LocalGal

Hello, I am moving this question from "careers" to "specialty nursing". I am finishing up nursing school here and am still trying to decide which area of nursing I would like to pursue. I am interested in learning more about nursing careers other than bedside nursing. Can anyone tell me what an RN primarily does at an alcohol/drug rehab facility? I imagine RN's would do the initial assessment upon the patients arrival as well as administer daily medications. In addition, I figure they would tend to injuries and illness. What else would they do? Is it super stressfull or more relaxed than say med-surge nursing? Does this type of nursing career pay the bills? Is it competitive with hospital pay? Are there advantages to this type of nursing over bedside nursing? There are several really nice, well known, large facilities in Southern California. For example, there is a nice one in Malibu as well as the Betty Ford Center in Palm Springs. Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thank you in advance

Thanks for the tip elkpark! That is probably true.... I guess you just have to look at it as an illness for which they keep coming back to the hospital. Kind of like a "frequent flyer". Can anyone tell me what RN's do there? For example, what would an RN do at the famous Betty Ford Clinic out in Palm Springs? What do these places pay RN's? I'm not looking to get rich, but to pay the bills. =D Is it competitive with hospital pay?

Hello, I am finishing up nursing school here and am still trying to decide which area of nursing I would like to pursue. I am interested in learning more about nursing careers other than bedside nursing. Can anyone tell me what an RN primarily does at an alcohol/drug rehab facility? There are several really nice, well known, large facilities in Southern California. I imagine RN's would do the initial assessment upon the patients arrival as well as administer daily medications. In addition, I figure they would tend to injuries and illness. What else would they do? Does this type of nursing career pay the bills? Is it competitive with hospital pay? Are there advantages to this type of nursing over bedside nursing? I would think it would be very rewarding to see patients recover from addictions. Thank you in advance

Thank you for your help. I continued to research it today and discovered that TPN can be given peripherally as long as it's only 10% dextrose so as not to irritate the vein. It sounds like it's usually given centrally though. Please correct me if I'm wrong = )~

What percent of dextrose solution is appropriate for TPN solution? 20%? I understand that you hang Dextrose 10% if there are any interuptions in running the TPN to prevent hypoglycemia. Also, should TPN be delivered into a large peripheral vein as opposed to centrally? If so, Why? Finally, TPN is meant for long term therapy, correct? Thank you for helping. I just don't feel clear on the details of TPN.