HamsterRN

HamsterRN ADN, RN

Psych/CD/Medical/Emp Hlth/Staff ED

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All Content by HamsterRN

  1. IS IT TOO DIFFICULT TO TAKE A & P 1 and CHEMISTRY 101 AT THE SAME TIME???

    HamsterRN replied to LILYROSE11's topic in Pre-Nursing Students

    A&P I is usually considered to be the hardest of pre-reqs, with organic chem a close second (if that's required in your program. Our program gave more points in the admission process to A&P...

  2. any cardiac step-down nurses out there?

    HamsterRN replied to blueflyRN's topic in Cardiac

    Most of my interview questions were not specific to the Cardiac step-down unit. Most were the standard "What's your definition of caring", "What are your 5 year goals", "What's your favorite part of...

  3. Phone calls & families <sigh>

    HamsterRN replied to nyteshade's topic in General Nursing

    Yes, HIPAA is a really big deal, which is why we need to understand it, not misinterpret it in the most conservative way possible. HIPAA does not prevent us from involving family and friends, it only...

  4. Phone calls & families <sigh>

    HamsterRN replied to nyteshade's topic in General Nursing

    hipaa is fairly clear that you can disclose a patient is at your facility, unless the patient requests "do not announce" status. disclosures to friends and

  5. Phone calls & families <sigh>

    HamsterRN replied to nyteshade's topic in General Nursing

    There have been numerous threads on this issue and in general it seems to be nurses that are totally unaware of HIPPA. HIPPA does not prohibit us from providing information to family and friends, it...

  6. Jean Watson Caring Science

    HamsterRN replied to MA Nurse's topic in General Nursing

    You're right, Watson is a complete Loon, but you can make a much more reasoned argument against something when you are as familiar with it as possible. Watson's theory is not a theory at all, it's a...

  7. How to give report?

    HamsterRN replied to ScreamBoxDolly's topic in General Nursing

    SBAR is great for one dimensional issues, but for shift to shift report? What happened to the nursing

  8. Flushing a central line

    HamsterRN replied to SuesquatchRN's topic in General Nursing

    What you saw was probably a vacuum, not air, due to something preventing aspiration, such as a fibrin sheath. You'll still occasionally see the "push-pull" technique recommended as a general flushing...

  9. are filter needles necessary?

    HamsterRN replied to brownbook's topic in Patient Medications

    There is evidence to support the use of filter needles. A 2004 study found that 22% of medications from glass ampules contain glass shards if a filter needle is not used. Journal of Advanced...

  10. anything you wish you were told in nursing school that you werent?

    HamsterRN replied to karyan06's topic in General Nursing

    I wish someone had told me that I would only need to deal with Nursing Diagnoses in Nursing

  11. Obtaining urine specimen from foley

    HamsterRN replied to Ms.RN's topic in General Nursing

    It's actually betadine that has the potential to alter the results, although it's unlikely to alter them significantly. Unlike alcohol, when betadine dries it leaves a residue that can kill bacteria...

  12. To Fall or Not To Fall?

    HamsterRN replied to Tait's topic in General Nursing

    We'd call this an "assisted fall" and still have to document it, but luckily we are still allowed to use our clinical judgement as to what sort of follow up assessment should be

  13. Don't giver her a drink! It'll make her have to go to the bathroom!!

    HamsterRN replied to Alnitak7's topic in General Nursing

    So we all agree that we shouldn't withhold water from a patient to avoid them having to pee, but are we also saying that it is acceptable to refuse water to a patient on a fluid restriction who is...

  14. Starting pay in Maryland

    HamsterRN replied to hoff8056's topic in Maryland Nursing

    Salary.com surveys local pay ranges for specific jobs, they seem to be pretty

  15. S-BAR

    HamsterRN replied to Otessa's topic in General Nursing

    While SBAR is a great tool for communicating a specific issue such as a change in patient condition, it's possible to overboard with SBAR as well. Our hospital found it so useful that we started...

  16. nursing programs in washington state!

    HamsterRN replied to angieee's topic in Washington Nursing

    There is a nursing school consortium based out of Spokane that is affiliated with WSU, Whitworth, and EWU as well as 2 year schools including Spokane Falls, Walla Walla, and Yakima. I don't know of...

  17. Multidisciplinary rounds

    HamsterRN replied to CNL2B's topic in General Nursing

    Our Docs were the ones who actually initiated our multidisciplinary rounds by encouraging nursing and other disciplines to attend their rounds. It sounds like it is the surgeons you are having the...

  18. Discouraged

    HamsterRN replied to lms491111's topic in General Nursing

    Go and speak with Unit Managers directly, I don't know of a single nurse at my hospital that was hired solely through human resources, HR rarely even calls applicants back to let them know they won't...

  19. ACLS S.O.S.

    HamsterRN replied to AWanderingMinstral's topic in General Nursing

    Don't wig out. For ACLS you don't need to be an electrophysiologist, you just need to know: Too wide, Too fast, and Too slow. For the Bradycardia and Tachycardia algorithms, you just need to be able...

  20. Patient Handoff Process

    HamsterRN replied to NursingNotes's topic in General Nursing

    We use a combination of written information as well as a verbal face to face. A report consists of 2 main categories; The Data, and The Story. The Data is best communicated in written form, but the...

  21. Shortening report on an ICU step-down unit

    HamsterRN replied to nminodob's topic in General Nursing

    I work on a similar unit and our goal is to keep the whole process to 30 minutes, although it usually takes closer to 45, so 30 minutes sounds pretty good. And that is with the assignments already...

  22. manual disimpaction

    HamsterRN replied to 1louise1's topic in General Nursing

    Speaking of de-boogering unresponsive patients, I recently had a patient on comfort care who had a large amount of mucous in his throat. You could see it bubbling in the back of his mouth, thick and...

  23. Why don't nurses join the ANA?

    HamsterRN replied to gauge14iv's topic in General Nursing

    Personally, I don't consider the ANA to be a truly legitimate professional practice organization. The ANA is primarily a collective bargaining organization that attempts to be a professional practice...

  24. Nursing Diagnoses: Useless Statements secondary to Professional Insecurity

    HamsterRN replied to Fribblet's topic in Nursing Professionalism

    Patricia Benner recently put the final nail in the coffin of Nursing Diagnoses with her book "Educating Nurses; A Call for Radical Transformation". While it is true that groups such as Medicare...

  25. how much does your hospital pay to precept a new nurse?

    HamsterRN replied to rninnv's topic in General Nursing

    $1 an hour, which is more than we should expect, training new nurses is part of our professional