Sonia,RN

Well, I went against all my initial outrage against the mandatory flu shots, and I got the seasonal live vaccine (nasal spray on Tuesday). This left me with a sore throat and runny nose, and very fatigued for 3-4 days. I understand these are within ...

Don't think so. I'm definitely not as sick as I believe I would have been had I gotten the flu outright. No GI symptoms, no fever. Also, I had no symptoms at all until the day of my first vaccination. Still, you're right that I probably was expos...

Several nurses and one resident I know at our facility have been stuck with HIV-positive ABG needles in the last year, which have a much higher rate of transmission than insulin needles, and fortunately they were all ok, though they did go through th...

Have any of you ever worked in an ICU without techs. I do, and I can assure you it is no picnic. Apparently, techs were abolished by management before my time; I am not sure of the original reasons, and we have never been successful in bringing the...

1. I know you are distressed because your family member is not waking up. But he has an 8 mm tube shoved down his throat, a catheter up you-know-where, an FMS to catch his soupy diarrhea and is fighting pneumonia and sepsis. Meanwhile he has been s...

Thanks! That's actually pretty helpful. I'm going to do my best to try to do that. Actually, if we just were correctly staffed, the tech issue would not be such a big deal. And we have had a lot of poopy patients lately.

Our ICU/CCU has 17 beds and is divided into two sides, the ICU and the CCU. This makes the secretary situation more difficult, as when we have one, one side is also neglected. But the bottom line seems we are not alone, others are working under tec...

Thank you for your comisseration. I agree with you that even one tech would not change matters greatly. How would you suggest writing up matters (incident reports) without creating an atmosphere of blame and harming the reputations of my co-workers...

"We hear your concerns, and we will address them at our next -----meeting." After which, of course, things go on as before. Also, "That's not in our budget for this year, but we'll look at next year."

Towson U has a good nursing program. I found it fairly easy (I graduated 8 years ago) too easy in my opinion...I believe (from speaking with the faculty) it has gotten a little more strict since then. I like the flexibilty of the faculty. Some of ...

My facility has also mandated flu shots and H1N1 shots this year. I am deeply disturbed, because, for many personal reasons, I have never wanted a flu shot and have always refused one, even writing letters to management when necessary. This year we...

One field which prepares you for many different fields is telemetry. I recommend telemetry to any new nurse because you get enough patients to practice time management, but not so many they overwhelm you (med-surg has in some places 7-8 patients), s...

House. He says all the things I wish I could say.

Sorry . . . what is a residency? Does a legal commitment keep you where you are? If it does not, I have some general suggestions. But I need to know a little more about your situation. Do you have your degree free and clear? Can you leave one po...

I have been a nurse for 8 years, I can say unequivocally that I get sick much less often than my husband of two years, who is also very healthy. I work with very sick (from an infectious disease perspective) patients in the ICU/CCU. The good thing ...

In some telemetry units, and cardiac cath units, there are lower rates of transfusions. Why? Sonia

I am talking about coworkers' looking up to you as a leader and respecting you as a good nurse. I would appreciate your input as I believe this is something I need to work on. Perception is everything, right? I have seen excellent nurses persecut...

When I said clueless and disorganized, I did not mean they ARE that way. They are not, but manage to come across that way to some. Easily flustered would be a better description. Any specifics on body language, behaviors?

I have always used the syringe and plunger and have never had a problem, except in special cases where the Gtube already leaked around the site; then I would use gravity.

Towson is cheaper and easier. I went to Towson. graduated in '00, and the only problem I saw was, it was too easy for slackers to pass. That's what hurts the university in the NCLEX. But it's so cheap and the campus is central and cute. I don't k...

I know Good Sam pretty well. What do you want to know? Sonia

One patient was a young man with HIV-induced encepalopathy who was hitting, biting, and spitting at nurses and doctors. His visiting mother was furious because we did not keep his gown clean (he had bit his own tongue and was constantly bleeding on ...