terri0318rn

I had a patient just the other day who had an inulin regimen at HS. I worked 2 nights in a row and this lady had a 26 BS one night and a 29 the next morning after adjustments having been made to her regimen. I am at a new job and am still technically in orientation but I had never had a patient with that low of a BS before. Good thing I had a preceptor......blessing in disguise. I had never had to get Dextrose before and would not have known the protocol. SO, I had the preceptor the 1st night, the 2nd I was on my own......Hello pharmacist and hello moonlighter physcian. I found out that you sometimes have to act first act and get the Dextrose and call for the physician to ign the order after the fact. My adrenaline was surely at its peak that morning!:imbar WOW. I think most medication errors I have read about here have to do with insulin. there has to be something we can all do to eliminate the errors, which will continue no matter what we do........we are human first

I whole heartedly agree with this response....You must forgive yourself. I know you feel the guilt. My mother passed away last year from what I call Chemotherapy Overdose. She lived 2 and 1/2 hours north of me and I could not be with her as much as I would have liked. I didn't have a good connection with her onologist. By the time I took charge, it was too late. I had been a nurse for one year on an oncology floor and knew my stuff. But now, my best friend, one of the most intelligent people I will ever now, the most generous and compassionate people, My Mother is now with God. I feel the guilt for her loss. I feel like I should have done more......but there are doctors who are supposed to know what they are doing. And other nurses who are supposed to have been her advocate. She is the reason I am the nurse I am today. (thank you mom) I know in my heart that it is not my fault............Please for give yourself. I know it is not much comfort, but as my mother would say, things happen for a reason. Maybe you are supposed to be where you are. My heart goes out to you. Incidently, my biggest mitake was in hanging an insulin piggyback and programing it to what the pharmacist and resident told me to I didn't question it when they told me 100 when it actually should have been 10 or something like that....it has been a while, but the daughter in law of the patient was a nurse on another floor in the hospital and happened to look at the piggyback and brought it to the attention of the nurse manager.......This occured after I had left the floor to go home one night. A case of the daughter in law being educated and in the right place at the right time......I know I should have known to double check, but I had 7 patients (she was a new admit with uncontrolled blood sugars and it was 1 hour before end of shift) Write me if you [email protected] Good luck in what ever you do........and God Bless you:nurse: Terri

GO TIGERS! What fun we will have if they win the penant and bring the series home......I can't wait:) Good luck Alan Trammel. We should get a group of diehard Tiger fan nurses together and root the Tigers on together at a game some night:rotfl: Anyone interested???????????????????????

I have worked Operating Room as scrub and liked it, worked on oncology/med-surge unit, loved it although not a lot of supportive coworkers due to being busy, busy, busy....Homecare Nurse case manager, absolutely loved it and am wondering how you go about getting a job as a workers comp nurse. You may reply at my personal [email protected]

Most hospitals in the Detroit area start off new grads at $20something. 21 is pretty high and I have found out that it is 21.00 as a new hire no matter what your experience is at most of the hospitals unless it is union. I started at NOMC at 22.26 with 4.00 differential for nights and 3.00 more for weekends. This is the best pay I foud while interviewing for a new position within the last month. :)

You are definitely not alone.....I shut off at 75 and I was sure I failed too. I literally fell of my chair when I saw a license # next to my name on the website....it took 10 days of checking the website every day like a fanatic....I cried uncontrollably in happiness when I found out. It was the hardest test for me too.....I got a lot of priority questions 2 yrs ago and I hear that the boards have changed and have a lot more now....You could definitely tell when level 4 and 5 questions were coming. If you missed one you went to an easier one and if you got that right it got hard again. It must have just taken 88 questions to determine at what point you had 51 percent correct according to what an entry level nurse should know. (I also found that there were a lot of 2 answers were right questions) I have heard a lot of people say stuff about the last question being "the one" and if you got it right you passed. I don';t hardly think this can really be the case based on how randomly the computers shut off. I have also heard that anyone who got only 75 questions passed too but a friend of mine got 76 and failed 3 times!!!!!!!!!!:imbar There are some that have said that they got the whole kit and kabuddle and some passed and some failed (the vice-president and valedictorian of my class failed with the whole kit and kabuddle. I was told that it depends on what test was downloaded randomly to your computer gets the whole damn thing. Let me know how you did....([email protected]) Cheers!

You are definitely not alone.....I shut off at 75 and I was sure I failed too. I literally fell of my chair when I saw a license # next to my name on the website....it took 10 days of checking the website every day like a fanatic....I cried uncontrollably in happiness when I found out. It was the hardest test for me too.....I got a lot of priority questions 2 yrs ago and I hear that the boards have changed and have a lot more now....You could definitely tell when level 4 and 5 questions were coming. If you missed one you went to an easier one and if you got that right it got hard again. It must have just taken 88 questions to determine at what point you had 51 percent correct according to what an entry level nurse should know. (I also found that there were a lot of 2 answers were right questions) I have heard a lot of people say stuff about the last question being "the one" and if you got it right you passed. I don';t hardly think this can really be the case based on how randomly the computers shut off. I have also heard that anyone who got only 75 questions passed too but a friend of mine got 76 and failed 3 times!!!!!!!!!!:imbar There are some that have said that they got the whole kit and kabuddle and some passed and some failed (the vice-president and valedictorian of my class failed with the whole kit and kabuddle. I was told that it depends on what test was downloaded randomly to your computer gets the whole damn thing. Let me know how you did....([email protected]) Cheers!

I believe the back stabbing, holier than Thou has got to be the worst.....And if you have a good sense of self confidence and you make others look bad you become a target for the stabbing. It is nice to have a "friend" on your unit to count on because it is really true what they say "nurses eat their young!" I would never have believed it before I got my license, but I have seen it firsthand. I encounter nursing students now and I enjoy passing on my prior nursing and nursing school experiences. I would rather be a mentor than treat students a nurses treated me as a student.......Nurses should appreciate an up and coming new nurse, not ask "why would you want to be a nurse" Just because older nurses were put through hell doesn't mean they have to put you through it. Also, it took a long time to complete nursing school, but I love my profession and my job. (it is all what you make it) And failing a class does not a bad nurse make......I am a good nurse and have been told by other nurses that they too failed a class and it is nothing to be embarassed about. (too bad I didn't know that when it happened to me) Smart nurses that like to prove they are smart and let you know they were the top of their class is also a poor part of the nursing profession ENJOY LIFE, ENJOY NURSING AND NEVER FORGET WHERE YOU CAME FROM and remember for me A NURSE WITHOUT A SENSE OF HUMOR NEEDS TO FIND A NEW JOB:chuckle

heartburn does not constitute and allergy to ativan anymore than nausea and dizziness constitutes allergy to vicodin!!!!!!! these are side effects. yes you should have checked for allergies, which you would have seen on a wristband if your facility has such a thing and if someone was on the ball and put one on him. yes you made a mistake and discovered it, so learn from it. patients need to be educated on the difference between side effects and allergies to meds!

I cannot believe that you are not able to get passed the mistake you made, although you are human first not second. There is a reason why there policies are in place (although we all know it isn't anyone with medical knowledge who writes them) And you are not the first to make a mistake....I know there have been worse errors than the one you made. I am not a mathamatician and syringes are not universal (not even insulin ones) I have seccond guessed myself and my calculations too many times to count and could have made a fatal error too. (some hospitals have ready doses and no calculation required which makes us all lazy and then you go to a hospital where you have to do it because the place is not as advanced technologically as others) I certainly know and can identify with your thinking but one day you will realize that nursing had to be a calling for you not simply an experiment in ability. You spent too much time in school (as did all of us) to give up. There are also too many other opions a a nurse than just a medical floor. Find another arena to practice nursing. Forgive yourself:crying2: you owe it to yourself and remember, you did what you could to rectify the situation. No one would blame you.....others have done worse, trust me....and have done nothing about it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am responding to you not only as a nurse but as a woman and mother of a 7 yr old, although my child is a male. Girl or boy, if the child feels uncomfortable they feels uncomfortable, plain and simple. Also, if they don't want to talk about it it may be that simple because 7 yr olds are beginning to express themselves and make decisions for themselves. It could be because they are intuitive and are tired of hearing about the issue and don't want to "go there" anymore. But there has to be a time to discuss it. My son says that and I insist that it is time to talk about it....because I say so and I am the mother. I think it is easier when you get down on a 7 yr olds level and think like a 7 yr old for a while. You don't have to make the child feel uncomfortable, bring up the topic casually and make it sound like it has nothing to do with her..You might start off by saying "you are getting to be such a big girl. you know, when I was your age...." and use examples of how you were so indepentdent and never needed help with certain things. Maybe this is the time to talk about how a girls body changes as she starts to mature and how important modesty and privacy is. Talk about how noone but you or the doctor should never see her with her clothes off as she grows up. At 7 she should probably be able to bathe herself as I am sure you have tried to instill independence. My son likes to lock the bathroom door now (although I advocate against it). I have told my son that it is HIS body and no one but him has the "right" to see him without reason (and as a mother I always have a reason because if he turns up with bruises or scratches I want to know where they came from.....maybe he has had an altercation at school and I look stupid if his dad should ask what happened and I cannot provide an adequate explanation) I too was abused as a child, physically, emothionally and sexually and my first thought was ofcourse molestation on the fathers part (because I have been there and victims of abuse always see that first) I would like to give the father the benefit of the doubt here and think that he just has fatherly concern for cleanliness, however a 7 yr old should certainly be able to wash themselves. She should have been taught by now how to adjust the water for a bath on her own, however not all showers or bathtubs are universal in the temperature of water and I wouldn't want a child to get burned while doing it. I turn on the water for my son before he gets into the tub or shower and then have him call on me when he is done. I will help him dry off, but I don't touch his private parts (I have told him noone but the doctor and himself should be touching him there now unless he has indicated a problem and then I might pay more attention) We observe and promote modesty in our home, but we do not shun nudity as if it were tabu. Certainly the insistance of the father to assist in bathing raises a red flag, however it may be innocent and he may not have considered that you may suspect abuse. As for bathing as an issue......I have discussed the reason why my son needs a bath daily with him and he tries to argue that he doesn't feel like it every day (exibiting independence). I have told him that a shower helps wake me up in the morning, as well as rid pillow head hair. I personnally shower daily as a personal preference. (some nationalities have different types and don't partake in this and that is all well and good) I have told my son that as long as there is a shower available he should take advantage of it because there are others who are not forturnate enough to have that luxury and then we discuss the homeless. The arguing stops there and he then complies with my wishes. I hope that I have conveyed the non biased response I intended without being condesending to you. You have the right as a mother if nothing else to express your view to the father about bathing. I do not think you should have had to resort to a physicians letter uness there is truly a medical issue and concern for her skin care. Certainly if abuse was in question I would have gone to the authorities and had an investigation launched. The letter sounds to me though like a deterant from the bathing issue instead of going with your instincts. The letter was an easier way out than the accusation. I was in law enforcement before nursing and also have a degree in psychology so I would like to think I have examined all the angles. Please respond by private email if you like, I would like to hear if the issue has actually been resolved and what you did (after the intervene from the physician with the letter) [Nurse2be]Dear All, I appreciate everyone's input. I have gotten a letter from my doctor, and if the showers do not cease at this next visitation, then we will be going back to court. Thanks everyone, I appreciate you all. Sincerely, Emily

I am happy for you....where and when is the party? Have fun....Too many don't take that leap for what they went into nursing for. And to them I say:rotfl: . I love nursing, I am just sorry I didn't persue it sooner than I did....I stayed in a job for the money! SHame on me. Good luck in your baby world...... Terri

I agree with the ban...We had one guy with cancer ajust had to have a smoke and one day out in the smoing area he collapsed and someone called a code! The guy had doctors coming to the floor to see him all the time and where was he? out smoking. Our hospital offered the patch and he said to "go to ----" I don't know if he is still alive, but he left the hospital AMA one day......oh, well. I am not or have ever been a smoker, but I agree with you all who have responded complaining of the rank smell. Smokers don't realize or don't want to know how bad they really smell and how offensive it is.

When I was in nursing school all my instructors seemed like Hitlers aids...I had previously attended Police Academy and I called Nursing school Nursing Academy. It is the same principle, break you down and build you they way they want you! A friend of mine used to have confrontations with the instructor and thought she was going to fail at evaluation time. She actually got praised and was told that her attitude looked good and showed that she would not have a problem with arrogant doctors one day! Have you ever heard the exprossion "nurses eat their young"? Instructors also apply. They were put through the crap and feel so should you as a student. Take it all in stride and you too will persevere:p You will be better for it too if you stick to it. You will look back on it, as do I and feel so good about yourself and your decision. I think all of us will agree, there is not an easy nuring school out there, if there was, I would hate to see what kind of nurse they are! Keep your chin up and keep smiling, make that instructor wonder.....a nurse without a sense of humor needs to find a new job!:) Terri

What other bodily substances does this physician advocate for immunity?