finn55

OMG! My hair went to check having to pin those Kleenex squares. I had my cap cuffed off a couple of times by confused LTC residents, and hair came with the cap. It's Hell to try to cover my "bald" spot!

My nursing instructor would go ballistic if she heard "nurses training." She'd say: Dogs are trained. Nurses are educated. (Calm down, Kris!)

In our LTC, the docs would allow residents a beer or wine or mixed drink at hs. Our med room looked like a liquor store!

God, those darned caps having to be pinned! I have a spot on my scalp to this day. Having to wear a cap in LTC was for the birds. Some sweet confused resident cuffed off my cap one PM shift, taking Kleenex, Bobby pin AND hair!

When I first started as a CNA, our PM charge nurse ALWAYS made a point of thanking us at the end of our shift. It never got old to hear the thank you. When I started working charge, I continued the practice as well. I agree, compliments to our coworkers work wonders. The whole environment was more pleasant.

I've worked primarily in Long-term care, and have no hospital experience. This whole ordeal has shaken my confidence in so many areas of my life.

I've been a nurse, and lately, a patient after my femur fracture gone wrong. I made a point of saying 'Thank you' whenever I was helped or medicated or whatever. It goes a heckuva long way. It's a tough job under the best of situations, so why not recognize it as such? I meant my 'thank you's sincerely.

Psychological stress and facility politics drove me away from my nursing career. I cried EVERY day that I had to go to that place which was a clue that I needed to get out. I loved nursing dearly -- it will always be the career I felt I did some good in. In my heart and mind, I will always be a nurse. As has been said by others in this topic, nurses can tend to not be sympathetic to other fellow nurses. It's a sad commentary.

Just dig in when Patho comes. If you read something, read it again, and then read it a third time. Don't be afraid to ask questions. If you ask, no doubt others in class are wondering it, too. Enjoy your classes, clinicals and fellow students-- yeah, it can be tough at times. It all comes together though, when you get your diploma, and when you pass the boards. You'll do just fine. Please keep us posted on this website, okay? We've all been there, and we're all cheering you on!

The hardest semester for me was the 3rd . . .( The first semester of the 2nd year). Our Patho class weeded more students out than anything. I think on my death bed, I'll be ranting about the Krebs cycle! Clinicals were pretty enjoyable -- OB held no interest for me, though! Wishing you the best--- keep believing in yourself. You'll make it!

I was in a SNF most of 2012 with my broken femur. My favorite CNA on the PM shift used to wear a Garfield scrub top often, knowing it would make me smile. I was pretty down in the dumps with my medical situation, so it was great to have a caregiver who cared enough to consider my feelings. >^..^

I am reminded of a fellow student in the LPN program I attended. Her philosophy was: "I'm going to medical school. I'm not going to wipe s****y a***s , I'm just in the program as a stepping stone to med school." I so hope she didn't make it that far, nor is working as a nurse, either. She had the most arrogant attitude of anyone I ever met. I felt the same about several fellow students in the ADN program I attended. . .

In a field such as nursing, we are dealing with so many different people in any state of illness. I think, as has been said before, one must deal with all patients compassionately. I spent most of 2012 laid up with a fractured femur. I developed MRSA and required numerous surgeries to try to clean out the infection, without success. The bottom line is I required a transfemoral amputation of my right leg. I will always remember the nurses who cared for me AS A PERSON with feelings and fears, and not just another linen change or bedpan. In my years of nursing, I didn't care about what needed to be done, but helped to care for the patient. One's credibility tends to increase when you pitch in to help. Nursing deals with People, not predictable widgets or gadgets that excrete on a predictable time schedule. In my ADN program, we were taught to look at a person with biological, psychological, sociological, and spiritual needs. Nursing IS a work of heart.

I contracted MRSA after fracturing my right femur. It was a closed fracture, but, without hesitation, everyone I asked where I contracted the infection said, "the hospital". I had five surgeries at the same facility: one to place the plate and screws, three to clean out the infection, and one to remove the plate and screws. I was on IV Vancomycin, and developed a beautiful 'red man's syndrome'. I was in an extended care facility from March until mid-August. Was ambulatory with a walker, but the osteomyelitis returned. To make this story short, I ended up at a major medical center for a transfemoral amputation of my right leg. Subsequent nasal-pharyngeal swabs have indicated a colonization of MRSA. What upset me the most, was being treated like a 'rotten piece of meat.' I think medicine, AND nursing needs to do more to support patients emotionally when they are going through this type of process. As a nurse myself, I knew probably what needed to be done, but I very much needed some more TLC to get through this situation.

Where I've worked, we call the plastic urine collector that fits in the toilet, a "nun's cap". Never have figured out why, but everyone knows what we're referring to!