TorsadesDePointesRN

TorsadesDePointesRN

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All Content by TorsadesDePointesRN

  1. First Shift -- is this exhaustion normal?

    TorsadesDePointesRN replied to cogath's topic in General Nursing

    It's been a year and a half for me doing 3 12s back to back and it still kicks my a$$ after every shift. I plan

  2. Is this the wrong field for me?

    TorsadesDePointesRN replied to CW1978's topic in General Nursing

    I have found the majority of patients in the cardiac population to be grateful and overall pleasant human beings. There's almost always at least one or two (okay, sometimes 4 out of 6 haha) in a bunch...

  3. How do you "bond" with your patients?

    TorsadesDePointesRN replied to winter_green's topic in Ob/Gyn

    I tell them funny stories, ask them how they are feeling, talk to them about their medical condition and in conversations look for teachable moments to educate them. I also try to stay a few steps...

  4. Well.. I *was* a cardiac nurse

    TorsadesDePointesRN posted a topic in General Nursing

    As of 8 weeks ago, I am a cardiac post-op AND neuro nurse. Our hospital shut down the neuroscience unit so now I am responsible for everything from pre/post CABGs (with insulin gtts, amiodarone gtts,...

  5. Should new grads always start on a med/surg floor?

    TorsadesDePointesRN replied to swaffy8's topic in General Nursing

    Show me a new grad proficient in all those things and I will be looking at a LIYAH. that's just it though.. I never set out wanting to do all those things but I set out wanting to care for patients....

  6. Hey Rn's,,do you ever wish you had done physical therapy instead?

    TorsadesDePointesRN replied to northmississippi's topic in General Students

    PT never interested me. I'd rather hand someone a sandwich after a cupful of meds and be on my merry way. *tongue firmly planted in

  7. Should new grads always start on a med/surg floor?

    TorsadesDePointesRN replied to swaffy8's topic in General Nursing

    IV starts, foley insertions, hanging IV meds (titration, checking compatibility, dilution of K when it's not a central line), analyzing ECG strips, knowing what various labs mean for each patient, how...

  8. Should new grads always start on a med/surg floor?

    TorsadesDePointesRN replied to swaffy8's topic in General Nursing

    Nursing school teaches you how to learn how to be a nurse. Working in med surg gives you a lot of valuable experience in a wide variety of areas. All of that said, as you should know from the...

  9. Well.. I *was* a cardiac nurse

    TorsadesDePointesRN replied to TorsadesDePointesRN's topic in General Nursing

    Some great points are being made.. this is very helpful, thank you

  10. Well.. I *was* a cardiac nurse

    TorsadesDePointesRN replied to TorsadesDePointesRN's topic in General Nursing

    I can't afford that kind of pay cut right now. (school nurses in my area make about 1/2 what I

  11. Well.. I *was* a cardiac nurse

    TorsadesDePointesRN replied to TorsadesDePointesRN's topic in General Nursing

    The q1hr checks are the first 4 hours after admission then q2 for i think 6 hrs.. then q4 for .. I don't know 2-3 days maybe(?) (I follow a form so I'm going by memory). We do have a safety...

  12. Nurse's aides are running the the floor.

    TorsadesDePointesRN replied to sprout2010's topic in Patient, Colleague Relations

    As a charge nurse on my floor once put it "nurses are a dime a dozen", finding someone willing to do the job of an aide- and do it well- for the amount of money they make is truly a monumental task. I...

  13. Well.. I *was* a cardiac nurse

    TorsadesDePointesRN replied to TorsadesDePointesRN's topic in General Nursing

    I have been wanting to work in hospice since nursing school.. this might be my

  14. Well.. I *was* a cardiac nurse

    TorsadesDePointesRN replied to TorsadesDePointesRN's topic in General Nursing

    Up2nogood, that is actually an awesome idea... I may have to conspire with a few other nurses and get them in on it. Administration likes their paper trail and I can't think of a better way to...

  15. Well.. I *was* a cardiac nurse

    TorsadesDePointesRN replied to TorsadesDePointesRN's topic in General Nursing

    I think legally it is 6.. but not all stroke pts. are tele, so I guess that's their loophole. I would love to leave, but I'm weekend program and I make very good money.. the job market is a disaster...

  16. Giving pts. medications to take home at discharge

    TorsadesDePointesRN posted a topic in General Nursing

    I know we are not supposed to send anyone home with their hospital insulin pens/inhalers, even though they will only be thrown away by the hospital afterward, but can anyone tell me exactly *why* we...

  17. Giving pts. medications to take home at discharge

    TorsadesDePointesRN replied to TorsadesDePointesRN's topic in General Nursing

    Ah okay.. that spells it out much more clearly. Telling patients I am prohibited by law from doing something makes the hospital sound like less of a "bad cop", too.

  18. Compassion or reality for obese patients?

    TorsadesDePointesRN replied to stefanyjoy's topic in General Nursing

    There is an incredible bias against very obese people in the hospital and it sickens me to hear otherwise perfectly reasonable, caring professionals lash out in the break room (for example) about the...

  19. CABG Care Plan

    TorsadesDePointesRN replied to Nrs. LaLa-Land's topic in Cardiac

    Check the cath site (for oozing or hematoma) and also check the pedal pulse on the cathed side. (compare L and R pulses to compare

  20. For a patient with MRSA, what do you wear into their room?

    TorsadesDePointesRN replied to Ted D's topic in General Nursing

    It depends on what I'm doing in the room. I always wear gloves but if I am not having any contact with a patient other than handing them a few pills, I don't bother gowning up. A respiratory therapist...

  21. Is there conflict of interest here? (A real RN in an ad)

    TorsadesDePointesRN posted a topic in General Nursing

    A friend owns a company and they would like to use my image in a national ad campaign for a health supplement (a fortified drink.. basically a vitamin water, nothing like red bull or anything). My...

  22. Is there conflict of interest here? (A real RN in an ad)

    TorsadesDePointesRN replied to TorsadesDePointesRN's topic in General Nursing

    I'm a little unsure because I don't know exactly what the ad is going to be like (still in planning stages).. I could be dressed as a nurse but if nowhere in the ad it SAYS I'm a nurse for real,...

  23. Is there conflict of interest here? (A real RN in an ad)

    TorsadesDePointesRN replied to TorsadesDePointesRN's topic in General Nursing

    Very good points.. the nurse angle was kind of an afterthought to using me in the campaign (I have done sporadic modeling in the past), but I was a little uneasy about it and couldn't put my finger on...

  24. Beginning my first week off orientation in cardiac step down...

    TorsadesDePointesRN replied to LordHaveMercy's topic in Cardiac

    You WILL have a scary rhythm, and when it happens, RUN (don't walk) to the patient and check to see if they are symptomatic. (Usually they feel fine). Get a fresh set of vitals, talk to a long time...

  25. Been an RN for 6 months..why do I still dread giving report?

    TorsadesDePointesRN posted a topic in General Nursing

    We use the SBAR format at my hospital and I do my best to keep the SBARs updated, but there are just some days I barely have time to pee or eat, let alone update an SBAR form. Usuallt this is not...