leonurse

I'm transitioning to my RN now and you just described me...

I would agree, but when I say "threes" I mean in clusters of threes; like within a short amount of time. For instance, we will have three pass, and then go months without another death. One dies, and then two more follow within a matter of days. And again, we go a long stretch without another death, and the cycle continues.

What about an IM med for agitation?

I have always heard that when you work in LTC, your resident's tend to "die in threes." Well, I must say...from my experiences IT'S TRUE! It blows my mind. When we unfortunately lose a resident, we automatically know that two more will follow, and it never fails. What's weird, is it's never the ones that we "expect." It's always the case where one of our stable resident's suddenly declines, and then passes. I have even seen times where we lose three, then lose a 4th one, only to have two more follow. Does anyone else experience this? I'm not exactly a "myth" person, but this is quite intriguing to me.

Help! I'm a new nurse and within the past weeks, I have started I have started having these excruciating pains on the medial arc of my left foot. I have a high arch. With so many brands of shoes, I don't even know where to begin. My coworkers swear by danskos, but the pair I tried on seemed to be tight and uncomfortable. Any suggestions?

It's so funny..I've given 99% of these meds. LOL

Thanks everyone. I'm sooo glad to know that I'm not the only one having this problem. I'm going to work on my assertiveness...I can't take this crap anymore.

Sooo...drop some knowledge! What are some tidbits, tricks, secrets, and just-so-you-knows of nursing that you did not learn in nursing school. I was not taught about the sternal rub...my co-workers could not believe that. I did not know you cannot give marinol in the morning (pharmacist told me that today) Having a brain fart...please share yours:)

I have only been a nurse for a few months, and to be honest my emotions are up and down. Every once in a while I have those "Why did I become a nurse?" days. These are the days we are severely understaffed, I have family members and patients being absurd, my feet and back hurt, and I feel as if nursing school taught me nothing. Then, there are those "I was born to do this" days, like today! Those days that I walk into a room and a completely confused patient who has flipped on everyone else recognizes my face and says "There you are, *$%$#! Where have you been?" Or I realize that I learned alot more in nursing school than I thought. When I realize that maybe my nursing judgement really isn't so bad. Or even when the CNAs that I work with approach me and hug me and say they are glad that I am working the hall with them. It's the little things... I stress alot, but in a sick, twisted kind of way, I love the high that I get from nursing. I really cannot explain it. It gives me purpose.

I am a new nurse (graduated last year), 23 y/o, and comes off as a push over. I'm the extremely friendly person who is ALWAYS smiling, and you would probably poop a brick if you ever heard me raise my voice. The thing is, I have a temper, I just don't show it because I have yet to master how to be angry and professional at the same time. I work with a lot of people who lack tact, and most of them are old enough to be my mother. My CNAs can be very sorry (most of them, not all) and from what I have seen, the way other nurses get them to do their job is by, pretty much, getting ugly. I don't feel that is professional, but when I approach them in a professional manner, no one takes "the little girl" seriously. The administrative staff does not support the nurses at all; the CNAs run the facility. I don't know if I am asking for advice or just venting....I guess I am venting...thanks for listening.:)

Thanks for your replies, everyone.

Are there any tricks for securing duragesic patches on pts who perspire excessively, or so that they will not get lost after showering, etc? Being that they are narcotics, they freak me out when they go missing. I have secured them with tape, but I have heard that this isn't supposed to be done....? This does seem to help, but this has become a pain in my rear. I hate when they go missing.

I am a new LPN (just graduated July 2009) who just got accepted into an RN program, and I look forward to forwarding my education. Now, I feel overwhelmed and excited about exploring different avenues in the field. Please, share what your specialty is, why you chose it, and why you love (or maybe even don't love) it. Thanks in advance!

I would like to know, as well.