RntobeKelly

Our rehab is becoming is getting residents that have more acuities than ever before. I started in hospital setting and learned neurology and inpatient trauma before coming to rehab and both have been a GREAT help for me. I am DEFINITELY a real nurse. My assessment skills are used daily and the nice thing about having residents (patients, we call residents so that feels more like home and different mindset) is that we actually have them long enough to recognize differences in them right away in order to prevent problems from progressing too far before getting treatment for them. I am glad that I didnt start in rehab, because what I learned in the hospital setting is invaluable, but I love having my guys for weeks vs. days. Congratulations and hope that you are enjoying your career!

I work at JCMC and love it here. Originally from MI so there was a big difference in the pay, but living here has been a great move for us. It is my understanding that the pay scale for this area is just about the same unless of course you go to work for the VA hospital, but then you don't have the same learning options as if the patient has any kind of serious illness they are sent to JCMC for treatment. We have been here for a year now and I can't imagine living anywhere else...the views are spectacular and the pace of living is slower. Hope this helps

I restock supplies outside of rooms, start IVs for other nurses, clean the rooms, med room, and anything else that I can find (So not a neat freak either) read through my patients charts more than I normally do. When I get home and tell hubby about that he laughs and wishes that the energy output carried over to the housework...lol

I graduate from Nursing school next month...HURRAH!! I have been hired at a hospital in Tennessee (Where I am moving to from Michigan Dec. 26th) and need to have my uniforms before then...problem is that i have A VERY LONG inseam and they have a definite color scheme needed... Does anyone know where I can get scrubs with a 36" inseam in Galaxy Blue? I have been searching the internet for 2 hours now and can find 36" or galaxy blue, but not together.....gggrrrr

Thank you all! Since the initial post I have been doing more research. I am more convinced than ever that this is for me. Hope that you all have a safe and happy holiday, Kelly and family

I did, and the result is a slight hearing loss in the right and the left is fine. The only time that I have any problem is when allergies act up, then the meds dont clear it all. Thanks

I have trouble hearing when my allergies act up and patients with faint heart and lung sounds can be a problem for me. I am going to purchase the Littman 3000 after the holidays. May be a little overkill, but I want to be sure that I am hearing correctly. http://www.allheart.com/litt3000.html is for Allheart.com and they have the best price I have seen for it. It also explains why I think it may be the one for me. Good Luck, Kelly

Thank you! I understand your note about having things taken out on you. The day before Bill passed his neck tumor was pushing on his trach and we were unable to clear the secretions. It seemed he was literally choking to death. We asked the doctors about what could be done to keep him sedated until the end so that he would not be aware of what was going on. They told us there were no other meds that could be given for sedation short of gen anes. Bill was on 60 mg of Dilaudid and 45 mg Ativan hourly IV for the last 48 hours of his life, and while I understand that with the Ativan he was not remembering the episodes, it was very hard to watch. As a result I took out some of my frustration on his MD until the Anesthesiologist came and explained to us that even though he felt the episodes, as soon as they stopped he would forget them, and that it was as good as medicine was able to do for him. I will be writing an apoligy letter to his MD. I know that when the end is near the frustration is high and it is not personal. That withstanding, Hospice ensured that Bill received everything he needed to stay at home as long as he could, and if not for the choking episodes, which we could not treat as well at home as in the hospital, he would have received his wish to die in relative comfort at home. Some of his RNs came to the funeral home and being able to talk to them about what they did for him and how much he, and we, appreciated them was a great comfort to us. I thank you for your note. What certifications beyond RN school are required for Hospice Nursing? Thanks again, Kelly

What are the benefits to membership? Just completing first med-surg and interested. Thanks, Kelly

Hello everyone, My name is Kelly and at 42 I am just completing my first Med-Surg rotation in Nursing School. I have worked as an Administrative Assistant developing training materials for Sedation Analgesia and served on Committees within my hospital for Pain Management as well as being a Medical Biller for several years before the Admin Asst position. The business end of medicine is not the route that is fulfilling for me, hence going back to school for Nursing. I was wondering if some of you would share your experience/reasoning for specializing in Hospice? Like many peoplemy age, I have had a couple of experiences with friends and family that have passed and gratefully had the assistance of Hospice to care for them. I lost my brother in law last week and Hospice was a godsend. I was able to take care of him the last two months working around my lecture and clinicals. He taught me more in two months than I think I have learned in the last two years, medically and about the human spirit. He had me working along side his Nursing team to learn about caring for patients (He had bone cancer and it was eating away his jaw bone) and I had the privilege to care for him round the clock along with my sister in law. I also ran into the frustrations of MDs who are reluctant to alter treatment options without readmitting him,which he refused to do. We then found the MD that cared for him until his death and WOW, what a difference for Bill. Between his MD and especially his Nurses Bill was able to keep his spirits up until three days before his death. The Nurses would come into the house and Bill was not treated the way I have seen patients treated in hospitals, but like a friend that they cared for and could talk to about anything. This is where I think that I want to go with my nursing career. I like to get to know my patients, talk to them. Why is it that the interaction seems to be downplayed? I enjoy the medical science of what I am learning, but really want the interaction that I have seen with the Hospice Nurses. Dying is a part living, and looking to cure people is not the end all and be all of how I see Nursing. If I can help someone to know that they have someone outside of their family helping and caring for them so that they may keep as much of their dignity as humanly possible until their time to pass comes, I think I will have accomplished, physically and emotionally what I think Nursing should be about. Am I not thinking about this in the right way? At 42 (44 when complete Nursing School) I am trying to figure out is this is what I am really looking for. I have been working in hospitals in different capacities for the last 20 years. I like to observe the workings and interactions with patients and staff, but it seems to me that we never get a chance to get to know the patient and family well enough to help them beyond the physiology of their disease. I want more......am I looking into the right specialty in Hospice? Thanks, Kelly