amazeRN

We also run a BFR of 300 during access flow testing.

Interesting. I work in a small unit and have not worked with buttonholes. Care to share what you like/dislike about them?

UUummm No. They staff by census. I work in ECF and I WISH they staffed based on acuity. Where I work we have 2 buildings. One has 3 locked units for alzheimers pts and one hall of rehab to home. The other building has all other high acuity pts (g-tubes, vents, IV ATB therapy, behaviors..etc...) The 2 buildings together have the same amt of pts approx 50 in each building but the one w/ 4 halls gets 4 nurses, the other much higher acuity w/ 2 halls only has 2 nurses. Totally not fair @ all! It should be the opposite, 4 nurses in the bldg w/ 2 halls bc the acuity is so much higher. W/ you being a CNA whoever does the charting for ADL's make sure you are giving yourself credit for how much you do for the pt, dont copy what everyone else has put. Give yourself credit for everything you have done for your pts. Hopefully one day staffing will get better.

I work for fresenius. In my area only RN''s function as the nurse. LPN/LVN's would work as PCTs w/ the pts. Starting pay I believe is in the $12.80 area...

kudos to mamabaer439:) I work in-center hemo and I see the same patients every other day and they have become my extended family. I work for them, I teach for them. I want them to live full healthy lives for as long as they can. I try and put mysef in their situation to have to live by so many rules and restrictions but it is hard, very hard. If you dont understand something ask, and if your still not sure ask again. Here is something I thought about once I became a dialysis nurse only a few short months ago: patients w/ BP probs take BP meds and watch their diets, diabetics need insulin/watch their diet, ppl w/ GI disorders learn what they can/can't have bc it upset their system, ppl w/ thyroid issues take meds/watch their diet etc. For dialysis pts they have to do EVERYTHING...watch their diet/ monitor fluid/ take meds plus (if hemo pts) come in for tx 3x/week for 3-5 hours, every week until forever, unless candidates for transplant. ESRD is a very very sad disease and I wish I could fix every single one of my pts, but I can't. What I can do is make sure they are doing the best they can with their fluid/diet and re-educate when needed.

Very true. It is what you make it. The individual has to have the belief they can do this, they can still live their life and do dialysis. They don't have to let it take them over and let the disease be what labels them. CKD is a very sad disease and I wouldn't wish it upon anyone but the ones who have a PMA (positive mental attitude) tend to be healthier and do more i.e. still work. It is possible!

I have been with fresenius only since December and have had no previous experience with dialysis but my training was excellent. I am loving every minute of it so far. Good Luck:)

This may sound really stupid but I have a 3 year old daughter who still likes for me to take her to potty and when she is sitting there and I start hearing her pee it makes me smile. Just knowing that there are little babies out there that have to have dialysis makes my heart cry so when my daughter pees it makes me feel all nice and warm inside :)

I was trained by my PCT for 5 weeks and I learned alot from her as I had no previous experience with dialysis. I learned the in's and out's of the machine, the patients, and when it was time for me to train with my nurse I felt completely confident. In an emergency situation when all the PCTs were busy I felt fine fixing the machine without any help and the nurse who was training me said she was glad I took care of it bc she wouldn't have known what to do bc she only trained w/ a PCT for a week. When its approprite I don't have a problem being taught by someone w/ less education than me and I still trained w/ my nurse for nursing situations and learned the nursing routine though her.

I am studying to take my RN boards and one tool that our class found very helpful is the Mark Klimek NCLEX Review. I dont know your location but he goes all over, he works by word of mouth only no advertising. He is located in Cedarville Ohio. You can go to his website markklimeknclexreview.com you can see the upcoming dates and register there. The cost is $285 and includes 2 books. One you go over in class and the second you study on your own time. He does not have a money back guarantee but if you do not pass or just neeed to study more you can go to any of his reviews for free, you just have to show your receipt from the 1st review. Good luck:)