akulahawkRN ADN, RN, EMT-P

Emergency Department

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All Content by akulahawkRN

  1. akulahawkRN

    Sports Physicals

    Back when I was an Athletic Trainer, we did mass physicals in-house with our Team Physician. Our school nurse was not involved as this was entirely handled by the Athletics Department. This was...
  2. akulahawkRN

    Manual Blood Pressure Reading

    The two-step method, as I recall it, is to take a palpated blood pressure first. You record that pressure as, say, 162/P and then you auscultate the BP, inflating the cuff 20-30 mmHg above the...
  3. akulahawkRN

    Thinking about leaving nursing school

    I'm of two thoughts on this... one is that since you're about 1/2 way to completion of your RN program and you haven't gone through all the rotations (including psych) I think you'll at least benefit...
  4. akulahawkRN

    How do you sign your credentials?

    At work, if I am to sign most paperwork, it's akulahawkRN, RN. However if I were to write anything "official-ish" like an academic paper, then it becomes "akulahawkRN, BS, ADN, RN, EMTP." Those of you...
  5. akulahawkRN

    Can you break your nose and not have a mark?

    In the short term, yes. There will be swelling and with good application of ice packs and positioning, it is possible to keep that to a minimum. Longer term, whether or not there will be any "marks"...
  6. akulahawkRN

    students charting Assessments

    If your school says you may not make entries to a patient's chart beyond basic vitals and the tasks you have completed under supervision, then you're on solid ground to refuse to do charting beyond...
  7. akulahawkRN

    students charting Assessments

    As long as there's someone able to counter-sign the student's charting, I have no issue with letting students make entries to a patient's chart. If I had a student, I'd check their charting and also...
  8. akulahawkRN

    Air in Line...

    Our pumps are also a bit finicky about air in the line. What I do is clamp off the tubing, fill the drip chamber, hang the bag and here's the secret... I make a "U" out of the tubing right at the...
  9. akulahawkRN

    The after math of nclex

    The amount of time it will take will depend upon the processing time of the board that oversees LPN licensing for your state. Any time you exceed the minimum it means that your ability estimate was,...
  10. akulahawkRN

    Paramedic School before i start my BSN?

    I have a couple of things to add myself. First of all I have a bachelors degree in sports medicine, and I spent approximately 2 1/2 years as an athletic trainer at a Div. III (junior-college) school....
  11. akulahawkRN

    Pulseless VT/VT

    Quite simply, what makes it "pulseless" is that cardiac output is so low (effectively zero) that there are no palpable pulses anywhere. Any rhythm that does not generate a pulse is, by definition of...
  12. akulahawkRN

    I start in the ER next week!

    I am both a paramedic and an ER nurse. I have been working in the ER for about a year now and I have about 7 years experience as a paramedic. I would have to say that probably the hardest thing about...
  13. akulahawkRN

    VA Palo Alto or UC Davis for a New grad?

    I would suggest that you look at your potential future career. The VA Palo Alto has an offer for you as a clinic nurse, specifically outpatient. The job offer you have at UC Davis is for an ICU...
  14. akulahawkRN

    No pump, no drip rates - OR

    I work in the ER and much of the time I don't use a pump. The times that I do use a pump are those where I must have very good control over the infusion rate, like certain antibiotics, potassium, or...
  15. For California, the only way you know for sure that you passed is to check BreEZe for license numbers. California does NOT participate in the Quick Results program that other states do. As you have...
  16. akulahawkRN

    Ran out of time nclex

    The NCLEX actually answers your question on their website. They explain their grading rules... Computerized Adaptive Testing (CAT) | NCSBN Just scroll down the page until you see the section...
  17. akulahawkRN

    do i have what it takes?

    You probably do... but there might be a bit of a learning curve when dealing specifically with ICU-ICU transfers. Also unless you've got EMS experience and the flight program does scene work, you'll...
  18. akulahawkRN

    Paramedics and palliative care

    A very normal side effect of hydromorphone use is pinpoint pupils, not dilated ones. I also wouldn't expect that a patient's resp drive to slow to 8/min from a hydromorphone administration (even if...
  19. This is exactly what you should discuss with a lawyer that's knowledgeable and experienced in dealing with licensing boards, in particular, nursing, for that state. Just make certain you have a true...
  20. akulahawkRN

    Sacramento City College

    The status you WANT to see is "Qualified Applicant" or something very close to it. If you're deemed a "qualified applicant" then you've met all requirements to enter the program. It very well could be...
  21. akulahawkRN

    pre-nursing student with misdemeanors

    You should get a copy of your criminal record and be absolutely certain that it shows a disposition for your case. If there's no disposition, then the BON may not be able to determine whether you...
  22. akulahawkRN

    Decreased cardiac output help!

    I'm glad you've provided what you have done so far. I would also suggest teaching the patient to avoid foods/substances that could increase the heart rate or promote cardiac irritability. Caffeine and...
  23. akulahawkRN

    philippines or us?

    As others have said, you should go to school where you want to work. This provides you the most trouble-free pathway to getting licensed and a job. However, you should be very cognizant of the local...
  24. akulahawkRN

    Sacramento City College

    These are the current prerequisite courses that SCC requires for this current filing period (it closes March 4th). To answer the question of when they removed Soc 300 out of the prerequisite course...
  25. akulahawkRN

    What do you do when a pt goes into anaphylactic shock?

    I used to work as a Paramedic and I've treated a few true cases of anaphylaxis, one of which was the first call of my field internship. Yes, anaphylaxis is very scary and it's one of the few times...