Agnus

If you are in the United States you are entitled to it under federal law, specifically, the Health Insurance Portability Act.(HIPA) It is true that this is the NH property. At the same time you are entitled to copies of all your medical records, including this.

Sometimes docs need to be re educated about their own responsibilities. As far as actually carrying out a procedure outside my scope of practice I look at it this way. I am working under my license. As long as I have that license I can find a job. If my license becomes compromised or I loose it then I have lost my means of even applying for a job. The license is more valuable than any one particular job.

I am working under my license not the physician's. Ifthe concern here is about the nurse loosing her/his job well my feeling about it is this. I was looking for a job when I found this one. I can always find another. A particular job is not more important than my license. Without that license as a nurse I am up a creek. With that said It is unlikely your friend job would even come in question over this issue.

You were 10 yrs old. Give that kid permission to be a well meaning kid. The adult was in anguish so was not being an adult toward the kid. Forgive his rude reaction. It was not a personal attack on the kid it was a wounded angry person striking out. The kid was in the way when the the shot was fired. Today, I ask that question every day of my patients. I really want to know. If a patient responds to me the way you describe I tell them I am asking because I really want to know from their perspective. Then I shut up and listen.

Money is power. You are an employee. Employees cost (deplete) money.

Both PALS and ACLS are a lot kinder than they once were. There is a pretest on the PALS CD. You should be able to score a minimum of 80% on the pretest before you take the class. You can take the pretest more than once. This will clue you in as to what areas you need to study. You will notice there are 2 books follow the instructions for studying and you should have no problem. There is little need for memorization any more. However, understanding why you are doing what you are doing is critical for getting though a code. So understand the meds and the concepts in doing the protochols.

Ok what do you do besides call the vet when your dog swallows BCPs?

You think too much and worry too much. I would honestly tell them I have been drinking and am not fit for duty. This does not give me a reputation as a boozer. It identifies me as a responsible person who happened to drink today on my day off. There is no stigma nor anything intrinsically wrong with drinking on my day off. However, if you show up to work having been drinking and expect that I would put any faith in your abilities you are dead wrong. Basic nursing care requires a sober person. Just as much as giving meds does. Neither caffeine nor adrenaline will sober you up. Only time and your liver can sober you. If you are impaired caffeine can not unimpaire you nor can an adrenaline rush nore can water. If this were true we would tell people it is ok to drink and drive if you drink plenty of coffee or or water and go Bungie jumping first. You know this if you are an RN.

The biggest problem with this is any test must be view within the entire context of a situation. As you know labs are very general and the same result can mean different things with different patients and at different times. if someone asks specifics sometimes that can be answered. Pt with a infection has an elevated WBC. I would feel ok telling them, you have an elevated white cell count which indicates you probably have an infection. Or your wbc has come down that means the antibiotic is working. Or it looks like you are a little anemic. It depends on the level of knowledge they already have. I tell them when a test must be explained in a much larger context and or you do not have all the information. I do not act stupid. I may say that I do not have access to particular test result or that I do not know how these particular results apply to their situation. They generally understand only normal or not normal. Even saying normal can leave them with a wrong impression. I play these case by case. Some people are well educated about their condition and you can give them information that you can not give Mrs Smith because she would have no clue. You can say I see nothing life threatening and these results have to be discussed within the whole context and frankly the doctor has information that I do not have.

Men who are nurses and women who are nurses do date and some marry. I do not assume you are not straight simply because you are in a particular profession, nursing, hair dresser, artist, or any of the other fields that have stereotyped men in them as gay. You will find this is generally the accepted attitude of patients and staff in any given hospital. You question is valid because it is a common fear. I am not saying that it is a perfect world. Men do face discrimination in many hospital with it comes to obstetrics in many hospitals (not all). It is recommended that men protect themselves (MDs as well) when caring for females so that false accusations of molestation are not brought against them. I did know one male RN who was guilty of molesting women and went to prison. The way you protect yourself is with profound sensitivity to female privacy and dignity. Trading off certain sensitive task with a woman nurse where appropriate. Insuring that you are not placed in a situation where you could be accused. For example male doctors have a female present when they examine (particularly intimate exams) a female patient. If you conduct yourself with respect and dignity toward others you will do well regardless of your sexual orientation or precieved orientation.

First it is NOT the CNA that is stopping you. What does your contract say? You should have a copy and be very familiar with it. Like previously mentioned. If and only if this new job is owned by the same corporation as your present facility, then they can not hire you for both a union job and a non union job at the same time. You must be either union or non union. You can not be both for the same employer. This has nothing to do with California Nurses Association (CNA). If you are seeking a second job where there is no union and is not under the same ownership of your other job then no one can stop you on the basis of unionization. However, an employer may be able to stop you if you hire with a different employer while you are still employed with them if there is a do not compete clause in your contract or policy. This has nothing to do with any union. The reason you can not hold a union job and a non union job for the same employer is there is a conflict of interest. It is not CNA who decided this.

I a trauma you will be stripped. It is not pleasant and we do understand that. It is necessary. You will be kept uncovered as injuries are not alway apparent on first look. Before you file complaints consider what is important to you. Suppose you were injured and they looked and covered you because they did not see anything obvious right away. Then something began to develop but you were hidden under a blanket. When they pulled back the blanket you had hemorraged. Sorry this HAS happened. Or any number of abnormal assessment elements are missed because you can not be visualized over time. It is not just bleeding. Things often do not show up immediately. The more eyes on you the more you are likely to not have something go unnoticed. The longer they can visualize you without interuption the more likely things will not be missed. Though it seemed like a long time to you it really is not in terms of what might be hidden under covers. Exposure is #1 prime importance in a fresh trauma. You can not peak then cover because you Will miss something.

I would shorten (distill it) it considerably. example: "I want a career where I feel I make a difference. Growing up many of my friends' moms were nurses whom I admired. This is an field that incorporates my love of science, and my nurturing skills I developed as a mother." This says everything you said without being so drawn out. Believe me they interviewer will get it. In an interview you are expected to give short concise answers. Your answer is in excess of 300 words. People speak 120-150 words a minute. Your answer is approaching 3 minutes to give. The only answer in an interview that should take as much as 60 seconds is "Tell me about yourself "(asked in job interviews). Even then 60 seconds is the max that you will be able to hold their attention without them wanting you to shut up. In that answer you are still expected to give the essence of your background needed in a hiring decision.

Thank you crissrn27. You stole the words right out of my mouth. In the early 1970s I was working as a Nurse's Aide (almost said CNA but there was not such thing back then) My employer would give nickel raises (even then a nickel was NOTHING). They told me never to discuss money with with anyone "because it would create jealousy as I was making more than other aids and getting raises that they were not. (I came to the job after almost finishing nursing school. I was told it was never appropriate to discuss money. Later I learned everyone else was also being told not to discuss money. Then I learned that they were making the same as me getting the same nickel raises. She appealed to me with flattery and it worked. She wanted me to believe I was special and to treasure the recognition and raises that only I was getting. Essential the message was: I was to take those nickel raises and tbecause I was the only one getting it so I should not complain. At other times employers have told people not to discuss salary and or raises. Because there were discrepancies between what people made. It is illegal to forbid discussing this. I do not know when this law first came into being. Your employer needs to understand lack of transparency automatically makes them suspect of unfair labor practices. You might file a complaint with the local labor board that your boss is telling you that discussing raises "should be a fireable offense." And that there are discrepancies. Anyone who does an eval should not be recommending the amount of a raise. All they really should (maybe this is law too) be recommending is that there be a raise. They can not recommend that no raise be given. I have had evaluators themselves tell me this. I suspect this is a law as well. In the past 10 years many interviewers do not even discuss salary. The refer you to HR because there is too big a chance that if they offer you X it may or may not create a discrepancy. So they they leave salary and salary negotiation to HR.

Bottom line the computer is the Hospital's property they can determine how and by whom it is uses. Period.

She filled in your section on self eval?! This is fraudulent. You have been there for a long time, and you likely have had both longevity and and merit raises . So you you likely make more than many other nurses who work there. I suspect she does not want to give you a 4% raise because it would be a bigger increase than the 4% the others are getting. You are expensive to keep because of your longevity. Also, if she p!$$es you off then you might quit and then she can hire someone with less experience for less money. Because of the financial element the Administrator is likely to back her up. you can complain and I would. I would challenge this BUT if you want to keep this job I would not push it. No it is not fair. You have to weigh what is most important to you. Principle and a 1% increase over what you are getting or this job.

"They" did not do this "to you" To "avoid the wrath of day shift??!!" You sound like you view yourself as helpless. Grow a backbone and stop worrying about what someone else might think say or do because you are human and choose not to work overtimes simply to avoid bullying. As long as you play into this mind set you will always be beaten by others. Your shift ends at 7 you got the order at 0659. so what? It is not your place to stay and do this. Nursing is a 24 hours job and things MUST be passed on. To be honest no one loves nor respects a martyr.

Ask the person who reemed you what they would do with a blue pt struggling to get a breath. Really anyone with half a brain will tell you oxygen saturation monitors are not infallible. Additionally you can have 100 percent saturation in a number of situations and the patient will be hypoxic. Such as a low hemoglobin. another is the presence of carbon monoxide. Who is this idiot?

It amazes me the number of female posters who say basically suck it up it is no big deal. I feel confident it the tables were turned and these female posters were faced with male co worker doing this they would be up in arms over it.

I apologize for my ranting post. I did not see that this had already been adequately addressed by others.

It concerns me that so many of you said that it "thins the blood" and allows for better circulation because the blood can pass though the vessels easier. Please, you are all nurses you know better than this it does not thin anything. Neither does warfrin or heparin. The only thing that might thin blood is fluids and that is temporary. Please, please you know this stuff. Why do you confuse yourselves into believing a myth. Once upon a time a MD who wanted to put into lay terms what these meds do described it as thinnning blood. We jumped on this as a way to explain it to patients. Even though it is very inaccurate. It causes problems when patients believe this because they think things like: allow cells to pass more easily though the vessels and improves circulation etc. Even with patients I tell them it is an anticoagulant. Then explain that it reduces the bloods ability to form clots. Everyone I have talked to this way understands this concept. Even a child of school age understands. It just takes a few more word than "blood thinner" and a trust they will understand. Or at least that you can help them to get it with just a bit more information. Please, nurses these meds do not thin anything.

Exactly

I will document this in your chart. This is about patient behavior and you can and should chart it. Putting the pt on notice that this is happening will likely stop it.

This makes me smile. Smart girl.

School is for learning. When you are learning you will not do everything correctly. Some of us believe that when one is learning they must do everything perfectly. If you did everything perfectly you would not be learning you would be learned. Employers understand this. That is why they require you to graduated and become licensed before you can work as an RN. Some of us take a little longer to learn some things than others. That is individual difference. It may take a person a gazillion times practicing something before they get it but once they do it can not be taken away. All any employer is concerned about is that you did eventually learn what you needed to.They do not care how long it took you. The final result (i.e. the RN license) is all that counts. Even where employers ask for transcripts they are not concerned that you repeated a course or took a remedial if you eventually learned what you needed to. Your school is doing you a favor by providing you an opportunity to get additional time to learn the skills you need to learn. They could just flunk you out. Obviously they care about your success. I repeated a course and and came out stronger in the end.