sunluver

I remember when you calibrated the A-line and Swan-Ganz catheter with a mercury spygmomanometer, a three way stop-cock and a 60cc syringe! Using ice water for cardiac output and performing the calculations on paper! Using needles to get rid of sub-q emphysema, leather restraints, keeping your transducer "wet" with sterile water, no anesthesia for circumcisions on babies, HHH enema's, emptying foley's without gloves, community sitz baths, being the only person in the nursery with 5 babies and I had no liscense, nursing school in 1985 and wore blue striped pinafore, only dresses, white hose, white shoes (clinical nursing style) NO TENNIS SHOES ! We wore white. Nursing caps until we were half way through the program, and then had a "pinning and striping" ceremony! It was a HUGE event and we only got 1/2 of our stripe, but oh my goodness were we proud. The seniors would get "pinned" by the director of the program, not by their boyfriend or spouse or child . We wore our white's and it was the only time we saw the director smile, much less have Amy form of casual conversation with our instructors. I believe we have done ourselves an injustice by letting go of a lot of the "old school" values. Nurses do not get the respect they used to, from administration, physicians, or patients ! We allowed a lot of it. I still weary whites and my cap on Sunday's and get a lot of "ribbing". I do not care, I tell them I worked very hard to get the cap and pin and am very proud of it! I wore it one time on nurses day, marched myself into the CEO's office.....he looked at me and asked what I was weari g and I responded "This, sir is a professional nurses uniform, and I see by the look on your face that you have never seen one before". I then turned about so he could see me and thanked him for his time and went back to the ICU where I was the charge nurse! He did thank me before I left and said I looked "nice". I was called on by the floor to start an IV and I had my "whites" on that day (yes I had my nurses cap on too), and when I went in the room the patient's eyes got really big and when I asked her if anything was wrong she responded "I haven't seen a real nurse dressed in whites in a very long time". She also said that she likes it because she knew immediately that I was a "real nurse " because of the "whites and cap". She said it looked better than nurses wearing scrubs because they look like they are wearing pajamas, and it is tough to tell housekeepers from lab from physicians! She said older people cannot see well and whites make a big difference, in a good way! I still wear my whites and my cap. I challenge any nurse who went to school when whites and caps were worn to wear them again and evaluate the patient's response. Get ready because the staff and the physician's will give you a hard time, but stick to your guns because I know the patient's will like it and after all..who did we go to school to learn to take care of? The patient't are the heart and soul of our love of nursing and I will forever be a patient caregiver, liason, and nurturer. I am dedicated to the love of nursing! Thanks for reading this very long statement.

I SO agree with your thoughts about customers and patients. We are currently in a world where "instant gratification" is the expectation! I have been an RN for 22 years and have remained at the bedside. Computers and physicians (not wanting to speak to each other) have decreased the time we have to spend with patients. Hospitals and managers wanting that almighty bonus decrease staffing ratios thinking we can teach, give meds, and critically think plus perform clerical duties such as answer the phone and fax information to the new consult do not realize that we really love spending time with our patients. Where is this time? I for one cannot find it. I do not walk around with this silly smile they want. I am thinking about my next move... passing meds and interpreting the latest lab results to decide if I should call the physician and report the results. Should I also call the consults and report, because as we know the doc's will not call each other . They expect the nurse to do it. I am sure patients feel left out and abandoned. Being the bedside nurse has ceased to be because you are performing clerical duties. I was a secretary before a nurse. That is why I left being a secretary. I wanted to be a hands on nurse but my "hands " are more involved in paperwork or computers than performing hands on at the bedside. I moss old fashioned nursing . I understand times change and so should staffing levels change, in order to give the nurse the time, energy, and love of nursing that we went to school for! I too have had enough! My patients deserve my time, and management deserves to get their regular paycheck without a BONUS!

I have been away from the bedside teaching for 4 years and decided to get back to the bedside and had to take that test. WOW. As I recall in the hospital you have a lot of teamwork helping to do this and that and thinking over what was going on. This is not the case with PBDS. It is so far from the reality that I am sure I failed. I am used to having "protocols" and found myself not responding as a nurse usually would. This test puts you as the Doctor, and there is a big difference in the two. I love Critical care and I used to think that I was good at it. As a matter of fact other people thought I was good at it as well. This exam makes the CCRN appear like a kindergarden test. I just do not think it is reality based, and I had NO idea what this thing was or that I had to take it until 1 day before the exam. They told me my job was safe.