jamieousn

we have to double check our insulin doses even for 1 unit. our narcotics we dont have to have a witness unless we are wasting. another nurse has to sign our waste and witness it. i think this is a good and safer way to practice in theory, but really, when everyone is in a rush they just sign the waste or the insulin without even looking at it. if a nurse says "can you sign my one unit" than chances are that nurse is not going to make sure that its really one unit. and more times than not when a nurse says "im wasting 3mg of morphine can someone please sign for me?" a nurse will walk over and sign it without looking....so, i dont really know how effective this is.

I have not gotten my flu or pneumonia vaccines and the hospital is fine w it as long as we sign a waiver

thanks everyone for all of your suggestions! i appreciate it and i think it will all be helpful these few weeks before i begin. i am starting to look forward to it :)

Athena, thank you very much for the reference. I will definitely take a look at it! And I am getting more and more ok with being in the ICU after talking to many other students and RN's. I know it will be a great experience for me:) Jamie

i know..you are right..i am trying to keep my mind open and im sure it will turn out just fine. thank you for your help!

I graduate in August and just got my preceptorship placement. I am assigned to do 170 hours in the ICU. I put in a request for L&D or pediatrics but didn't get it. While I feel that ICU experience will be great for my boards...i am scared to DEATH! I have always wanted to practice nursing in the area of women's health, community health, and psych nursing...the ER and ICU scare me and I feel like it is a very stressful place to be. However, I do not want to feel so negative about this. I know that it will be a great experience for me..and one that will probably help me gain confidence! Soooo, I need suggestions. I have a couple weeks to prepare for this preceptorship. What are some things I should review? Common drugs? Skills/procedures? Anything else? I want to have a bit of a foundation before I start and I have a little time to review and learn some things on my own....so any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!!! Thanks! Jamie

good suggestion on counseling !!!! at my school it is 12 bucks per session. it has helped a lot and it makes it convenient to schedule appt's around class time.

hey....reading your post reminds me so much of myself. i am not married..but in the last 4 years my life has fallen apart. i am a senior in the nursing program and sometimes i dont know how i made it!!! to sum it up...throughout the program my house has burned down, my parents got a divorce, my ex-boyfriend committed suicide, another boyfriend and his brother died in a car accident, my mom went crazy, my dad ended up having another family on the side and i have a "new" half brother that is 20 years old, and im currently in a healthy relationship.....yet my past keeps getting in the way which causes plenty of fights. and im still here and passing all my classes and doing fine!!! now you may say..."oh well you just might be a stronger person" or seomthing like that...well i am not. when things go wrong with the boyfriend i find myself not even able to go to class sometimes. i know it sounds crazy to some people..but i do not handle stress well. i get very anxious all the time and think the whole world is falling apart. i see a psychologist to deal with the issues in my past and it helps..maybe try that?? some people would tell me.."oh go to school and/or clinical and it will help take your mind off your problems." i dont work like that. i cant really function when i feel so hopeless!! all i know is that i have made it somehow. the best advice i can give you is take care of youself MENTALLY and PHYSICALLY. set aside time for youself to relax and not think. take a bath. go for a walk/run. go to the park..be outside.. whatever helps you relax and think positive - do it. the program can be time consuming...but it is not too bad. i am not brilliant..and i have managed to keep a 3.6 with all the crap going on around me. i wouldnt worry about the money part. there is always a way. most people in school dont have the money to go..but it works out somehow. WHEN you start the program in 6 days...feel free to email me if you need to talk. i really do understand how you are feeling right now..and it is miserable. good luck and do your best to think positive and take care of yourself. -jamie [email protected]

thank you both for the reply!!! so i guess i was doing it right but just needed to wait a little longer or reposition/have pt drink water. thanks again!

i dont know if this is a stupid question or not....but a nurse wanted a UA from a female pt with a foley..she told me she clamped the tubing and to go in and get it. i had never gotten one before but figured it was easy so just went in to do it. i know you are not supposed to take it from the bag/tube..which is why you clamp it off...but when i tried to draw urine out i got nothing....was i doing something wrong? i have asked a few other students and they couldn't answer my question. one just said she doesnt clamp it and takes it from the tube or bag...assuming that it hasnt been sitting for long. thanks, jamie

yeah i realized after I sent this that it should be tissue since it is a stage 3!!thanks for your help, i really appreciate it....im starting to piece it together a bit better now. these papers are killing me!!

Hi there, im a nursing student and I need a little help. I am writing a nursing process paper on a pt that has type 2 DM. He has decubiti heel ulcers infected with MRSA and peripheral neuropathy in his legs. I want my priority dx to be about skin integrity issues (r/t decr circulation, incr blood gluc levels, decr mobility, and decr sensation). I think NANDA only has a risk for diagnosis for skin integrity.....im not exactly sure what dx I should be using???? the other dx was infection r/t wounds but again, it is a risk for dx and the pt already has the infection. Does anyone have any ideas on a priority dx? thanks!

I'm still a nursing student...so im even less help! hahah. but i think for a.fib the biggest thing you are worrying about is the pt having a stroke...with a.fib blood is going to be pooling in the heart..which could lead to clotting and then the clot breaking free... so the pt's meds are very important in a.fib. they will also be on a telemetry unit..assessment on these pt's is important.