Skippers1

I would take Guam in a second but it depends on what you like. My husband was there 10 years ago and I've visited a couple times. It's a tropical vacation spot, great for sailing and scuba diving and it's a short plane flight to some other great travel destinations. It is a looong way from home, though. I hear the ER there is pretty busy.

I have a second degree BSN and am in the process of joining the navy. I'm joining because I want to be sure I get as much training as possible and I know the military trains their nurses very well. Also to help pay back student loans!

Sorry you're not having luck in the job search. With all the talk about the nursing shortage I don't think any of us new grads were prepared for how competitive the job market is now. It's a little far from Phoenix, but I found a new grad program in Flagstaff at Northern Arizona Healthcare. The program is starting in May and applications are due April 10. www.nahealth.com/careers/specialtytrainingprograms/current_specialty_training. Good luck!

I am also in orientation in the ICU. I definately have my bad moments when I want to quit/think I'll get fired, too, but ICU is really where my heart is so I'm trying everything I can to do well there. Here are some things that might help you that have helped me make it through the day smoothly. First thing in the morning before I even assess my patient(s) I take a blank sheet of paper and write out every hour of the day and list what time meds need to be given, when to do a CVP, when to do vital signs, procedures, bed bath, etc. Then I write the overall goals for what I want to accomplish for my patient that day. That way at the end of the day if other nurses are being critical at least I can say specifically how I helped the patient that day. As for giving report at change of shift, every unit is a little bit different about how they do it. I take 15 minutes in the afternoon to write down what to include in report starting with a brief hx of the patient's hospital stay then going through each system-neuro, resp., CV, Labs, GI, GU, Skin, Family concerns, drips. I find that writing it down keeps me from getting flustered and disorganized in report. Your unit wouldn't have hired you if they expected you to fail so you just need to show them what you plan to do to catch up to speed. I say stick with it for 2 more weeks because everyone learns at their own pace and maybe in the next 2 weeks things will start coming together for you. And most of all, if you want to stay then make sure your manager knows you are committed-enthusiasm counts for a lot! And even if you do get fired, there are plenty of hospitals out there each with their own unique personalities and maybe a different "environment" would work better for you.

In my unit (trauma ICU) patients get bed baths twice a day - once by day shift and again by night shift. The nurses do this as an opportunity to check the patients for pressure sores and because they say it is comforting to the patient. I have no problem doing this assuming time permits, but wouldn't excessive bathing make patients prone to skin breakdown, dry out their skin, and reduce the skin's normal flora? I would always bath a patient if they are really dirty and when they are incontinent, but how often should they get a full bath? Can anyone help by recommending research articles on this topic? I want to use evidence-based practice to determine the correct thing to do.