mamamerlee

Two weeks is appropriate, or the length of a schedule, prior to the next schedule. Never burn bridges.

Some decent pens, or perhaps pocket planners to write their schedules in.

Take the classes. You can still go to college for your BSN, and you will be better prepared than most of your peers.

For a long time, I wore black slacks and a nice top. Kept a spare set in my car. But you might just be wearing 'street clothes' while you are in orientation. You will find out more next week. Some of the upper scale rehab centers have everyone in street clothes so people feel more at home, less in a nursing home.

There are lawyers, frequently nurse-attorneys, who specialize in cases that go before the BON. They know what is appropriate, and can help you protect your license. This really does not seem like an offense that should strip you of your right to practice. The meds were retreived, you did not divert them for yourself or for sale. You are, presumably, clean. Seems like you made a weird error about discarding them, and then you began to panic. Take care of yourself. Talk to a lawyer!

Contact the OB-GYN Board in your area, and ask them to investigate. They may do it without revealing their source.

Sorry to those of you that think the pumps are perfect. Baxter was recently forced to recall at least 2 of their pumps for malfunctions of different sorts, including fluid going in way too fast. A number of deaths occured. There were 200,000 Baxter pumps involved. Yes, time tapes may be redundant, but it is a handy skill to learn for that time when you are in disaster mode and all the pumps are in use.

Do you have to live in the city? Aren't there cheaper places to live? How much of a down payment will you have for any kind of house or condo? You don't say how long you have been employed, or if you are actually supporting anyone now. There are way too many factors to know if it is necessary to make much more, or if you are living beyond your means. An example might be - how necessary is a car if you live in the city? Insurance and parking are both very expensive. I didn't own a car when I lived in downtown Philly. Examine your needs and eliminate some 'wants'. Best wishes!

Rexie - very hard to read your red post.

This is nothing new, it has been discussed here before. Many people believe that animals can sense a change in a person's status, whether it's just a cold, or impending death, or seizures. The challenge here is trying to find out how they know - is it a chemical change, electric fields, or whatever. We may never know.

Although long gone are the multi-bed wards, there are still some hospitals with 'semi-private' rooms. I was in one last week. My roommate kept leaving her 'hat' in the toilet, and not calling her nurse for it to be dumped. Needless to say, I had to remove it so I could use the toilet. What fun... And the ER there was ancient, just curtains between the beds. No privacy for assessments and conversation. Sometiems HIPAA is just a dream.

I was just in the hospital last week. It was a public hospital, no fancy menus, food just arrived. I was not supposed to have caffeine for 24 hrs before the stress test. I was served Iced Tea at both lunch and dinner. I no longer have caffeine after about 2 pm anyway, it keeps me awake. I drank so much water those 2 days that I was floating. Or wish I could have, all the way to the bathroom!

There's a difference between the short time of a sale, and the fresh fruit or flowers that linger for days in a hospital room. I like the idea of a Farmers' Market in the hospital, and would certainly try to make my purchases on the way out, if possible!

The Labor Board will look into all unfair labor practices without telling the business who did the reporting. Most places build that overlap into the paid shift time, which is why the shifts end 15-30 minutes past 8 hours.

This is a follow-up to another thread about practicing bedbaths. It's about what is NOT taught in school, whether or not you use dummies or each other.... I have done lots of informal teaching during baths. Sometimes patients are more receptive at these times. How do you get all that dried stool out from under those unkempt fingernails? Why aren't we taught this sometime?!! Try to get that dementia patient to hold his hand in a bowl of warm, soapy water!! Put a chux (or whatever they call the disposable bed protectors these days) under the pt's arm, slather on a large amount of hand/body lotion on the offending hand, wrap in a warm wet washcloth, then wrap in the chux. Do that hand LAST if possible. You will need an old-fashioned orange stick to get it all out. Assess ROM and skin - get the patient to reach whatever is possible. They may seem helpless until they wash between their toes. Look for bruises, rashes, skin tears. The bruises on Mrs A's back? What bruises? Oh, she says, my stepson 'accidently' hit me a week ago. Some very quiet conversation revealed continual abuse from the 6 foot 15 year old that the woman was afraid to tell her husband. Convinced her to let me call social work. Don't know the outcome, don't ask me. Interesting tattoos may reveal information about the patient past or present. "Oh yeah, I got that one about 10 years ago. That reminds me, I forgot to tell the doc about the hepatitis I had then". So the technique of the bedbath is only a small amount of what is done during the bedbath. Practice therapeutic conversation, interviewing and assessment, and all manner of information exchange that can be done during this time. And that really annoying patient who is always on her bell? She may rest comfortably for a while, just because you took the time to care.