Scis

Erin: No, maybe I didn't make myself clear. I was a GN (graduate nurse) for three months before sitting for the state boards. I graduated at the time when the boards were paper and pencil tests, twice a year, so you had to wait to "sit" for them, t...

Thanks for the responses. I picked up said "Official Legal Notice", which apparently had been opened multiple times and restapled back together! Researched the patient on the computer, found it to be one who had driven drunk, caused two fatalities,...

Question: As a certified emergency nurse (CEN) specializing in trauma at a level I trauma center in Northern NJ, I am often called upon as a witness against patients to which I have adminitstered care. I am per-diem at two different emergency room...

C'mon guys! You all have valid points, but the hostility is corrupting the board. We are all professionals and of course as individuals have a right to our opinions and to voice them on the site, but let's not get downright vindictive. We're ALL a...

Pabrid: I concur. Well said. Scis, RN, CEN;)

I don't believe an ER nurse can ever "look stupid" by asking a question, especially when patient care and safety are at stake. Let's face it, sometimes our actions can "make or break" a situation (or life or death, literally). What does "look stupid...

ER's are ER's. No amount of med/surg. prep will prepare one to be proficient in the emergency room, anymore than thinking that OB/GYN floor experience is necessary due to the amount of "outside" deliveries that happen in the ER. It is a specialty a...

RNangelER: Thanks for the tip on Tenet. You mean they actually post their indiscretions? I'll check it out. Love to be informed. Happy New Year Scis

Lidicaine is helpful to us on our end, but speaking from the end of the receiver, Lido is painful!! The one time someone (an anesthesiologist) started an IV on me using Lido it stung like a son-of-a-gun, hurt much worse than the IV stick. The MD to...

BiffMalibu: It's definitely an art. Some people are so great at it, others, well, so-so. Practice is the key, unfortunately, most people don't like you to practice on THEM, so make sure you never let on that you're not sure of getting it on the fir...

The responsibility lies with the registration clerk, however, if the patient is acutely ill or a trauma, the band comes attached to the chart and the RN usually applies it after verifying that it is the correct patient, especially important since the...

lizz: Thanks. 'nuf said.

Guys: Hate to sound naive, but what exactly is "Tenet"? I'm from northeast NJ and have never heard the name? Thanks!:)

Rayrae: Beautiful tribute. Your grandmother was very lucky to have you. Thanks for sharing. :kiss

kate930 That "expert" certainly does not work in an ER!

I don't know about you guys, but if I had the flu, the LAST thing I'd want to do is bundle myself up and go out in the cold to sit in an ER waiting room along with others who had the flu also, maybe even worse than me! I don't get it. I guess they ...

nurse51RN: Of course we would have also referred the patient to a cardiology clinic or PMD (I assumed they had one since they were a direct admit) to find out why they've had chest pain for 2-3 months! In the hospitals I have worked in, no one gets d...

See, now if that direct admit had gone through the ER, they could have ruled out the cardiac dispo and the patient could have been given food and discharged! ScisRNCEN

sabRN2b05: Only have a second, but I had to comment! Yes, I went straight to a level I trauma center upon nursing school graduation and never looked back! The hospital is located in a very poor, very urban center in Newark, NJ, but is a teaching ho...

sabRNtobe05: Sounds like you are very good at multi-tasking and keeping up with the hectic flow of ER registration, which makes me think you would be a likely candidate for the ER upon graduation. Why would you not consider it? You are already used...

Sounds like you've got a group of great minds working together! I concur with all of you. Sounds like a great plan!

jt- I wholeheartedly agree with your postings. If more nurses would educate themselves on the history of nursing they would realize that Florence Nightingale, one of the first and foremost, went to all kinds of measures to get what she wanted to ach...

I think the families and friends of these critically ill patients try to act as if nothing is changed. That their family member/friend is the same person as they are used to, with the same interests. You, as a nurse, realize that if someone has a li...

It's obvious that the nursing profession does not get the respect that it deserves. Obvious, also, is that major change is needed within the profession. Nurses must take a united stand in order to effect the changes we need for ourselves and our pa...

Maybe the patient did not WANT to be with the family on Thanksgiving, maybe that's what provoked the high anxiety level prompting her to need the medication. You did what was required to adequately care for the patient. Whatever the complaints of t...