akulahawkRN ADN, RN, EMT-P

Emergency Department

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All Content by akulahawkRN

  1. akulahawkRN

    Worst/Best thing a nursing instructor ever said to you?

    akulahawkRN replied to CryandNurseOn's topic in General Nursing

    Let me see... Things said by instructors of mine... Worst: You're dismissed from the program. Best: You have been an inspiration to us all, and we unanimously present you this award... (That included...
  2. akulahawkRN

    Tips for really strict clinical instructor?

    akulahawkRN replied to Kiki<3's topic in General Students

    Like the others have said, that's Nursing School for you. Hopefully your CI spelled out her expectations for you at the first meeting. If she did, then you're clearly the one at fault here. Clinicals...
  3. akulahawkRN

    ¿Hablas en Espanol?

    akulahawkRN replied to adventure_rn's topic in General Nursing

    While I do speak some Spanish, I understand more than I am able to speak. What I do know at least allows me to get a general feel for what my Spanish-speaking patients are complaining of. I do tell...
  4. akulahawkRN

    How is sepsis treated in a patient who is on comfort care only?

    akulahawkRN replied to joseyjo's topic in General Nursing

    It really depends upon the specifics of the advanced directive. I had a "comfort care" patient the other day and it basically allowed us to treat acute problems but no feeding tubes or intubation. So...
  5. akulahawkRN

    when do you chart?

    akulahawkRN replied to amzyRN's topic in Emergency

    ESI is only a tool... and as such, it isn't perfect. You have to constantly reevaluate your patients because their acuity level can change quickly and dramatically and if you don't pick up on that,...
  6. akulahawkRN

    when do you chart?

    akulahawkRN replied to amzyRN's topic in Emergency

    I use Cerner's FirstNet and it did take a little getting used to. I "touch" every system, but I focus on the problem area. As one poster above stated, the ER knows only ONE time... NOW!!! Fortunately...
  7. akulahawkRN

    RN's vs LPN's

    akulahawkRN replied to Nurse2b.lexii.p91's topic in LPN, LVN Students

    First of all, congratulations on getting into an LVN program! Depending upon where in Northern California, my info may or may not apply directly to you. I attended RN school at Sacramento City...
  8. akulahawkRN

    Seventh Day Adventist and working on Sabbath???

    akulahawkRN replied to NeoNatMom's topic in Spirituality, Religion

    I work for a faith-based hospital chain and I have never seen anyone denigrate another person for their religious views. I also have not seen anyone have any problems for choosing to work or not work...
  9. akulahawkRN

    How fast did you land a job?

    akulahawkRN replied to johndough's topic in General Students

    I had a verbal offer about 8 months after graduation and started 6 weeks after that. I think all-told, it took 8 months from NCLEX/RN License to my first job. This was after applying to basically...
  10. akulahawkRN

    Tuition, how much is too much

    akulahawkRN replied to hopefulkim99's topic in Post Graduate Students

    Just so you know, I started applying to nursing school when I was around 35. I started school at 39, would have originally graduated at 41. Instead I graduated at 42 and in both cohorts that I was...
  11. akulahawkRN

    Tuition, how much is too much

    akulahawkRN replied to hopefulkim99's topic in Post Graduate Students

    I am a nurse that has a bachelors in a different field. As such, a lot of the usual means of financial aid were no longer open to me when I returned to school for nursing. On the flipside, I could...
  12. akulahawkRN

    Do crnas deserve that much salary?

    akulahawkRN replied to jasy's topic in Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist, CRNA

    Most "regular" nurses do NOT intubate patients. They're not trained to do it. It's not that intubation isn't in their scope of practice, it's more a lack of training/education in the particular skill....
  13. akulahawkRN

    Patient Conscious During CPR

    akulahawkRN replied to Emergent's topic in General Nursing

    I have also heard of this happening. It's actually not all that far-fetched. If the vasculature is able to maintain tone and the people doing CPR (or are using a Lucas) are able to maintain sufficient...
  14. akulahawkRN

    External Jugular Cannulation Procedure

    akulahawkRN replied to sarah.cutting's topic in Emergency

    While I do not have EJ P&P's available at hand (my facility prohibits EJ cannulation without physician order), it's not that difficult. As a Paramedic, it's within my scope of practice and EMS...
  15. akulahawkRN

    NCLEX RN Questions

    akulahawkRN replied to judbelete's topic in NCLEX Exam, Programs

    You're focusing on the respiratory component. The hypoventilation is compensatory for the 3 days of nausea/vomiting. Unlike an acidosis, the body doesn't compensate all that well for metabolic...
  16. akulahawkRN

    California Excelsior graduate after 2003, pls help!

    akulahawkRN replied to NsgStudents's topic in Excelsior College

    To kind of reiterate what has already been said, I would have to tell you that anyone who is graduating from Excelsior after 2003 will not get a Registered Nurse license from California through any...
  17. akulahawkRN

    How did you pass Med-Surg?

    akulahawkRN replied to rachie_machie94's topic in General Students

    For very early on nursing students, I really think that doing NCLEX review will not likely be very helpful at all. The reason for this is actually fairly simple in that very early on in nursing...
  18. akulahawkRN

    NCLEX....how bad is it REALLY...

    akulahawkRN replied to Joanie49's topic in NCLEX Exam, Programs

    Is the NCLEX as bad as they say it is? Yes and no. While it was easily the hardest exam I've ever taken, I passed with 75 questions in about 50-55 minutes. I'm also a very good test-taker. Hopefully...
  19. akulahawkRN

    Is this a lot of clinical hours?

    akulahawkRN replied to Ambreree's topic in General Nursing

    My total internship hours while in Paramedic school ran around 640 hours. My nursing school's clinical hours ran approximately 1300 hours, however they counted lab time and actual clinical time as...
  20. akulahawkRN

    HM to LPN

    akulahawkRN replied to Meiba2k16's topic in Pre-Nursing Students

    While I haven't been down that path myself, when you do decide to go for BSN, be sure that your LVN/LPN license won't cause you issues... by that I mean make sure that you'll graduate with exactly the...
  21. akulahawkRN

    RN's vs LPN's

    akulahawkRN replied to Nurse2b.lexii.p91's topic in LPN, LVN Students

    Where I went to school, the primary differences between the LVN and the RN programs were length (3 semesters vs 4), number of units per class (10 units vs 12 units/semester), and the depth to which...
  22. akulahawkRN

    Are concept maps in LVN school similar to care plans in the RN program?

    akulahawkRN replied to lauramitr's topic in General Students

    To me, a concept map is simply a tool you use to help you understand some process. I used them for pathophysiology so that I could better understand the disease process more intuitively. The nursing...
  23. akulahawkRN

    Patient refuses meds and treatment

    akulahawkRN replied to wifeygrooms's topic in Nursing Student Assistance

    I had a similar-ish patient tonight. Patient needed a drug that would have made the patient feel better. Patient didn't want the drug because of the side effects. Patient was educated regarding...
  24. akulahawkRN

    New Nurse IV Struggles

    akulahawkRN replied to mer015's topic in First Year After Licensure

    Just to add another tip, don't be afraid to manipulate the patient's arms a bit because sometimes by pronating or supinating the forearm, you can tease a vein into showing itself. Just a week or so...
  25. akulahawkRN

    Sacramento Job Market

    akulahawkRN replied to outriton's topic in California Nursing

    While I cannot speak to the job market too much in Sacramento (I haven't been looking in a while), I must reiterate what others here have said. My sense is that it's still pretty tough to get a job...