servant2

Nurses have to put up with naughty words when the patient isn't responsible for saying them and to some extent even when they are, but we don't have to propogate the habit in our own behavior. Some people think dirty jokes are "adult" and funny; I don't, and I think it demeans nurses as I believe it demeans anyone to put low language or ideas in front of them. And, by the way, I'm no prude or shielded from life, I just think we can be better than that. And I think I have a sense of humor. One patient lived on a Medicare ward I worked, a young man, formerly a motorcyclist, now a quadraplegic requiring continuing care in the nursing home. He had some nurses or aides who brought him alchohol and other things. And since they thought, because of my faith, that I was an easy mark, they set me up one night in my care of him, to put something I needed for his care on top of his bare private parts. My professionalism didn't hide my embarrassment; I simply acknowledged that they "got" me and he still got his care.

I realize that a nurse can't control what patients will do but if you can't keep the "funny" stories on this thread clean, that is to say without bad language, then I will close my connection to this thread. Just so you know where I stand.

Nashville is not very convenient. The local tech center has an IV cert class in January 2008; I just didn't want to wait that long if it meant working or not working. But since I probaly won't need it for the physician's group clinic which has the working conditions I think I will like, I may not pursue it just now. Thank you anyway.

Thanks for the responses to my post. I recently interviewed for a job where IV Cert. may be moot because the job is in a clinic. I may get the cert anyway, I don't know. Be blessed, servant2

this story isn't mine but came from a friend who is also a nurse and probably she got it out af a nurse magazine somewhere but it's is too funny. enjoy! betsy, a grammar-school teacher from miami, remembers this oscar-worthy birth tableau from one of her students... i've been teaching now for about fifteen years. i have two kids myself, but the best birth story i know is the one i saw in my own second-grade classroom a few years back. when i was a kid, i loved show-and-tell. so i always have a few sessions with my students. it helps them get over shyness and experience a little public speaking. and it gives me a break and some guaranteed entertainment. usually, show-and-tell is pretty tame. kids bring in pet turtles, model airplanes, pictures of fish they catch, stuff like that. and i never, ever place any boundaries or limitations on them. if they want to lug it to school and talk about it, they're welcome. well, one day this little girl, erica, a very bright, very out-going kid, takes her turn and waddles up to the front of the class with a pillow stuffed under her sweater. she holds up a snapshot of an infant. "this is luke, my baby brother, and i'm going to tell you about his birthday. first, mommy and daddy made him as a symbol of their love, and then daddy put a seed in my mother's stomach, and luke grew in there. he ate for nine months through an umbrella cord." she's standing there with her hands on the pillow, and i'm trying not to laugh and wishing i had a video camera rolling. the kids are watching her in amazement. "then, about two saturdays ago, my mother starts going, 'oh, oh, oh! '"erica puts a hand behind her back and groans. "she walked around the house for, like an hour, "oh, oh, oh!'" now the kids' doing this hysterical duck-walk, holding her back and groaning. "my father called the middle wife. she delivers babies, but she doesn't have a sign on the car like the domino's man. they got my mother to lie down in bed like this." erica lies down with her back against the wall. "and then, pop! my mother had this bag of water she kept in there in case he got thirsty, and it just blew up and spilled all over the bed, like psshhheew!" the kid has her legs spread and with her little hands is miming water flowing way. it was too much! "then the middle wife starts going push, push, and breathe, breathe. they start counting, but they never even got past ten. then, all of a sudden, out comes my brother. he was covered in yucky stuff they said was from the play-center, so there must be a lot of stuff inside there." then erica stood up, took a big theatrical bow and returned to her seat. i'm sure i applauded the loudest. ever since then, if it's show-and-tell day, i bring my camcorder - just in case another erica comes along.

That answer is SO GREAT!!! I am an LPN since '92 but recently have done mostly pediatric home health. I am looking for work in a new state, possibly doing home visits mostly with elderly and where it's likely this very problem will occur. When I worked in LTC, we followed the facility protocol, which incuded monitoring the patient from that point until some resolution, VSs, checking orders for the NTG and giving as ordered. Calling the doctor if no change in patient or symptoms worsen. The patient's life is at stake so don't worry about the attitude of the doctor or anyone else. The nurse must do what is right for the patient. By the way, when I was a NEW CNA, on my very first home visit, my patient came to the door, after a long delay, with half her face hanging on her neck from an apparent stroke! Was I scared? It was work to convince her to let me call 911 but she went to the hospital and was successfully treated.

When I graduated from my nursing program, we were encouraged to attend a workshop that we had to pay for but it was definitely worth it. We were told what to expect from the exam site, what might be on the exam, given practice tests and a pep talk. They instructed us to do any study ahead of time, not the night before or the day of the exam, eat not too heavily and for sure get a good nights sleep before the exam. Do your best. For me: Yahweh God is in charge of my outcomes.

We are new to TN since last Oct. We live in the county where there is lots of space amid the natural elements, less people, and it's quiet most of the time. Tennessee is beautiful, one gets called "honey" a lot. Stay out of the valleys; the plateau is cooler in the summer. Everything seems farther away. The roads, which are often narrow, twisting and steep, can be slick quick if it freezes. Few mosquitos; no fire ants. People seem mostly hospitable. It took a while to get used to the elevation - 1800 ft above sea level. There are 23 hiking falls within 50 miles, one the highest in the Eastern U.S. Many people vacation in TN because of it's beauty and now many people are retiring/moving here because the cost of living is generally less than elswhere, places like Nashville excluded. Come on up!

Places where I have found IV therapy classes: MEDTEXX.COM, Local voc/tech center, Community Colleges. After you do the home study, MedTexx has a "local" hands on workshop and online exam, I think it's 48 hours, - all expensive but could work. My local tech center has the class scheduled for Jan. 2008, if the number registered for it holds. The nearest Community College has the 40 hour class on campus, so I would have to travel daily or stay there during that week. Some hospitals have the course for their employees. A nursing home I worked at hired a contractor to teach us a non state certified course so it's LPN's could do IV push meds and start IV's in that facility, I never had to start an IV. servant2

A family member was in ICU and the hospital in Mpls MN recently and the ICU had big signs to turn off cellphones. My understanding is that the newer phones don't interfere with electronic equipment but my Go Phone, when I laid it on the side table of our hotel room to be charged, produced a nasty crackling in the clock radio until I moved the phone to a lower shelf of the table. I certainly wouldn't want to be responsible for making someone's heart monitor go haywire. Last year, a friend of mine had a pacemaker implanted and had instructions to avoid certain things. One was a public phone booth call. She was in an airport and needed to call someone (no cell phone) and hopped into the booth to do her calling. Her pacemaker went haywire and they had to call for assistance for her. She's OK after they corrected the damage and readjusted her pacemaker. I agree with the privacy comments, some people don't have any sense and others are just plain wicked to take advantage of someone in the hospital like that. servant2

Hello All, I am an LPN new to middle Tennessee and suffering a little culture shock. Having transferred my license to TN and in looking for work here, I have discovered that it is expected that I take an "approved" IV therapy course in order to work most places or so I was told in a job interview this last week. I looked online at the Board of Nursing Rules and Regs regarding LPN's pushing IV meds and read not what I had been told but that, if I had training at a facility and competency program prior to 2007, that would qualify an LPN to push IV meds with normal restrictions on what could be pushed. However, if the facilities around here want their LPN's to have the training, it doesn't make much difference what the Board's rules etc. are. But not to many classes are available locally and few online. I will try to do the online course. I will have to do a practicum for the hands on portion of the course, hopefully, not have to travel too far. It is scary to start over in a new place but I know that fear is a common feeling among nurses who have to do something new and I can manage. I know to ask for help when I need it. I appreciate having this blog available to me. I have never felt the need to sign in to any blog site before, but this has been helpful already just with today's visit. servant2