sassijac

I'm glad you made that mistake now, early in your career, especially since there wasn't a bad outcome to the patient. You needed to know that you don't walk on water, that you're just like the rest of us - imperfect. Now the best thing you can do for yourself and your patients is to come back to work with a willingness to question. Pay attention to what your hearing your inner voice say. Why was it asking you to reread the order several times ? Next time you hear it turn to a coworker and ask her/him how they interpret the order. Nursing is a collaborative practise. And please do not bore your coworkers with repeated apologies for your mistake. Believe me, we all have made mistakes. Learn from it and move on. This is another step in your maturation as a nurse.:redbeathe

In my 40 + year career as an RN I worked half time in both union and non union hospitals. My most recent and longest stint in one hospital system was in a union and I enjoyed it the most for these reasons. The union (CNA) was influential in establishing safe nurse patient ratios in all areas of hospital nursing. It protected our rights to bathroom and meal breaks (!!). It protected the right to bid on open positions according to experience and seniority, encouraging promotion from within and eliminating favoritism. It allowed individual staff nurses to speak up about any dangerous practises or practitioners without fear of being fired. When it was time for layoffs it gave benefits to the most senior employees, who were generally the most experienced and earned the highest salaries. There were a few times when I hated paying the union dues, generally after a small salary increase and a larger increase in dues. Salaries eventually caught up and outstipped the cost of the union. I knew I could practise my profession in an atmoshere where patient safety came before hospital profits - and that went a long way towards career satisfaction!

The pay sounds awfully low for NYC. When I left the City to move to northern CA in 1984 I was earning almost half that amount for 3X12 hr nights in the ED. Why not try a travel nurse position to see if you like the City? It's a 13 week assignment and they provide housing or give you a stipend. Good luck.

I've been following the threads and I checked with my legal eagle ( Hubby ) re having your degree and license invalidated when you undergo gender change surgery and he says you will retain license and degree no matter what gender you are. That may be related to the state you are living in though. (CA is where he practices). Do check with you ACLU branch and they can get you the information and/or point you in the right direction. Stay true to your self as you continue your journey.

I am so sorry to hear about your rejection by that nursing program. They are missing out on an opportunity to have someone with personal experience dealing with transgender issues become a nurse. There are many other schools out there which will not discriminate because of sexual orientation or reassignment. This experience can make you a better person/nurse Best of luck to you.

Never ironed them.........wore the cotton-synthetic mix that comes out wrinkle free from the dryer. I'd never wear wrinkled ones unless I had to replace the one I wore to work because of accidental soiling, from pt not RN :) .

I think you handled it very well. He was acting normally (unless that's what he does 10X a day). I wouldn't bring the subject up with him unless it's relevant to his plan of care. And do wash hands frequently. I wouldn't wear gloves giving meds, think increased incidence of latex allergies because of overuse.

I'm a former ED nurse (20 yrs) who did charge for at least 8 of those years. I worked in a unionized state (CA ) where the CNA was able to get mandatory nurse patient ratios in place for patient safety in all areas. Highest acuity areas had a 1 :2, next was 1:4, lowest acuity 1:5 - 6 . We also had a float nurse to help out those who needed it and to give meal and BR breaks. Go To CNA website for guidelines That said, it was still not unusual for some nurses to be slammed while others were handling whatever came their way. Some had a better ability to organize, others a better ability to start IVs , persuade reluctant pts to allow tx, deal with the angry, frightened, disruptive pts and their families. We all had off days as well as on days. The bottom line is patient safety. I think if you approach your manager with your opening statement " I am very concerned about pt safety when you give me 5 pts and I can't keep up. I love ED nursing snd I want to stay. How can I improve my performance? Where am I loosing ground? " Any manager worthy of her title will be able to point out what's going on - you're too slow w/procedures, don't know where supplies and meds are, don't review orders periodically to see what needs to be done. ED nursing is so multifaceted it's like juggling while walking a tightrope and getting interrupted all the while to answer questions and calm the masses. It's not for everyone, so you have to keep that in mind. Give yourself at least 6 more months and reevaluate. Good Luck!

What about Travel Nurses who go from state to state and are licensed wherever they work?

I worked a variety of schedules in many different hospitals and specialties, mostly in NYC, NJ and northern CA. I usually preferred 12 hr nights because of a long commute and child care when the kids were little. I did this twice a week, back to back. Full time was 3 in a row. I have always been able to manage the long shift and sleeping wasn't a problem when the kids were in school. I even tried a live in maid after the divorce. I worked full time but I was missing out on my children's lives. So I learned how to get by on much less and went back to the 2 x12. After they were grown and gone I was so used to having a lot of time off I stayed wtih the schedule. I usually worked w/o benefits until I got older and bought a house. In CA we got benefits for any time over 2o hrs. By tweaking my schedule I could work 4 x 12 and have 10 days off in a row. I was highly motivated and focused those 48 hrs. I was able to avoid burnout for most of my working career. I have been retired 2 years and have not missed nursing - until I discovered this site.:heartbeat