Lindz

Nyquil is 10% alcohol. I actually got carded at Target this weekend buying Nyquil. I suppose I should take that as a compliment.

After being asked if my mil's sore toe was gout and if my fil really needed to have knee surgery, I finally told him "I take care of little babies, not big ones." Haven't been asked anything else in four years. Now it all gets directed at hubby. Thank goodness they listen to their docs though. And when my sister and I were flying to visit family I gave her explecit instructions that unless someone was actively dying on the plane I'm NOT a nurse.

There was a little blurb about this in my newspaper a couple of weeks ago. It's true. Apparantly the actual cards were forgeries.

This is why whenever I have a patient who's parents will need to be doing any kind of "nursing" care at home, I take the time to teach. It can be as simple as talking through the steps as a procedure is being performed. When parents start to feel comfortable, then I'll have them start doing procedures. I'm talking about things like stoma care, giving meds through g-tube, maybe a scheduled straight cath. Of course I don't just hand them supplies and say here you go, and yes it takes more time to watch them do it than to just do it myself, but I could not in good faith send them home without knowing what to do. I also report off to the oncoming shift what teaching has been done and what needs to be done or touched up. I have the luxury of working Peds with a 1:4 ratio, I cannot imagine having to find time to teach and care for more patients.

I'm due in May. I'd really rather not be that one in a million obestrical emergency. I also don't want to be tethered down. I'm more than happy to compromise with a SL. I know I'm relatively low risk (VBAC), but I also know how in any area of nursing things can go really bad really fast. Kind of the same reason I won't take out my patients' IVs until I'm ready to go over the dc info. Do I need it, not really, but why mess around?

I'm a Navy wife. I met my husband just after my first year of school. My husband didn't want to marry until I graduated and at least had a job and he made HM2, so luckily I didn't have to put schooling on hold. He's also managed to stay in San Diego county so far so we haven't had to move. Luckily he has friends, after he graduated from IDC school in 2006 he randomly got penciled in for orders to Japan and I would have been 8 mos preggo at the time and wouldn't have been cleared to go until after the baby was born. Luckily a friendly chief caught it in time. Because of his benefits I work per diem (I do work full time hours being in Southern California) but it allows me to have all weekends except one Sunday a month and most holidays off. I think nursing is a better career than most if you'll be moving frequently. Luckily with the military, most likely you can live in housing and not having to worry about rent and some bills if you happen to live in an area where the job market isn't great.

I'm in San Diego and work at Rady Children's. I would say look at them and Sharp Mary Birch first. Children's also staffs a couple of other hospitals' NICUs too. Scripps Encinitas and UCSD? I was just looking at their job positings today fantasizing about a new job and they do have NICU positions open. Balboa's NICU from my understanding isn't that intense. Don't quote me though since that's not my specialty. Besides if you work at Balboa you'll be contract, almost like traveling, and I don't know many people that are satisified with the company. On the other hand if you can get a GS position with the Navy don't pass it up, it comes with great benies. Children's website is http://www.rchsd.org Check them out, I really like it here.

About that recruiter . . . listen to what he has to say and then ask questions of friends in the military. Recruiters have been known to whisper sweet nothings in your ear. It probably won't be so bad since you're going in knowing you want to be a nurse. I know many people who enlisted and said I want to do xyz or go to this school and of course the recruiter promised them the moon and stars. I come from a Navy family and my husband is an IDC (independent duty corpsman). It's a little different with my husband being stationed with the Marines and working gawd awful hours and deploying with them (the Army somehow managed to get their hands on him for a couple of months, but he got to come home since they had enough Corpsmen.) There are no nurses in combat, my husband turns all of the patients over to the nurses at a combat hospital so don't worry. I tell everybody to take the Navy for a ride since they're going to take you for one. They are going get as much work out of you as they possibly can, you are going to have to work with and for people that you might not like and can't do much about it, you may not be able to take leave when you'd like just for the simple reason that the head honcho said no. But where else are you going to get a free pass to travel the world? Even if you don't get stationed overseas, the travel discounts are pretty good. Where else are you going to get help with school like the military? And the comraderie is amazing. You will have friends for life even if you just spend four years in the service. So, maybe you find out that you don't care for military service and opt to get out at the first chance, but the pro's make those years worth it.

Dutchgirl, I don't think your question was out of line, but your explanation was. We all have not only the right, but the responsibility to ask questions of our healthcare providers. If you only want an RN or LPN to give you injections that's fine, but that should be the only thing said to the MD and leave your personal opinion out of it unless asked. I think any misgivings should be directed at the MD, not the MA who's just trying to do her job. (Unless of course she's doing something completely out of line.)

Breaks are our responsibility. Management is in their office mostly oblivious to what's going on on the floor. When it starts getting close to 1200, I'll ask my co-workers what time they like to go to lunch so we can try and plan. Yes, sometimes things happen, but I work with great people who will pitch in, most of the time without being asked. I try to pay attention to the other nurses (especially the new ones) and I'll ask them what can I do to help them take a break or get out of here on time. I'd like to think this is why people help me out when I need it.

Am I happy with what I make? Yes. Would I like to make more? Yes. Would I do it for less? No. You don't need to state salary as a reason for your career choice during the interview, but job security is a reasonable answer. I am so thankful that I love my job and will always be able to work. I don't want to retire as a bedside nurse, but there's growth potential which can lead to better pay. I may not be able to buy a house in Southern California, but I help put a roof over my family's head, food in their mouths, provide transportation, and a little fun.

I have a close friend who's in a similar situation with her mother. It was very apparant when we were in middle school that her mom's an alcoholic, but things have just gone down the toilet in the last year. My friend's baby just turned 1 this summer and she's expecting #2 next year. It has gotten to the point where my friend has had to cut her mom from her life. She has made it abundantly clear that if her mom is willing to go to rehab and clean up then she is welcome back. So far she has no desire for anything but the booze. My girlfriend realizes she must do what is best for her and her family. So she surrounds herself with close, healthy family members and friends. It hurts her so much to cut her mom off, but not as much as the alcoholic binges and rages.

Before you decide you should look around to see what the job opportunities are for LVNs. I know at my hospital here in SD we don't have LVNs. Do you have the opportunity to pursue a BSN now? State and PLNU have BSN program, not sure about State, but I don't remember PLNU having a wait list (five years ago.) And USD has a program for people with Bachelor degrees. It's an accelerated program and you graduate with a BSN and I'm not sure, but I think a CNS as well. I know the wait is frustrating. I have a friend who finally gave up after something like three years on the wait list.

After my c-section last year I was instructed not to drive for four weeks. Everyone who came into my room kept saying that I was the best looking c-section they've seen. (And believe me, with the way I felt, I felt sooo bad for the other moms!) I wonder what the other mothers were told about driving. I think this must be standard orders because it was also in my paperwork.

I did a clinical at Scripps La Jolla thought not in L&D it was on their tele and ICU units. I loved the hospital and the nurses were awesome to work with.

I did a clinical at Scripps La Jolla thought not in L&D it was on their tele and ICU units. I loved the hospital and the nurses were awesome to work with.

Like cyberkat said, you get a degree in nursing. In order to get your degree you get experience in many fields. If you think peds or neonatal nursing is your thing you may be able to do a nursing externship in that field. You would work with a nurse on her schedule outside of school. I highly recommend this as you will experience the real world of nursing and it can help you decide if this is really the area you want be in.

If you want your baby to drink breastmilk, maybe you should come in so you can breastfeed your baby. Don't look insulted if the nurse laughs when you seriously ask why your baby is drinking formula when he's been here for two days without a parent.

I remember feeling like you do and just had to stop thinking about failing and start telling myself "you are going to pass". Good luck and keep thinking positively.

I work peds med/surg and our policy is absolutely no ketamine on the floor, probably because we're not set up for kids in deep sedation. And nurses don't give it, even if we could use it on the floor it can only be administered by an anesthesiologist.

For me and most of my fellow classmates our clinicals steered us towards our specialties. I thought I made the biggest mistake with nursing, I was miserable my first year, but I stuck it out and then I found pediatrics. My instructor took me aside and said I truly found my niche and have become a nurse. This after another instructor (and myself) questioned my nursing abilities. You'll know what feels right and what doesn't. Use your clinicals as guides. If there is something that you find interesting, let your instructor know. They are always on the look out for good clinical experiences. Also let the nurses you're working with know that you are interested in something. They may know of another patient with a procedure that you can watch. And don't be afraid to do what scares you. Psych scared the heck out of me so I asked my instructor to put me in the ICU (lockdown unit) first. I found out that I am not a good psych nurse, I tend make the patients more agitated. But I learned respect for the nurses and patients. The best thing about nursing is if you aren't really sure, there is so much to do. Some of my friends graduated with plans to do a little of this and a little of that because they found everything so interesting. Good luck and I hope you find your nursing niche.

Don't worrry happystudent, had one kiddo grab me with a death grip, it took three people holding her down to give her the meds, so I just urged to the nurse to give them quick so she'll let go of me. Same nurse made me go look to make sure I didn't have scratch marks, yeah how am I going to explain scratch marks on my boob to occ health.

Yes, thanks to milk and molasses enemas I will never eat ginger snaps again.

The one thing I have learned in my first year is there is always someone there to ask questions. I started out asking what should I do, but now learn more when I say can I run something by you. School did teach you critical thinking skills so use them. Assess your situation and your plan of action. You'd be surprised that you really do know more than you think. The only way to really get over the new grad culture shock is to roll up your sleeves, put your gloves on, and get down and dirty.

I have only been out of school for a year, but I remember very well my instructors telling us that medicating a pt for our convenience is considered a restraint which absolutely needs a md order. Of course if the pt is truly upset and restless and there is an order then by all means give the med or call if one is needed.