gustercc

i am and ex-medic who let his cert. expire. When I graduated from nursing school i wanted to get my cert back. They said, I could get licensure only if I had my BSN. Otherwise I'd have to take a paramedic class, then challenge the state board. I live in texas too. Try to contact the state office in austin. there's also an official texas EMS website that will have the guidelines. Some may not be clear, so don't hesitate to call the state office. lemme know if you find out any different because I would like to re-instate my medic cert. cheers, richard

YEAH dude, what everyone is saying is right. Working in a prison, do you fear retaliation from co-workers afterward? I can completely understand that. No one likes a stoolie. Guards can be like cops, tight, like a brotherhood. The rest of the faculty can have the same mentality being that most of them started off as guards too. So what do you do? My advice, Get a lawyer, sue'em, quit your job if you even smell retaliation, laugh all the way to the bank, find a new job. I hate to trivialize it in such a way. But I'm just considering the possibilities. I really hope it doesn't come to that. Good luck bud, gustercc

Hey BUBBA, NOT a nursing student. thank you very much. Student of life: always. And I, like you, have questioned some of the train of thought that some vet nurses bring to the table. Personally, if you come into the room with the "It's done all the time, It doesn't hurt anyone (in my opinion), and no one is watching, so none of the other rules of life apply, only what I decide is right . I can do anything I deem necessary for me because I can get away with it." mentality, then yes you deserve to get a swift kick in the butt. But if you approach the opportunity with composure, and realize that you are very fortunate enough to the have the chance, you may walk away with a greater appreciation of it. Like I said, I know it seems wrong, but not everyone approaches it with a "hey this is gonna be fun attitude"!! Think about everyone you've ever lost. Grandma, grampa, sister, Momma, daddy, etc......Chances are they've met or experienced what some may call "desecration." You all know what I'm talking about. The crude jokes during a code, the off color comments when dressing a body, the "damn she's heavy!" comments when your helping transfer a body from the stretcher to the funeral homes gurney. If you've never experienced it, WOW, tell me what hospital you work for, only so I can send all these other nurses who would "never allow such practices" to go an work there. cheers, gustercc

Blah blah blah, everyone here has their own agenda as to why this is ethical or that is unethical. In nursing, we are blessed with the ability to go into a WIDE variety of specialties. Be it, L&D, Forensic, or Research. The need for someone to practice so that others may benefit is there people. It has always happened and always will happen. Regardless of your personal beliefs and personal morals. I know the idea of attempting to intubate a baby seems very wrong, but think about the otherwise. What if your child died because a paramedic couldn't get the intubation because he'd never had the opportunity to attempt it? Medicine started out this way, we just never talk about it. You know, I know, and now everyone else knows it. Would I want it done to my two-month old? Probably not. I would probably not want to be told about it either. If you wanna preach ethics, tell it to the mountain. Our profession has tons of questionable practices that are done because they can be done, not necessarily because they should be done. (ex: genetic modification or "Hey New Grad, wanna practice starting IV's on this tubed and sedated pt.?" --- I know who you guilty ones are!!!) I'm sure if you asked a group of med students what they thought, you might get a different answer. I hope this provokes some thought and intelligent HEALTHY debate. cheers, gustercc p.s. keep your bible chatter at bay

I have heard this several times from a couple of well "seasoned" nurses. They were referring to a pt. who made no bones about being lesbian. She was critically ill and eventually ended up coding due to a AAA. Well a couple of the nurses said that she should have been tested for HIV. "Well, she's gay,that might be why she was so sick" Gimmie a friggin break!!!!! I've heard them say this about more than one lesbian pt. Another pet peeve is when family demand a pad and pen so a patient who is vented and off diprivan for a neuro check, can "write." They then bring me the paper with this ineligible scratching and ask "I can't understand this. Can you make this out?" I have had to hold my tounge numerous times because I want to yell out, "Oh my God! He was the second gunman on the grassy knoll!!!" I no longer do nuero checks with family in the room. I really hate it when people make lists of their pet peeves too. heeh heee

First off, Alpha 13, is unprofessional Second, unless you did anything that resulted in seriously harming a pt. this nurse had no right to do that to you in front of others. As far as her being "bi-polar", don't fall into the "he said, she said" crap. Esp. if your a student. Take it as a lesson learned. Glad that you went to the nurse manager. Give yourself a pat on the back for standing up to her. Be sure and tell your nursing instructor that you no longer want to be taking care of any of her pt's. If she asks why, you can a) tell her the situation and what happened, or b) tell her you don't feel comfortable with this nurse because her nursing style interferes with your learning. The worst part of it is : she won't be the last person you ever encounter in health care like this. One way to deal with them when they freak out is to subtely point out their unprofessional behavior. Whenever I've encountered someone like that, I always say with a quiet surprised voice "I really didn't mean to make you sooo upset. Your reaction says alot." keep your chin up, it's almost over. --Richard

I used to work in the service industry (you can semantically argue, I still do) and some places went out of business because bad customer service. But has anyone ever heard of a hospital going out of business because of bad customer service. Other than the obvious: high mortality rate, poor physician ratings....etc.... I say: let them eat cake. I work in the CCU and won't let anyone get in the way of proper patient care. Family or not. It has alot to do with finesse and POV. --cheers

I was at a wedding shower and the host's mother came up to me and asked me what I did for a living. I told her "I'm a Registered Nurse." Honest to God she said "OOOH, Like Fokker!!" I was dumbstruck and told her as dryly as I could "...yes exactly like fokker.." she replied "so your a male nurse" I told her "I like the name 'murse'. " twit.haha cheers, rich