just remember you can always just refrain from breathing through your nose to avoid the smell or apply a small amount of vick's to your upper lip before administering care. Best of luck to you.

Awesome idea, thanks for sharing! I have an anti-stress kit that I use at home that includes a glass of wine, a cigarette, and a trashy romance novel, the stress just melts away! :)

Some of these managers need to be doused in water to see if they'll melt.

I would truly advise caution about letting your interviewers know that you have Asperger syndrome simply due to the fact that even in healthcare and even nurses have petty prejudices. This is a personal matter, and unless you feel comfortable telling them you shouldn't feel like you have to. Please, do not beat yourself up and do not blame yourself if you interview for a position and do not get it, competition for jobs is fierce right now for everyone and it's all to easy to become discouraged. Realize too that you live with this condition day in and day out and as such are probably extremely self aware which can be a good thing but can also lead to excessive self criticism. More than likely your "lack of personality" was simply believed to be anxiety related to the interview by those that conducted it and nothing more. Keep your head high, and do not lose hope, you WILL find the job that you want!

I remember a time of never being bored with nursing, how easy it was to gain experience in various settings and specialties and to continuously be stimulated with new and different information, situations, types of patients, challenges, heartbreaks, and the satisfaction of helping patients. Those days weren't that long ago, and yet I miss them dearly. It seems as though the endless well of various jobs is finally starting to dry up (in my area at least) and while I count my blessings that I have a job, a very good job, I find myself missing the patients (I'm administrative now and no patient care positions are available right now where I work) and becoming discontent. I love nursing, it's one of my passions, yet I still just haven't found my niche and I find myself growing frustrated by the ever growing hoops that surround finishing an associate's degree in nursing to broaden my career aspects and I'm too the point I'm thinking about switching tracks in school and going into something other than nursing. It seems as though each semester right when I'm ready to enter the LPN-RN bridge program, Aha! The required criteria changes and I'm no longer eligible, it keeps happening to the point that it's ridiculous, "Sorry, but there was no chicken in your yard when you filled out your application, and that's now a requirement.". Anyway, I'm just truly getting bored with wasting money on a degree that's always going to be out of my reach due to red tape, and while I love nursing, I'm ready to move on to something else. Anyway, I don't mean to sound so negative as that's not my intent. I guess I'm just wondering if there's anyone else out there that's tasting the bitterness of being discontent.