tothc2

tothc2

MICU/CCU

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All Content by tothc2

  1. Pitt Accelerated BSN

    tothc2 posted a topic in Pennsylvania Nursing

    OK, so is anyone else here starting Pitt's ABSN program on the 29th? I've gone all through the folders on blackboard but I am just trying to make sure I'm not missing anything. I've watched the...

  2. Unexpected instances where your nursing skills came in handy

    tothc2 replied to tnbutterfly - Mary's topic in Nurses Rock

    I was at a church Christmas party a year ago and a woman there in her 60s became diaphoretic, sob, and was having indigestion. (Im still in school at this point) My mind immediately went to MI so I...

  3. ICU nurses, Is 3:1 patient to nurse ratio a common occurence or am I just tripping?

    tothc2 replied to Scrubs911's topic in MICU, SICU

    Awwww snap. Waiting for a backlash. Haha. I think this would be an interesting study to carry out. Comparing the outcomes of codes on med surg floors at hospitals where all nurses take ACLS with...

  4. ICU nurses, Is 3:1 patient to nurse ratio a common occurence or am I just tripping?

    tothc2 replied to Scrubs911's topic in MICU, SICU

    You say "naturally" like this is the norm. But it is not... All ICU nurses should have ACLS, the majority of step down RNs should, but I have never heard of med surg RNs having or being required to...

  5. ICU nurses, Is 3:1 patient to nurse ratio a common occurence or am I just tripping?

    tothc2 replied to Scrubs911's topic in MICU, SICU

    Your med surg RNs take ACLS? And all nurses go to codes and simulations? You have to have meant something else here. Unless you are at an extremely small hospital. Even then, where's the money coming...

  6. ICU nurses, Is 3:1 patient to nurse ratio a common occurence or am I just tripping?

    tothc2 replied to Scrubs911's topic in MICU, SICU

    As a rapid response nurse you're probably arriving to a code after the more chaotic period has passed and everyone has decided what they're going to take care of during the code. Like dodongo said,...

  7. ICU nurses, Is 3:1 patient to nurse ratio a common occurence or am I just tripping?

    tothc2 replied to Scrubs911's topic in MICU, SICU

    So in other countries they either have about twice as many RNs as we do in the states or they have half as many ICU beds available. How the hospitals can eat the costs of that many employees or that...

  8. ICU nurses, Is 3:1 patient to nurse ratio a common occurence or am I just tripping?

    tothc2 replied to Scrubs911's topic in MICU, SICU

    Hundreds and hundreds of critical care RNs manage it everyday they go to work - myself included. You're busy every second of your shift. We have computers on the wall in all of our patients rooms so I...

  9. ICU nurses, Is 3:1 patient to nurse ratio a common occurence or am I just tripping?

    tothc2 replied to Scrubs911's topic in MICU, SICU

    I completely agree. I work in a mixed MICU/CCU (just like you according to your profile) and shock, pressors, IABPs, vents are totally common and are not considered criteria for 1:1. (Swans make...

  10. Pittsburgh ICU nurses

    tothc2 replied to SandraDeeRN's topic in Neuro Intensive Care, ICU

    Hi SandraDeeRN, I am just wondering if you ended up taking the job at AGH's trauma ICU. I am in my last semester of nursing school at Pitt and I have been in the ER at Presby working with the Trauma...

  11. Pitt Accelerated BSN

    tothc2 replied to tothc2's topic in Pennsylvania Nursing

    Hmmmm... class bonding... Well, you will have a partner in lab. You will know that person the best I think. Or, you will know their body like the back of your hand! Haha. I've had my hands down...

  12. Pitt Accelerated BSN

    tothc2 replied to tothc2's topic in Pennsylvania Nursing

    Yeah. I think she wasn't dead set on being a nurse in the first place and she was just overwhelmed. There was another woman who dropped out in the group that graduated in December. I definitely...

  13. Pitt Accelerated BSN

    tothc2 replied to tothc2's topic in Pennsylvania Nursing

    OH! And I got a 100% on the first competency exam! Almost everyone did though. This just goes to show that they make sure that you know what to do. They honestly want you to go to clinicals and...

  14. Pitt Accelerated BSN

    tothc2 replied to tothc2's topic in Pennsylvania Nursing

    Well, if that's how you picked it then you are lucky! It really is a great program. By the way, I forgot to mention one thing. The way Pitt presents their nursing classes (at least in the first...

  15. Pitt Accelerated BSN

    tothc2 replied to tothc2's topic in Pennsylvania Nursing

    There is an orientation day where they will tell you all that stuff. There are 3 background checks you need to do. You can find the info online if you go to the undergrad students tab of pitt...

  16. Pitt Accelerated BSN

    tothc2 replied to tothc2's topic in Pennsylvania Nursing

    And we also have a class with the CRNA students. It's called Research for Evidence Based Practice. Which is basically reading research studies and determining how to apply them to clinical practice....

  17. Pitt Accelerated BSN

    tothc2 replied to tothc2's topic in Pennsylvania Nursing

    There are... 27-ish people in the program. The age range is pretty large. There are some people that just graduated this year and there are people that are in their 40's and have children. I...

  18. Pitt Accelerated BSN

    tothc2 replied to tothc2's topic in Pennsylvania Nursing

    OH! And make sure, that if they tell you to do something before you come to class or clinicals or something, YOU DO IT! Stay ahead of the work! Don't fall behind because you will not catch up. You...

  19. Pitt Accelerated BSN

    tothc2 replied to tothc2's topic in Pennsylvania Nursing

    Well, my first week is done. It was LOOOOONG! But so much fun! The program is going to be really intense. This first week we've covered sterile technique (gloving, field, etc), Vital Signs, cardio...

  20. Favorite formulas for drug and IV calculations

    tothc2 replied to Java Mama's topic in General Students

    I learned dimensional analysis in Highschool chem! So of course that's what I prefer! It's sooooo easy to understand and sooooooo hard to mess

  21. Second Degree Nursing admission: Does what undergraduate college you come from matter

    tothc2 replied to iridescence89's topic in Pre-Nursing Students

    I am starting Pitt's ABSN program this fall and our gpas are the same. I went to a less well known school than you did, too! Make sure you do well in your pre-reqs (A's) and have good LORs and GRE....

  22. titers/ immunizations update

    tothc2 replied to RunnerRN2015's topic in General Nursing

    I am in the same boat. I had to get titers/immunizations and I didn't have a record of anything either. But they drew titers first and it turned out I didn't need any immunizations... I don't know...

  23. Pathophysiology ??s

    tothc2 replied to szeles23's topic in General Students

    P.S. This isn't the only book like this he has written. You can find some more books along the same lines, like, Microbiology Made Ridiculously Simple... etc. They're

  24. Pathophysiology ??s

    tothc2 replied to szeles23's topic in General Students

    I had a great little supplemental book for pathophys. It is the BEEEESSSST book I have ever purchased! It's called Clinical Pathophysiology made Ridiculously Simple by Aaron Berkowitz. It was...

  25. Gastric acid

    tothc2 replied to sanasana's topic in General Nursing

    I don't think it's secretion is governed by time in any way. There are really 3 things that determine gastric acid secretion: 1. Thought, smell or taste of food. 2. Distention of stomach when food...