Mahage

They used to wear any scrubs they chose. Again, I would speak with the supervisor on that floor. There may have been recent changes that I don't know about. Mahage

As far as what color nurse techs and CNAs wear it would depend on where they work. At Erlanger they just wear the scrubs of their choice on most floors. There may be some departments which require them to wear hospital scrubs but I don't know the specifics. I think some of the north Ga hospitals require specific colors and styles. You should find out from your supervisor what the expectations are. Good luck to you! Mahage

I am in favor of allowing family members to stay when in the nurses opinion it is in the best interest of the patient. We have one charge who will only allow it if we have a high profile patient or someone with clout. I feel it should be the nurses decision, and the charge should back her up. If the family member causes a problem in caring for the patient then they should not be allowed to stay because their staying is no longer in the best interest of the patient. In the past when we had open access on our stepdown unit I have seen it both ways and with the new rules I have seen pts. who definately suffered because family could not stay. I don't think it was ever because my coworkers did not want to provide care, but it is impossible for one person to safely meet the needs of all our patients given the acuity level. The things described by the family member on here are really unfortunate, but you know, even the best i can do, I have been guilty of the same. I hate it, but it has happened. It is grievious. Mahage

Student2Regstered and Calypte and anyone else out there pounding away....."It does get better!" Nasty Nellies will continue to be Nasty Nellies but when they see you aren't going anywhere, that you learn from your mistakes and that you will not allow yourself to be made into sausage without bitting back, they will find another target. There will stll be people in a foul mood and those who hate to come to work and lash out at anyone and everyone.:argue: Part of the problem is that we work with so many varied personalities. This morning I gave report to three differnt nurses. I try to always be organized and have my report together so that even the pickiest of them can't find any questions which I can't answer but unfortunately this A.M. I had a doc in, writing orders on all 3 patients and between consulting with the doc at last minute and taking off orders, I did not have a well organized report ready for the very nice young lady relieving me. :imbar This was embarrassing and had I been giving this report to Nasty Nellie, it would have resulted in hard feelings. I don't like to be caught in that situation but it happens. I try to give good complete concise information. I don't like to leave without having everything done, and I pride myself on that! The unit clerk from days came up to me this morning with a hand full of rounds report and said to me, "Ladies, the rounds reports are supposed to be IN the chart!" I smiled at her and said calmly, "Well I do believe mine are in the chart, I could be wrong, but I do believe they are in the chart." "Yep, Yep, mine are in the chart!" When I was a new grad she would have hurt my feelings, but no need, I was on top of it! I have been at it a little over two years and I learn loads every shift. I try to make a learning op out of the most negative situations, and I take responsibilty for MY mistakes but I don't hold myself responsible for being perfect. My job is to do the best I can do, and I am able to do much better today than I could at 6 months and hopefully I will be much better in year 4 than now. I used to cry daily, on the inside, though I wouldn't let anyone see me. The other day I lost a patient that I was not prepared to loose,(first time) we did everything we could to save him, and I let everyone see me cry. The support I got from my coworkers was fantastic.:redbeathe Even one of the not so nice coworkers on my shift offered to help me out with my other patients. It gets better, keep on keeping on! Mahage

I don't think bullying is ever acceptable, but sometimes the line between being inconsiderate, just plain thoughtless and rude and actual harrassment and bullying is very fuzy. It is hard to tell which it is while it is happening and shortly after while still experiencing the sting. I have survived 2 years on a unit which is tough but doable. We have a load of jerk nurses and a load of good ones. I have learned a lot from all of them. I developed a tough hide and sharp fangs. I know who's finger prints are on the knives in my back, but I be darn if I would give anyone the satisfaction of whining, but I will say no, talk back, and yell back if neccessary. I am not one to tell on people but if I am pushed in to it, I will. I take responsibility for my mistakes and pride in my achievements. I have learned to change some things about myself even if I didn't like the way the critique was delivered and I learned that there are a lot of things that don't need to be changed about me. Mahage

Nope dont do that one, not ever, not even to an enemy. Mahage

I didn't know you were a life experienced fairly new RN! I check out your posts quiet often. Mahage

The idea of you being to old to go back to nursing school makes me laugh. I went to nursing school at 53 and graduated at 55. I have 2 years work experience behind me and last spring I started graduate school, hoping to finish by the time I am 60. I am currently debating going back, not because I am too old to do it, but because I have come to love nursing itself, and I have a BSN in addition to a Masters and License in Social Work. There are loads of options for me, and school just is not that appealing at this time. Am I glad I went to nursing school??? Oh yeah! As far as having a baby after 31, as long as you are in good health, I don't know why not. It is true that your age is associated with risk for Downs syndrome, however the risk is not tremendous, especially in your early 30's. I had one baby at age 19 and as I recall it was sort of automatic, and didn't require nearly as much effort as nursing school, but the raising of said child is a whole other challenge! Much harder than nursing school which was the hardest endeavor I ever undertook purposefully aside from my first 8 months as a new nurse. You are going to be 31 regardless baring some disaster, when you get there you will realize that you aren't old at all, actually 31 is just the end of adolescence from a developmental standpoint. Get you partner and hopefully parents and sibling on board and go after whatever you want, and know that it won't stop there. Enjoy the journey! Mahage The fairly new nurse with 57 years life experience

Hey, I think you are probably doing great. It is too bad the anxiety can be so severe. Mine comes out differently, makes me forgetful. That was not good and is not good on the job, but I am now working on not letting my anxiety level rise above a 5 out of 10. I stop and take a lot of deep breaths and remind myself that anxiety isn't getting the job done, quicker or better and ask myself what I need to do right at that moment. I can get it under control. I found that the first 8 months were the roughest and somewhere between 6 and 8 months I started having more good nights than bad. I love my job even with the rough times. I was not lucky enough to have a good preceptor to work with consistently. I had several and some of them were really really good and others were jerks. I am coming up on two years now and pretty much feel I can hold my own. I have not been asked to train as charge and that is sort of an ego buster when newer nurses than I have been asked, but I suppose it is about my anxiety. That is all right because it is not something that I really feel ready to do, but like I said it is an ego buster. I do like my job a lot! It is very fulfilling and I have proven to myself that I can make it on one of the hardest units in the large teaching hospital where I work . We take care of 3 very sick people, many vents and trachs and all monitored. I am doing clinical instruction for student nurses and I love it. I am starting to put out feelers for jobs on other floors and in other hospitals as our census is very very low. I also have found that I have an interest in working with end stage cancer patients so I am looking for hospice opportunities. Keep on, you will get past you anxiety. If you didn't care which is key here, you wouldn't have the anxiety. Keep doing what you do best. Mahage

I think curved down is the proper way, but I have had several disoriented pts end up with it in their mouth. They would be Satting just fine, but I would remove it, put it in the nare and then they would pull it out and throw it off, Sats alarm would go off, where it had been fine in the mouth. Since then I have allowed people complaining of a sore nose or who just didn't like it in the nose to wear it on the upper lip or in the mouth. It works just fine. Thank goodness that is one piece of equipment which works more often than not, lol! Mahage

Gotta love ya! Hmmm I am a Sagittarius also, I wonder if that is why I do care, though I would rather not and am way too stubborn to change or be intimidated. I can get mad, especially if someone is being mistreated. I go out of my way to be supportive to the new folks. I try not to cuss much and I do like to have fun, but what is fun to me isn't always fun to others. Too often their fun is at the expense of others and I don't play like that. I can't say I am in sinc with the right wingers I work with. I don't talk politics a lot because I gave up on stupidity a long time ago. I mean its like their attitudes are "don't bother me with the facts, I would rather believe Rush!" "I need someone to blame so today illegal immigrants or any immigrant with an accent and dark complexion is it!" I can't stand that mindset so I really don't feel too bad about not being their friend, lol! Mahage

Hmmm popular??? No don't think I would be voted anything by anybody. I am the older lady who was crazy enough to go to nursing school in her 50's, who gets a bit nervous at times, is not as strong as some in pulling up patients, puts the patients needs first, works really well with families and dying patients and has a off beat sense of humor. I am a democrat in a red state and am always quick to help others and though pretty easy going I will tell you off if I need to. I am not invited to go out for drinks or to eat with the generally younger set. I am not invited to get together with the few other gals close to my age, but I believe I am generally well liked by all but a couple of people on my unit. Unfortunately, one of them is one of my assistant nurse managers who is herself very "Popular!" I keep on truckin' and am working on my anxiety in crisis. I learn from every situation. The job I do and the person I am is what counts at the end of the day. I think I would really like working with someone like myself. I am open to friendships on the job, but haven't developed a lot there though I am pretty close with a couple of folks. I have friends outside, so that is definitely not a priority for me. Mahage

Welcome to Chattanooga! This is a beautiful area. Don't count on a mild winter, maybe a shorter one though! It can get pretty cold here but fortunately doesn't last long. We clean out the supermarkets at the first hint of snow. Mahage

I know a lot of people are having a much harder time now than they were two years ago. I suspect it will depend on what is going on in your area. I have heard that if people are willing to take a job in LTC and rehab they do not generally have a hard time getting a job. I have also been told that their are definately openings in Dialysis. I wouldn't spend time worrying, I would just get my resume together and get out there and sell my strengths. It is important to be in as good physical condition as possible and just be realistic. Know that the learning curve is gonna be steep, but there is no reason you can't do it. I am in Tennessee. Take care, Mahage

My guess is that your problems with getting a job is due to the downturn in the economy. I know it has effected hiring in nursing. I would also guess that you would be very likely to get a RN position in long term care. I think Home care would be interesting myself. If you are working PRN that may be the source of your frustration, not having a regular job. I would definately apply in Long Term care and rehab facilities. Polish up your resume to emphasize the benefits of your 20 years experience and your acheivement in gaining your RN. Sell yourself girl, you are a winner, you just have to put yourself out there in a postive light. If I were hiring nurses, I would hire you in a heartbeat before any of the 20 somethings with little or no prior healthcare. All things being equal, I think you have a much better chance than most. Look at the little things, are you presenting a professional resume and appearance? Do you communicate with confidence? Anyone who tells you your LPN experience doesn't matter either has an attitude problem or have never worked with the super LPN's that I have had the pleasure of working with. Mahage