SouthernERNurse

We had a patient present to the ER the other night with chapped lips. Chapped lips!!

I'm also a NP student, and have been an ER nurse for almost 5 years. There are many occasions that I feel that my experiences in the ER have given me an advantage over others in my graduate program. You do see emergencies, but you also see a lot of the "less emergent" illnesses, such as Strep, Rotavirus, sinusitis. You learn how to recognize the differences between pneumonia and CHF by comparing the patients you care for. You know what tests to order for abdominal pain because you've watched the ER docs do it for years. I think working the ER definately makes for the most well-rounded nurses, although, like traumaRUs, I'd a little biased myself...

Usually Busy, busy, busy! And it's not always with exciting "ER stuff" either. There's lots of days when you're busy starting IV's on babys, swabbing throats for strep, or giving IM injections. But then you also get to work on patient's having MI's, those with GSW's, and things like that. Just depends on the day, and on the ER in which you work. There's the occasional day when it's slow, and you learn to just enjoy that when it happens, because it never lasts long. But it's hardly ever boring, and I can't think of another place I'd love as much, and I've tried a few other areas. Good luck!!

Overtime is not required at my facility. However, since I am single with no children, I usually work one 8 or 12 hour shift extra per week. I've been doing that for almost two years though, and starting to get tired. It's hard once you get used to the extra money to go back to straight 36 hour per week paychecks...

I've worked ER for 3 years, and I absolutely love my job (or at least most of it). I can't imagine working anywhere else, and have no plans to anytime soon. Nowhere else can I find such a variety, such adreneline rushes, and get to work so closely with docs I respect and who teach me so much. Hardly a dull moment!!

It's amazing the little things that I can learn from my patients in the ER. Just this week for example I've learned... 1. When your patient states "Nurse, I feel like I'm going to throw up", don't ever EVER, no matter how far away this nearest emesis basin is, lean down beside the bed to grab the garbage can for your patient. You will most likely end up with vomit on your head. 2. When at a New Years Eve party, beware of standing beside juke boxes and talking to "a pretty gal". It is possible to have a spontaneous compound tib/fib fracture to occur. And no, it doen't have anything to do with the fact that you were hitting on someone's girlfriend, and that it might have pissed her big boyfriend off. 3. Don't ever roll over in bed in the middle of the night, especially if you have an erection. I've learned that a member fracture really can happen. So what have your patients taught you?

Hi! I work in a 36,000 visit a year 17 bed ER. This time of the year, as in most ER's I'm sure, we are especially busy with pediatric cases and geriatric pneumonia cases, etc. Even the busiest days can run smoothly depending on the doc that is there. We have a couple of fantastic ones on days. They see patients quickly but efficiently and for the most part completely have trust in their nurses. Days like today are another story. We got so backed up because the day doc was moving like pond water. He saw one patient at a time, all day long. People in my trauma beds had been there at times for almost five hours before being seen. I'm sure most of you know how frustrating it is to know that more could be getting done, but isn't because the doc is taking his sweet time getting with it. How do your docs rate? And how do you deal with the "tortoises" in your ER?