bloodmonster

And, I thought I was the only one tired of dialysis. My reasons for wanting a change have a lot to do with everything. I work in acutes and the stress level is beyond anything I can handle anymore. I'm mostly feeling the stress from having to work with the facility's nurses who are not teamwork oriented. Often I'm left abandoned by the ICU nurse with the highest acuity patient. The last day I worked was July 2nd and I had the most difficult working situation. My patient was in ICU hooked up to a vent and the heart monitors. I had found him lying flat on his right side. The feed pump was finished but still on. I immediately turned it off then rearranged his position so I could get at his Fem cath. I had this patient before and was quite aware of his hypotensive episodes and his constant thrashing about. I had been instructed by my supervisor to tie his legs and request ativan. Shortly, after I had his treatment going I looked out the door to see if I could alert his nurse to request the ativan. She was no where to be found. I had to ask someone else to ask her. She comes around and says, "Get the narc keys and get it yourself!" WTF? Now, we started on the wrong foot. She was not nice and obviously not team oriented. She finally brought the ativan over and said, "Here, you give it." I explained to her that I was not to give meds unless they were ordered with HD. She questioned my license to practice. We argued back n forth about this. Then she yelled at me about his position and why I took the pillows out from under him and why he was lying flat with the feed pump on. I expained to her that I had found him this way minus pillows. She didn't comprehend my need to maintain a blood flow for the HD TX. obviously. Oh, she turned out to be a real piece of work. She blamed me for his BP dropping and called the Doc. She complained about me to the house supervisor telling her that I was endangering her patient and she wanted me off the floor. She told this story to the nephrologist, too. When the Neph called back he didn't want to speak to me...only her. I was hurt by the preference of the Neph to speak with the ICU instead of me. I thought..."That's it. I quit!" Well, I've been ill for the past three weeks so I'm not able to work now anyway. I'll never go back to that facility. I told my supervisor what happened and she explained the reason why they were picking on me. Apparently, a nurse from our company was not paying attention to her patient during the tx and he bleed out and died. This had happened about 5 months ago. So, these nurses are paranoid. They'd be paranoid enough to take it out on me and hurt my license for some revenge or gratification. I just dont get some nurses going out of their way to hurt another nurse. I wont miss dialysis. The very idea just makes me cringe. Question to the previous posters, Where do you think your next nursing speciality will be? Have you applied for it yet? I'm sure we will all be better off with something else.

I've never felt so sick in all my life. I've just been DX with Acute Bronchitis. I know this is secondary to a previous condition I had two weeks ago. I was completely immune compromised when I began to have a dry cough. My cough has been increasingly worse and I'm going on my 8th day. I am on steriod medication and taking phenergan with codiene. The cough medicine only makes me sleepy. I'm not getting any relief. And, to make matters worse every time I cough I am incontinent of urine. I found a website that talks about a natural approach to treating acute bronchitis. Has anyone reading this heard of Mesosilver nebulizer? I left a message on the 800 number for them to call me back in the am. I know nothing of this medication, only the referrals from the website. If you tell me this works I'll have them ship it to me first thing AM, fedex express. I'm really tired of peeing on myself and coughing like I'm going to die. Help!

That stethescope looks suspicious. I would not buy it. Best to purchase a legit littman from the littman website.

Dont eat the candy and dont eat anything with a lot of sugar before your test. Your blood sugar will drop so fast and boom...panic will set in and you're doomed. I know, this happened to me. The proctor sets the candy by the computer. Its tempting just shove that poisen behind the computer! And, remember...when in doubt of a question with two answers....use your ABC's! That'll be $3, please!

As desperate as the military seems to be about recruitment it actually does sound right. I believe the army does the same thing. The newly commissioned officer is commissioned under a different agreement than the BSN. I've known a few nurses who went in under this program. There was a time when I wanted to be commissioned so badly. Its seems the army is holding a grudge against me for some ridiculous Article 15 I recieved while in 91C school. I fought against the UCMJ and my voice was dismissed since I was a lowly E-4. I had so much to give back to the army, but they, the board, didn't see it that way and my packet was rejected. I guess they weren't desperate enough in my case.

I understand your point about picking up MRSA at the gym. I go to a private women's gym. If and when I use the equipment I always put a towel down so my skin does not touch the surface of the equipment. I havent used the equipment in over a month.. So, I seriously dont think I contracted the bacteria from the gym. The last time I was at the gym was only for a step Aerobic class and I didn't touch anything. I didn't even use the step, because I am too clumsy and afraid of tripping over it.

My appologizes if you were offended. I thought I'd just help clarify the meaning of your words. To answer you question, I remember the RN Nclex like it was yesturday. As an RN student we're drilled over and over again to use our critical thinking skills. By doing so we must always use our ABC's. When taking the NClex there will be two right answers for the most part. When choosing the answer for the Nclex sake you must always refer to the ABC's. You won't fail the test if you follow that simple rule.

You mean, "Have any of you taken the LPN recently and then the RN? Is it more difficult?" Yes, I have within 1.5 years of each other. The test is different.

I took my PN NCLEX in 1999. I remember the computer shutting off after 85 questions. I also knew that the last question the computer had asked me I got RIGHT! So, I knew immediately that I had passed. Here's an interesting story for you. If you remember taking the LPN-LVN course and you did fairly well by passing most of your exams the first time....even though you achieved barely C or B grades. These are the students who pass the NCLEX..The average student! Believe it or not. I knew a girl in the army who cheated on all her exams while in 91C school/ LPN school. She recieved all A's on her exams. She walked around with a big head and was always partying. I knew something was fishy about this and asked her when she finds the time to study. She told me that Sunday's were for studying.. Her Sundays consisted of partying off base and I never saw her 'till class time. She ends up residing within the same city as me in Phoenix. When I saw her at drill I asked her where she was working. She told me, home health. I said, "How much do LPN's make in home health?" She said, "I dont know. I'm a CNA." I said, "Didn't you take the Nclex?" She..."Yes, but I failed it twice." To this day I dont think she has passed and is probably still just a CNA. See where are tax dollars go?

Reservists only. And, now only IRR Navy. I just recently interviewed for a position at an LPN school, for teaching. I enquired about the cost. I could not believe it! $16,000 it cost per student just to get an LPN. Money seems better spent on going to a JR College to get an ADN, instead. Why do so many choose to spend that kind of money for an LPN? I dont get it. In a way its good for me, though. I'll probably get a part time teach position out of this.

I always wash my hands. I'm a fanatical hand washer. I work at several facilities, not just one. I'm an acutes hemodialysis nurse. Most of my patients have MRSA or VRE simply because they are immuno compromised and have taken a lot of ATBS. They are in the hospital for other reasons, not just for dialysis treatments. Some come in for respiratory failure, pneumonia, broken bones, sepsis, neglect, diabetes and some are in a comlete coma. My patients are the sickest patients in the hospital because they are renal failure patient. The % of patients that I was referring to are only the patients with renal failure.

Fort Sam Huston! Hoorah! Free for me, too! Second half of training took place at Fort Bliss in 1996. I would recommend the military to those who dont mind being told what to do every 2 minutes. I, personally, couldn't take much more of it. There are other ways to get a free nursing education. There are government grants. Do the research. The money is there and its FREE!

I just came back from my Doc appt. He looked everything over from my arm to the hospital records. His conclusion was that I did not have a fx and that I contracted a bacteria which caused me to have a skin infection. Twas not Staph Aureus, just a common bacteria which caused me to have cellulitus. Cellulitis is the actual dx given to me at the hospital. Now my next dilemma is who gets the bill for this? Does my health insurance pay for my hospital stay or should I continue to pursue workman's comp? What would you do?

Oh I nearly forgot your other question. Yes, I do work with a lot of patients who have MRSA. In fact, 95% of my patients either have MRSA or VRE and some have TB.

While in the ER the ER doc spoke with the I.D. Doc about my labs and symptoms. After he finished the phone conversation the ER doc told me MRSA was suggested. As far as I know I dont have any other medical problems or history's. I've been healthy all my life. I'd hate to think that everytime I go to the gym and work out I'm going to break something. I'm not that old. I'm still working on prooving the PCP wrong. I'm going to get an appt for an MRI on my arm. I have an appt to see someone in about 1 hour about this.