mikeworksRN

How to read, yes, I'm looking at how to do. Run the test equipment, where to place the leads, etc.

Hear me out. I recall reading about someone who learned how to build a windmill from a Youtube video and with scraps and determination, brought electricity to his home in Africa (William Kamkwamba on TED talk). So why can't I learn 12 lead EKG from the same source? Does this exist or do I just find something nearby and dig into the piggy bank?

Boundaries may be exactly the thing. Without outing myself I'll say it was a difficult discharge of a very anxious patient that the CM gave a line of BS to so she could leave for the weekend, leaving the patient and her extreme anxiety in the hands of nursing. I handled it but it was much outside of my scope of practice. I don't know why I haven't made the connection before. And now I have my new answer. Thanks everyone.

Every time I'm interviewed for a new job they hit me with the tired cliched phrase "tell me how you've gone above and beyond." I do have an answer but it's so "above and beyond" that it may be too much for them as I always see the hiring managers staring at me with a "wat" look. When the Employee of the Month is posted at work it's always about going "above etc" but truthfully I read the entry and it's well, doing your job. So what is really, above and beyond? I care for my patients, listen to their concerns, pick up trash all over the hallways as well as the patient rooms, bathe and provide oral care to my patients because, well, I can't trust it to be done otherwise. But that's average nursing. So what's your answer to the cliche, how would you tell the hiring managers that you're above and beyond the rest?

Family choice, and as we all know, patients and families make ridiculous requests all the time. Your recourse is to accept these people are going to say silly, annoying, and outright insulting things throughout your nursing career. Rarely anymore do I meet actual nice people who are unfortunately ill and appreciative of their care. I'm a white male nurse. What I've come up against most often is the family who wants a female nurse or a Spanish nurse because mama would feel more at ease. They miss out on very good nursing care from yours truly though, as they come out of the room repeatedly asking me where their nurse is. Well she's either visiting her friends in the other unit or having the potluck. Not gloating, but obviously there will be ageism, sexism, racism, any other -ism. You gotta let go of society's pinpricks and accept patients and families are by and large very maladjusted people who only see themselves. If nursing is better than that then I haven't really seen it.

Agree with the other posters- don't waste any more energy on this- we've all been fired for nothing at some time, also, get a penlight for night shift work. I always used a little mag light from Walmart, maybe about 7 bucks, comes with a nifty holster too. You need to see but you don't need to blast those overhead lights unless there's an issue. Some nurses have a little light they clip to their lapels. I actually got pretty good at working using only the ambient light from the hallway, until I had to spread cream over my patient's back rash, it was due at midnight. Nice patient, always accepted the treatment. I only figured out I was spreading toothpaste over his back when it started to smell of mint in the room. I did seem like that cream was a little thicker this time. So too much light is bad, too little is mistakes.

Agree with the post by Kooky Korky. This is the era when Big Brother became a stark reality. Stupid shirt, yes. But this individual has a right to his own opinions no matter if the general populace or the members of this website agree with them. And as such, he was not there as a representative of nursing nor his employer, he was exercising his right to vote and should have been allowed to do so unencumbered. The legality of the photo is also in question, as the Washington Post notes: In Tennessee, taking photos or videos in a polling location is against the law. So it was the person who took the photo who broke the law. Also, it should be noted that Tennessee is an "at will" employment state but since this person was voting when the decision to fire him was made, it will be interesting to see how this progresses.

If I interviewed you and you told me you were going to work 2 FT jobs, I wouldn't hire you. Most of the people I have hired can't handle 2 part time jobs. They either can't keep the days straight and don't show up, or they get sick a lot, or they call all the time trying to get the shift off. Read the posters on this board, geez they can't take 3 days, half of them, it's too much stress, too much drama. checkout clerk, sure, you can do 72 hours a week. This is way different. So long story short, if they didn't ask if you were going to quit the other job, it isn't implied. They just expect that you're not going to kill yourself. Although you do have noble blood for wanting to exact this on yourself. I wish you well, whatever you decide.

PWT = Poor White Trash.

I'm not reading these long posts but I'll respond to the headline. My nursing instructor said nursing was not for me, as well. Then I became a nurse. A good one. One who patients liked. Now, years later, I know who was not right for what- the instructor wasn't right for teaching. Some of those nursing instructors are just bad at what they do, and they're poor people persons, and they like to put down anxious students who are really trying hard. You're studying to be a nurse. Not a nursing student. Forget the school photos, the pinning ceremonies, the junk that has nothing to do with your studies. Especially the teacher put-downs. Get through school and don't look back.

Hi all. I had to place a patient from the ER with a low blood sugar, hypothermic with a temperature of 91 to a medsurg tele floor. I gave the nurse a Bair Hugger, however, the nurse didn't want to take the patient, felt the temperature was too low, so he went to a different unit with the same nurse-patient ratio. Patient was alert, was it wrong to try to place that on a MS-Tele floor?

I came to say exactly what the OP already said. 3 days a week I lift weights, and 2-3 days I do 20 minutes of yoga, and I watch the body mechanics, and I'm old, and I have never had a back problem. However, I have given up trying to lift obese patients from the floor, when their arms go limp and they refuse to help themselves. It's all about getting more help in some situations.

MRSA of the wound, the leg was amputated, so is the patient still in isolation? The wound is not there anymore. I'm pondering over this.

I didn't want to quote the whole thing. But I do need to save this reply, print it, and post it on my bulletin board. I work the floor. This is exactly what it's like. Damn it I think I love you.