SleepynurseRN

I don't know about you guys but we can never find all of the glucometers when it's time for controls check. If families knew what we know about where hospital pillows are placed and the grossness that saturates those things families would NEVER ask for one of our pillows.

Well I remember 12 hour shifts where I used to live in the south: Work three 12's off 6 days back for 3 shifts. That was the sweetest! Now in government, we work 6 12's and one 8 hour shifts. ( full time is 80 hours instead of 72) Usually I have at least 3 days off in between shifts but sometimes we get screwed.

Our pay scale is posted on the unit and the union office has a copy too. I actually received a copy when I interviewed.

Ooops..I meant catheter length, not guage size. My bad. Thanks for pointing that out.

Ooops..I meant catheter length, not guage size. My bad. Thanks for pointing that out.

If you work nights it's gonna be harder to lose the weight but you can do it. Here are a few things that have helped me shed a little weight. 1) Do not ever go to bed after eating a meal. I try and eat an apple or almonds/cranberries on the way home from work, shower and get in the bed. 2) You have to make time to excercise. I struggle with this all the time. I can say I did really good when I was training for a marathon: It forced me to run/jog/walk every off day. You know the whole have a goal thing. Im currently training again. 3) Really watch what you eat. The older I get, the harder it becomes for me to lose weight. I really have to monitor what I put in my mouth and at what time. 4) No pop/soda, excessive juices. Drink lots of water( flavor with limes, splash of cranberry juice for flavor, etc Also, watch the amount of creamer you put in coffee. Esme said it..I think we should start a weght loss forum. That way we can support each other! Good luck though.

I have only heard of 2 bedside med given arterially epi. ( Never done it..just heard about it as an offhand conversation) and normal saline. ALL meds are to be infused intravenously. Infusing medicine into an artery sends the medicine the OPPOSITE way.. into smaller arterial pathways and capillary beds where the agent becomes trapped and impedes circulation. Those trapped agents begin to block arterial circulation to the area resulting in impaired arterial flow, cyanosis, necrosis, and eventually (if not noticed in time) tissue death. Arterial line placement typically requires a longer catheter gauge because they are located next to muscular tissue. Radial arteries are the more superficial; the further up the arm they travel, the deeper they become. Veins are more superficial requiring shorter guages. Also, arterial inserts are more painful. Did he complain of a lot of pain intra/post line insertion? Chances are you accessed a really great venous site that hadn't been poked a lot. But because I know how you feel, you really should just call and talk to the nurse taking care of him so you can sleep.

I think a psych consult and pain/ palliative care consult should be the first thing ordered. As stated above, there also may be some drug interaction involved too. Does he have any friends in the facility? He may be one of those people who is very appreciative of lots of human interaction and attention( thats the nice way of saying he's needy) How busy is his day? My uncle gave his facility hell when he was alive. I thought this was due to his natural high energy level when he was healthy years ago. So, we brought in jigsaw/crossword puzzles and bought him an Ipod loaded with his favorite blues and jazz songs. He then proceeded to hum and sing all day much to the irritance of his roomate. Oh well... Continue to be patient with him. I have a dad who has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's, bad heart and vascular system, double amputee, ESRD w/ HD who is busy as he&*. I fear he is headed for the Nursing home and I pray he has nurses with a lot of patience and a kind heart. Stay sweet to your patient.

You have to open yourself up to the possibility of relocating for school or a job. Maybe to a big city maybe to a smaller city or even a small town. Expect to log lots of hours devising a great resume, researching jobs and applying to jobs. I have a friend who found a great hospital willing to train her for ICU, decent starting pay and pretty good bennies( 100% tuition payment for BSN or MSN) However, she searched for that job for 6 months, everyday, hours at a time in front of the computer. Trust me, we will need you and the other tough new grads who will be looking foe jobs in a few years. When the older (and I'm sure tired.. Lord knows I am!) nurses decide to leave this profession they probably will in droves. On our unit alone, 12 nurses will qualify for retirement in the next 5-7 years: 3 of them have submitted their papers for next year. I attended a IOM lecture( Institute of Medicine: Future of Nursing 2010) recently where they were discussing the innovative ways some schools are allowing ADN students to earn their BSN. The students finish ADN coursework and then immediately study for their BSN..At the same school. I believe the state of Arizona and New Mexico are doing this. Look into that as well. You will never regret chasing your dreams my friend. Go for it!

Dedicated Education Unit. The hospital, nurses, affiliated schools etc. all construct an effective learning environment for students. ( In short)

"I do try stay out of the way when there is a lot going on. But it's hard sometimes, because this is my education. If I don't learn it in clinicals, I'll end up being a new grad who is vastly under qualified and who can end up seriously harming a patient because I was never shown something." Relax grasshopper! All new grads are underqualified. That's why hospitals make you complete an orientation before they make you earn your keep by being full staff. All things will be new after graduation and boards. No one has told you that yet? Seriously? I think you guys also have to realize that hospitals/management forces nurses to work with you guys. It's also tied to promotions and raises for most of us. Also because of staffing needs. Then nurses who KNOW they shouldn't or don't want to teach/orient students or new staff end up getting the nice well meaning student nurse. These may also be the nurses who just want to get started and promptly end their day. They already know their attitude is gonna suck and they aren't interested in putting on the sunshine face and playing nice. 2) You guys are new to nursing. We live it 3, 4 some of us 5 days a week. When your 4 weeks are up, we then get a fresh new batch for another 4 weeks.( some nice/helpful and sweet..some condecending, spoiled, and entitled) You do the math. Depending on where you are doing clinicals, those nurses see 4 to 12 students a month, 48 to 144 per year! Plus families, doctors, new staff, administration, patients etc.. Surely you can see where I'm coming from. 3) It is what it is. Some of my nurses liked, loved and simply disliked me. They ignored me, was rude and condecending to me and I survived it all. You guys will too. BTW, I personally love to precept and orient new students and new staff.

That was a very nice story. I too think you have made some friends and found an adopted family for life. I think it's wonderful when we go above and beyond..it sounds like you were the friend he really needed while he was here. I would just encourage you to maybe review your facilities policies on this or ask your manager. You need to make sure you are protected so that your license/job can be preserved.

Hey all! Sometimes, between both of my jobs, I don't have time to cook/ shop or stop for something to eat because I choose to sleep instead! A chick can eat Panera and Chipotle only for so long before the blahs set in so I'm thinking about hiring a personal chef. A friend of mine hired a culinary student to cook for her family 3 days a week. For $100.00 the chef makes 10-12 meals( breakfast or lunch and dinner)makes enough for leftovers, creates a menu and gives her a grocery list for all the food she will need for the week. My friend says it's worth every penny because she spends more time with her family and her and the hubby get their grown and sexy time too. The chef likes it cause my friend has reccomended her to 5 other friends who use her as well! On a side note, she also said she and the hubby have about dropped 10 lbs each cause they're not frequenting the drive thru's as often. Give it a try!

I agree with the better safe than sorry posts. There is a website that follows pending lawsuits against nurses. Anyone guess wanna what is considered neglect, a clear abandonment of duty and is one of the more popular lawsuits? DING DING DING.. Unrelieved pain, Unreported pain and Non re-evalauted pain! Keep your license guys.. just report the pain..

You have to figure out how much you need to pay for the bare minimums( rent, utilities, insurance etc,) I went through school without a cellphone, cable, car note, shopping or frequent eating out. I still had to take out loans because I couldn't work and attend school full time with 2 kids as a single mom with no family around to help. Right now for a ADN and a BSN I'm under $15,000 in loans and although worthwhile in terms of my career, I hate paying the money back every month. Word of advice: Get a job working in a hospital ASAP. It's much easier to maneuver in the system when you start looking for a job and most managers are very supportive of nursing students. Although the market in your area is good now for nurses, things can always change for the worst. Good luck with school and congratulations on your acceptance into a BSN program!