ErinS

ErinS BSN, RN

Hospice

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All Content by ErinS

  1. Frequency of visits

    ErinS replied to Tom Maxwell, RN's topic in Hospice, Palliative

    We generally do daily SN visits on someone who is actively dying, however sometimes a pt is actively dying very slowly and is well managed, and their family is coping well. In these cases I will do 3...

  2. Good deaths versus bad

    ErinS replied to missingmydad's topic in Hospice, Palliative

    I have done this job for two and a half years, and in that length of time i have only ever had a handful of patients report 'scary' deathbed visions or hallucinations, all of which were easily...

  3. When should hospice discussion begin?

    ErinS replied to bsnanat2's topic in Hospice, Palliative

    Remember the death panels everyone panicked about? The panic was that doctors would have incentive to discuss end of life decisions. In my opinion, that is when end of life discussions should start-...

  4. Getting into hospice nursing

    ErinS replied to mlisk589's topic in Hospice, Palliative

    There are a few differences between palliative and hospice care. Palliative care in the home is currently funded under home health, although I suspect this will change in the next few years. Home...

  5. question about accreditation

    ErinS replied to jewelee71's topic in General Nursing

    I go to a school called Weber State University which has on online RN to BSN program. They are very affordable, even for out of state students (it is in Utah). Also, the previous poster was right,...

  6. Steps in bladder training of a patient on foley catheter

    ErinS replied to jlsr's topic in General Nursing

    I guess I could be wrong, but my experience is this: take catheter out. Take pt to the bathroom every 2 hours. Bladder scan if pt has not voided in 6 hours. Call md if pt has not voided and has a...

  7. Getting into hospice nursing

    ErinS replied to mlisk589's topic in Hospice, Palliative

    I work in hospice, but I also work closely with our local hospital's palliative care program. Hospice and palliative care are very different, and I do not think I would like palliative nearly as much...

  8. Has there been a legislative change?

    ErinS replied to Guest03/15/15's topic in Activism, Healthcare

    I think that hospitals time some hiring for the end of the semester (lots of new students who need to move into new positions). I was just looking at jobs in my area and there seems to be about 30%...

  9. Not Happy with Nursing~ Advice Please

    ErinS replied to Delag5's topic in General Nursing

    You may want to try hospice. Although my days are hectic and we are understaffed, when I am with my patient, I am only with them. They have my total attention and whether it is 20 minutes or 90, I...

  10. How do you do it

    ErinS replied to sweetnurse63's topic in General Nursing

    Hospice is a great field, but I think the idea of the 'soft-spoken, gentle' hospice nurse leads to lots of hospice nurse burnout. I work in hospice and it is a tough job and it takes a tough person...

  11. How much morphine is too much??

    ErinS replied to b eyes's topic in Emergency

    A lovely thing about pain and pain meds: pain is a natural opioid antagonist. I agree with previous posters- if they had a problem, they need to speak with the ordering MD. I work in hospice, so it...

  12. heamoglobin of 6 and pt got iron only

    ErinS replied to PRETTYODD's topic in General Nursing

    Maybe he has decided to limit medical interventions. I have pt's on hospice who get blood, and some who choose not to get blood because they feel it is not worth the risks. Also, I once had a...

  13. Am I off my rocker?

    ErinS replied to imtommy's topic in General Nursing

    When I went to nursing school, we could get an ASN or AAS degree. The AAS degree at my school had one less math and english class. If you go on for your BSN you will have to catch up on those...

  14. What would you do if you could not practice as a registered nurse?

    ErinS replied to Pia L.'s topic in General Nursing

    If someone offered me a garden nursery for cheap, I would quit nursing in a heartbeat and spend my days with plants and dirt. I imagine that would last about 6 months, and then I would really miss...

  15. Weirdest nursing thing you've done in "real life"?

    ErinS replied to mama_d's topic in Nursing Humor

    My grandma talks to me in detail about her poop. And I don't even care. I actually encourage it (trying to keep her regular)...She's actually not even my grandma- she's my husbands. The family also...

  16. Favorite bumper stickers

    ErinS replied to beachmom's topic in Nursing Humor

    Not nursing related: Democrats treat dogs like people, republicans treat people like dogs. It gave me a chuckle while driving around in super-conservative

  17. RN's...in demand if willing to relocate?

    ErinS replied to pat8585's topic in Diploma, ADN, BSN

    Utah's RN job market is okay, but not for new grads looking for hospital work. If you are willing to work in a SNF, the job market is

  18. Do you hospice nurses attend funerals of patients?

    ErinS replied to Butterfly0328's topic in Hospice, Palliative

    I encourage you to ask. Although I personally I have never attended a pt's funeral (I am a visual reminder of the dying process, and I believe funerals should be a celebration of a persons life), I...

  19. Intubation and Sedation

    ErinS replied to shannonFNP's topic in Emergency

    As a hospice nurse with almost know knowledge of the intubation procedure, I have had patients who can remember being intubated and paralyzed and TERRIFIED. To me, it is never okay for a patient to...

  20. Caseload for a Full time Case Manager

    ErinS replied to jyhn's topic in Hospice, Palliative

    We average 12-18 pt's per full time case manager. We are paid per visit, $43/visit. Travel time is kind of taken into consideration- we split our area into thirds, so we are limited in how much...

  21. Thinking about working as a hospice nurse...

    ErinS replied to nurse678's topic in Hospice, Palliative

    I do not work in an inpatient hospice, but I can speak to community hospice nursing. I am not sure how different it is, but my job is stressful, probably the most stressful nursing job I have ever...

  22. is a teaching hospital better experience than a nonteaching hospital?

    ErinS replied to ninaricci's topic in General Nursing

    I have only had experience with one teaching hospital, and it was after I had a year experience. I think it would be very difficult to start working in a teaching hospital without a lot of...

  23. Things that patients say that make me smile!

    ErinS replied to ninaricci's topic in General Nursing

    A hospice patient of mine fell and went to the ER for stitches today. I visited him there and asked how he fell. He lives in a care center and has some dementia. He told me he fell off his

  24. Tell me about your continuous infusions

    ErinS posted a topic in Hospice, Palliative

    What kind of medications do you commonly use and what route? (We use morphine and versed-as an anxiolytic, not for sedation and give it subQ). How do you titrate your infusions? Do you have...

  25. hospice home health or hospital med surg?

    ErinS replied to ninaricci's topic in General Nursing

    My work hours are 8-5 M-F. I work in hospice. I average closer to 50 hours a week than 40. And this seems to be fairly standard across the board, particularly with a census of 20. I case manage...