Bklyn_RN

I was just telling my son about that day for the umpteenth time. He was 2 years old and I had started nursing school the previous week. I was late for class, as usual, and had kept the radio/TV off to calm my nerves about being that late. I dropped him off to daycare and was perturbed that they had taken forever to come to the door. I handed him to them in a huff and sped off. As I drove to class I saw some cars had pulled over on the opposite side of the highway at an area with a view to Manhattan. I thought that was curious but nothing else. When I arrived at school, classmates were streaming out of class and said that a plane had crashed into the World Trade Center. I thought it was a small plane and had to have been an accident. All the professors were huddled in the main office. This was before cell phones were the norm. Shortly thereafter it was announced that classes were canceled. I rushed back to my car, turned on the radio and became transfixed. I made a beeline back to my son's daycare to collect him, because I felt like the world was ending. As I was driving back on that same highway, there were even more cars parked at the spot with the view to Manhattan. I was still on that highway when the radio announcer became hysterical and was crying on air. The first tower was collapsing. I drove even faster to get to my son's daycare. Turns out the reason they'd taken forever to answer the door when I dropped him off, was because no one heard the bell, they were all glued to the TV. Unbeknownst to me, it had already started. But I was in my bubble with no knowledge of the cataclysm that was unfolding in my beloved city.

It would be in your mental health interest to seek a less demanding work environment.

Well it seems that some things never change. Except that the public is now "woke" to what is going on.

Ummm... once you have endorsed a pt over, the receiving nurse is responsible for anything which happens thereafter. If she felt the no chair alarm was an issue, then it was on her to not accept the pt until you returned him/her to bed or do so herself at the time of hand over. You are the newbie so it is natural to blame you. I recently had episodes of pt's falling that I could write volumes about. But in the interest of time... My defense is always, " the pt fell, I did not push them down."

It can take up to three months. What area will you be going to?

BTW, I recently had the flu while pregnant and while it was not pleasant I still would not advocate for the flu vaccine for pregnant women. My daughter is a full term healthy and happy baby.

I did a thread on this very topic a couple years back when my job was threatening to make the vaccine mandatory during the fake swine flu epidemic. They first tried enticing us with chances to win a kindle fire for getting the vaccine, but that didn't get many takers. Probably because the average nurse can afford to buy their own kindle fire. I am against the mandating of flu vaccines. It is obvious that this has become commercialized (even my local supermarket is selling the flu vaccine). It is really just a cash cow for big pharma. Hospital administrators and others are willingly complicit in the fear mongering, profiteering and offering up of their employees as lab rats and sacrificial lambs, all in the name of "protecting our patients." The truth is that it is really about money. If it was about protecting patients, then patients would be barred visitors when they are hospitalized.

I am assuming that this is your first pregnancy and you have yet to experience the inhumanity of giving birth in a hospital? Well if I am in fact correct, brace yourself. If you think that made you feel weird and like a sideshow. And that it was not your doctor and you didn't know those people. Then you should look into a home birth. I just had a baby at a well renowned hospital. And even though my MD was there in charge of things. There were things she delegated to others whom I was not familiar with. Like inserting my foley etc. Also there were several essential ancillary staff members present. I am the kind of gal who would not go to a male OB/GYN MD if you paid me. Yet there I was. The control freak in me was uncomfortable and wanted to protest my foley being placed by the male MD assisting my MD (at least she had introduced him). But the professional in me overruled the control freak. I thought of all my patients who had to shed their pride (and or dignity) and have total strangers examine and attend to them.

Its unfortunate, but in the work setting, to protect yourself, you have to behave as though you are swimming in shark infested waters.

I am with them. The hospital bears some responsibility. This just proves what nurses already know to be true.

We just call them "the machine."

There was a sickle cell pt who was a regular. Very pretty sweet nice young lady. She was brought in to the ER with lower abdominal pain. Then was transferred to the OR for emergency surgery. Tubal pregnancy. Surgery did not go well, she lost massive amounts of blood. Coded several times while in ICU following surgery. I went to see her in the ICU, she was unconscious and was getting back to back transfusions. She was grey when I saw her. The nurse caring for her knew me and was trying to make small talk. I was angry at him for doing so. I was also angry at another coworker who had seen her before I did and had told me, "she was already gone." I was angry at the hospital for not diagnosing the tubal pregnancy until it was to late. I was angry at the doctor who thought the abdominal pain was related to a sickle cell crisis and kept prescribing copious amounts of morphine. I was also angry that the only person at her bedside while she lay dying was her boyfriend. He was besides himself. Seemed like a really nice decent guy. I was thinking how sad and unfair that this young girl who had endured a lifetime of suffering with sickle cell disease, would succumb to a tubal pregnancy not diagnosed in time. I heard the final code called right before I left my unit that morning after I had seen her. And I just knew. She was gone. As I walked to my car, the anger eating me up inside turned to tears. That morning was the start of my long anticipated vacation. But in that moment of overwhelming grief. Vacation plans seemed so meaningless and hollow.

When YOU feel like you are in YOUR own skin at work.

Did it for 4 years in medsurg right out of nursing school with a young child. Will NEVER go back to nights. In 4 years I aged 10. I felt like a zombie almost every day. You can never get enough sleep and your sleep will be fragmented. I went to work tired almost every night. After awhile I could only sleep for 3 hours at a stretch. I am so happy now on days, nights is not for me even though I am not an early morning person.

I don't know you, but I am so proud of you I wish I could hug you. You are serious about your responsibilities as a nurse and that is a good thing. It will serve you well in years to come. Get used to people being mad at you for standing up for yourself. Eventually you will develop a thick skin and none of what they think will matter. But try they will to trip you up. Like not alerting you to issues and problems. Just be on your guard as always. Even friends of this person may try to get back at you, on his behalf. Some may even pretend to like you. You are new, they have been there longer than you, their loyalty is with each other. They know now what you are capable of, they will respect your authority.