Okami_CCRN BSN, RN

Critical Care, Capacity/Bed Management

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All Content by Okami_CCRN

  1. Okami_CCRN

    Are there any gay nurses here?

    As a member of the gay community, it has been difficult to deal with the shooting that occurred in Orlando, especially since it is Pride month. My mother, boyfriend and sister sat together and talked...
  2. It depends on the applicant, their application, and the prospective entering class. Often times schools request that a TEAS score be 70 or even 80 percent, but will accept people in different ranges...
  3. Okami_CCRN

    salary vs benefits

    I would go with higher pay instead of benefits. The only benefits I truly care about are health insurance and tuition
  4. Okami_CCRN

    school dilemma

    I will impart some wisdom, since I was in a similar-ish situation. I was a pre-nursing student who had a change of heart and transferred to a very expensive university to study biology. I had a ton...
  5. Okami_CCRN

    Happy,In denial, overwhelmed, nervous and worried

    Congratulations on passing the NCLEX-PN! Now ready for some hard hitting information? Did you know everything on the exam? Absolutely not, no one does. I sure enough didn't when I took the NCLEX-RN...
  6. Okami_CCRN

    from OR nurse to ICU nurse

    Congratulations on making the change to ICU nursing. A couple of tips: -Ask Questions. ICU nurses (the majority) love to teach -Research typical meds for your ICU patients. (Levophed, Vasopressin,...
  7. Okami_CCRN

    ¿Hablas en Espanol?

    I work in a mixed medical-surgical ICU that serves a large Spanish-speaking population, that being said I along with a few co-workers speak Spanish fluently and are often asked to translate certain...
  8. Okami_CCRN

    Tossing supplies

    A few years ago our ICU did a cost analysis of supply waste after a patient is transferred out of ICU. What we discovered was that hundred of thousands of dollars were being wasted in tossed supplies....
  9. Okami_CCRN

    Sterile water to flush feeding tubes?

    I flush feeding tubes with tap water as the gut is not sterile unless the patient is immuno-compromised. Occasionally surgeons will request an NS infusion through a J-tube/G-tube to maintain patency...
  10. The tissue surrounding the umbilicus (around 2 inches) is considered scar tissue from birth. Thus the absorption of medication is
  11. Okami_CCRN

    art lines

    Are you in stepdown? I work in ICU and standard ratio is 1 RN to 2 patients, with that being said I love having a patient with an arterial line. Monitoring is pretty easy, you zero every 4 hours and...
  12. A liter of fluid infusing at 150ml/hr should not dilute labs tremendously, If the patient dropped a gram or more I would be concerned they were bleeding. Also what was their initial hemoglobin, length...
  13. Okami_CCRN

    Wrong decision to enter critical care

    Entering a new specialty is always difficult, compounded by the fact that you have moved to a new state, new facility, new home. Like other people have mentioned three weeks is hardly enough time to...
  14. Okami_CCRN

    Report etiquette

    I was giving report to a preceptor and her new grad on a patient with a very complicated history, he had been in the ICU for about a month and they had never cared for him before. As I was giving...
  15. Okami_CCRN

    Report etiquette

    When I am receiving report I tend to open the labs/radiology & testing/and MAR tabs. I do this because I find that often my colleagues leave out some information regarding abnormal labs, or did...
  16. Okami_CCRN

    Scanning in the supply room

    We do not track supplies, patients are charged a flat rate for supplies and it covers everything from syringes to alcohol swabs to socks. If patients receive an invasive procedure such as a central...
  17. Okami_CCRN

    Oh, you quirky night shifter you!

    Back when I was a tech, I loved working night shift. However, now that I am a nurse I prefer day shift. I enjoy having normal human hours and not feeling tired all the time. I wish a day time position...
  18. Okami_CCRN

    Essentials of Critical Care Orientation

    Essentials of Critical Care Orientation (ECCO) is a course offered by AACN that grants 68 CEU's to those who complete it successfully. There are multiple modules that break down patients into systems...
  19. Okami_CCRN

    Things have changed..

    I am a brand new nurse in a mixed medical/surgical ICU and I could not imagine starting anywhere else either. We have a very involved orientation with two preceptors that lasts anywhere from 4-6...
  20. Okami_CCRN

    Loans?

    I honestly would stay away from student loans, I currently have about 30k in private and 30k in federal and honestly it was one of the worst things I have done. I am currently paying 800 dollars a...
  21. Okami_CCRN

    What is your schedule like as a nurse?

    I don't know how much truth is in those statements as I can only speak for myself. I work three 12 hour shifts a week, overtime is available to me if I would like it. I work nights because I am a new...
  22. Okami_CCRN

    Bedside Reporting

    We are encouraged to participate in bedside reporting, however this is what we do. We give the full report at the desk and then go to the bedside. At the bedside we introduce the incoming nurse and...
  23. Okami_CCRN

    Chooses fluid for MIV/Bolus

    Fluid Boluses are usually given in an isotonic solution, .9% NS is usually the go to and LR is usually the surgeons go to IVF bolus. The goal of a bolus isn't to shift fluid around but to increase the...
  24. Okami_CCRN

    Malpractice insurance

    I have always carried my own private malpractice insurance, throughout nursing school and now as a staff nurse. Like a previous poster mentioned. Hospital based malpractice insurance is there to...
  25. Okami_CCRN

    Clinical Nurse Assistants (CNA) Help or Hindrance?

    Before I give my two cents let me preface this with the fact that I worked as a CNA/PCT/CCT for about 10 years before graduating nursing school. I believe that good techs and aides are worth their...