IamVickiRN

"Maybe nurses are not all interchangeable as administrations sometimes like to think." Shout it louder for the folks in the back!! It is not true that "A nurse is a nurse is a nurse".

I have just the opposite problem! I work in a clinic that the patients think is an ER! They come in to us for chest pain, stroke symptoms, etc and get MAD when we tell them we are calling an ambulance to take them to the ER! Its unreal the things we have walk in on a daily basis! I feel your frustration!

I don't know if it was ADM? Maybe they meant ADN? Thats Associates Degree in Nursing as opposed to a diploma nurse or BSN? Just a guess... I don't have any other ideas. Vicki

All I want is a refill on my Xanax and Vicodin, why do I have to see the doctor for that?? Can't you just call them in for me?? I hear that at least 5 times a day in my clinic!

Hi everyone. I work in an income based clinic where 90% of our clients are no isurance/under insured. I have a case with a client that has cellulitis on her leg and desperately needs unna boots but can't afford them. I used to work in the VA where I am used to having everything that my heart desired for treatment options, but now I work with the bare minimum of supplies. I know unna boots are calamine lotion impregnated gauze; (with some other goodies, I know...) so I'm wondering if I were to soak guaze in calamine lotion and apply them in the same manner if she would get any benefit from this? Anyone have any ideas on this? Vicki

Thats funny, I've always said we put the FUN in dysfunctional. Maybe it really is more the FUNK!! I can relate to your post immensely. My mom would take healthcare advice from dog if he could talk before she would listen to me. Fortunately for me, (and her!) I have a really good report with her doctor and he will listen to what I tell him about s/s of whatever her illness is and go from there. He lets her talk, then I fill in the blanks. Its kinda fun because we can use more jargon and she doesn't really catch what we are saying. It frustrates me to no end that she can't/won't believe me when *I* tell her something, but you can bet your bottom dollar if the neighbor says "Hey, I had that, you need this" she is all over it!! Moms.... can't live with 'em, can't kill 'em!! lol

Hey, Just curious, how does licensing work with travel nurses? You still have to be licensed in any state you work unless its a VA, right? Vicki

ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS ask for help! Any nurse you are working with should understand that school does not teach you all the things you need to know. I went through a very similar situation, I graduated LPN in May, started at a LTCF with the promise of orientation, etc. Brand new nurse, straight out of school. I got about 4 hours of orientation on day shift, then they decided I was "Good to go". I was brought in on nites and dumped. I had 35 residents, one aide and NO clue!! I asked so many questions I thought that they would lynch me. Fortunately for me, there were about 3 nurses that were just above and beyond excellant and made it a point to help me out, would come get me when they were doing a tx or something interesting, just so I could see it, etc. Had it not been for them I would have left lickety-split! If you are having difficulty getting the help you need, you owe it your patients and to yourself to pursue other options. Good luck to you!

Too funny!!

SMOKING! My mothers' best lines... 1. Smoking after a lung resection: "Please God, don't let it be cancer, if its not cancer I'll stop smoking!" DX: Histoplasmosis. "Well I've smoked all these years and its not cancer, the cigs must not be as bad as they say" 2. Could you bump up my O2 a little bit? I'm short of breath. (H*LL yes you are short of breath, you just smoked a freakin pack of cigarettes!!) 3. I wish I could stop coughing so much. (STOP SMOKING!!) 4. Why don't you come and visit more often? (Because the cigarette smoke is so thick I can't see you when I'm there, might as well just call and save MY lungs!!!) 5. I wonder why the grandkids (that live with said smokers) always have ear infections, bronchitis, asthma attacks? (Because you smoke like a freight train!) My all time favorite is "You complain about the smoking now, it never bothered you when you lived at home". DUH--my lungs had never had a breath of fresh air... I've not lived there for 20 years!! *I* don't smoke!! YES!! It bothers me!

Title: LPN LTC, First job out of school: $20.50/hr Indiana

You will have to be fingerprinted and backgrounded in IL. They are real buggers from what I understand. I am licensed in Indiana because I live here, but since I live on the state line, I am considering getting my IL license so I have more freedom in picking a job. I was told that it would have been easier for me to get my IL license initially and then apply for reciprocity in Indiana. I will graduate (good Lord willing and the creek don't rise, lol) in May with my RN, and I am going to do the Illinois license first.

LOL, ain't that the truth!!

So my day in clinical sorta sucked. My patient is actively dying. My care consisted of comfort measures; more so for the family than for him. He was an interesting learning experience. I got to do a few things that I had not done before so that was cool. Initially his wife was the only family there and I had some time to chat with her while I did my assessment. Family members can be a great source of information. She doted on him while I did my thing. She wrote down everything I wrote down, asked questions and dried her tears. They will (hopefully, but more doubtfully) have their 59th anniversary in January. I tried to offer her comfort the best I could while staying professionally detached. When it came time to give him his morning bath she said she would go for a walk and get some air, "I know you will take good care of him. I can tell" is what she said to me. As she left the nurse that normally would have cared for this patient asked if she was ok, why was she leaving the room? Apparently she normally stayed pretty close. She told her that she knew he would be ok and taken care of and that she felt at peace with me there. I went about my task of bathing and caring for my patient, and although he was totally unresponsive, I talked to him as if he could hear me. By the time his wife had gotten back to the room I was getting ready to shave him. She started crying. She said that her husband would never have let his whiskers get so bad and he would appreciate the shave. Keep in mind that *I* am not a professional face shaver, but I gave it my all today!! He had baby butt smooth cheeks when I got done with him. Again, she cried. We talked of how handsome he is and what a looker he was in his younger days. Then she asked me if I thought she was doing the right thing by letting him go. How do you answer that? These are people I have never met before. I told her that I had read his chart, I knew his diagnoses and situation but I didn't think I could tell her professionally if her decisions were correct. I told her only her heart could make that decision. Shortly after we had this conversation her daughter came in. Her first comment was "Somebody shaved Dad!" I left the room with a lump in my throat. I spent a lot of time back and forth, in and out of the room, gave lots of hugs, held hands with total strangers, and did what ever I could to try to make everyone more comfortable. After lunch I was going to discharge my patient to the nursing home to Hospice care for his final hours/days. Once all was said and done, Medix had arrived to transport my patient to the nursing home, I was helping the wife and daughter get the last of the belongings from the room. That's when she said it to me. His daughter came to me, put her arms around me and said Thank you, and I'm sorry about your dad, too. I never once mentioned my dad all day. She saw the tears in my eyes and said "either you've lost your dad, or he is sick, because only another daughter that's been through this would have done the things for us that you have done today." All I did was shave his face and care. Just the things that I wanted from the nurses when my dad was dying. It's been a long day, way more emotional that I would have expected, and just one more reminder of why I wanted to be a nurse. Sometimes even when you don't realize you need it, you get a reality check and things become so much more clear!