scubagoddess

AngelfireRN, I stand corrected and apologize. You did not use the word HATE. You said that you can not STAND drug-seeking. Bottom line however, your original thread was regarding the weapon and I think we all agree that any facility that would allow weapons is a facility that you should be leaving. Having said that, much of your thread was of this pts. request/demand for pain medication and due to the attention that you placed on this subject in a thread that was supposed to be about weapons in the ER, appears as though you have as much of a problem with this paient's need/want/demand for pain medication as you did of the weapon being allowed in. As Shakespeare said, "Me thinks he protesteth too much." (paraphrase). The situation that we make the most noise about is the one that is really bothering us.

Thank you to all for your replies. This really was more of a vent than anything. I agree that I have learned from the "accessory" classes however, and I am enrolled in traditional school as I feel that, at least for me, is the way I learn the best. I work with many nurses who have done the Excelsior and other realted programs and their understanding and knowledge is directly related to the amount of experience they had going into it and/or how much they are willing to go the extra mile and go over and above what is expected of them. Often, there is an apparent knowledge base descrepancy between the nurses based on their mode of education. Also, the facility I work at and a few others I know of pay less for those who have attended Excelsior and the like. As far as the diploma program, it is not for me. After going through this, I do not want to be limited to practicing in California. If I want to move to another state, I can go. Maybe I'm just a little "time-sensitive." Is the ticking of my "age-clock" bothering you?!

I understand the frustration however, I learned in nursing school that, "pain is what the patient says it is." It is not our position to judge a patient's pain based on how WE think they should be responding. I'm not saying that this was not a difficult patient but someone has to pick the high road. I have found that if a nurse listens to a patient, the demands usually subside. I'm not saying that I would have wanted to "snow" him however, I would have provided the facilities protocol (that may have started with Tylenol and moved on from there) while explaining to the patient that if this does not work, we will work together to get his pain managed. Remember, pain is made worse by anxiety so letting the patient know that they are being listened to often stops the craziness. If he was a head trauma, you KNOW they are not rational etc. and his demands have to roll off you back if you are waiting to medicate pending the result of scans. However, your need to explain yourself with the wording that you HATE drug-seekers tells me that it is a very deep resentment for you. Something to consider. I know that this thread was about the weapon which seems simple, I would not work or school in a place that allows weapons in the ER. I wasn't as if he had to be searched in order to find it, it was in plain site. Not much else to say, it seems very cut and dry to me.

After 20 years in various medical field positions, I had to opportunity to attend LVN school at the age of 42. After a lay-off, the State of California presented me with the offer to go into a "vocational-type" LVN program which they paid for. I had to pre-test at college level before being accepted and graduated second in my class. I passed my boards on the first attempt with the minimum number of questions. I was offered a job before graduation and am still employed there 7+ years later. All of this is great however, here is where the problem starts. I am now 50 years old and retaking ALL of my prerequesites in order to be able to apply for an RN/BSN program. I am a fully licensed LVN with no restrictions and yet I am required to take History etc. in order to get into a program. I would understand possibly retaking the sciences, english and math however, due to the nursing shortage and my age I think it is real waste of time to have to take classes that do not directly relate to nursing. Although I am 50, I run circles around coworkers that are 30 years my junior. I know that I will still have many more years of nursing however, I seems like a terrible waste. Any thoughts?...