Tucwebb

I work in an outpatient family practice clinic which serves our active duty military personnel and their families. I have been volunteered to be the Diabetic Champion for the Clinic. Not having done this type of work before, I am looking for some guidelines and topics which I can use to share with out staff. This job (diabetic champion) is not to teach patients, but to keep our staff (mostly the MAs, LPNs, and Techs) up to date with things to do and what to look for when checking-in and rooming patients. Any advice will be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance.

Thanks Scooter for your reply. I know that is what I SHOULD do, but I am such an A Type. I just want to have the basic knowledge should a situation arise . . . I am not one that can just side idly by and watch a situation go from bad to worse without knowing what to do (mind you I said KNOWING what to do, not actually doing). I plan on being grandma, but I want to be able to speak up if I see something start to go awry. After so many years of trying to change, I've learned to accept who I am and live with it. Having said that, remember I said I will not get in the way of the staff. I am the quiet one who can usually be found in the background, but who will also not hesitate to spring into action when the situation warrants. I respect my fellow nurses. :-)

Hi All, My daughter is just about due to deliver her first baby (my first granddaughter). I will be with her during her L&D. The only L&D education I had was in nursing school and I need some advice from seasoned L&D nurses. How can I help and monitor my daughter/granddaughter through this process (and help the nursing staff) while not getting in their way? I'm reviewing electronic fetal heart rate strips to help prepare, but I am trained as a surgical circulator, and now work as a triage nurse at an Air Force Base Family Practice clinic, so I am very rusty. Thank you all in advance for your advice. (P.S. - I do not plan on announcing that I am an RN - I just want to quietly be able to help, recognize, and avoid a potentially emergent situation.)

You might also consider Air Force Nursing/Air Force Reserve Nursing. As for deployment, it is an honor to serve because you are taking care of those that put their lives on the line for the rest of us. What we do is minuscule when you put it all into perspective.

Your experience will depend upon your position, i.e. pre-op, intra-op, or post-op. Do you know what you will be doing?

Thanks WBTCRNA. I guess it doesn't really matter because I am looking at 42-60 program (Reserves), and I will keep working my GS job (which is at an air force base). I will never have the chance to retire from the military due to my age.

Do you know if they were AD or Reserve? I am a GS nurse right now so already have some time toward retirement already. Thanks.

Does anyone know if the Air Force has a program similar to the Army's for older nurses either Active Duty or Reserves? Thanks.

The Army has an option for older RNs 42-60. Does anyone know if the USAF has the same kind of program either AD or Reserve?

Anyone else?

As a new RN to the OR, we are doing an evidenced based practice project regarding the best types of padding to prevent skin breakdown in surgical patients. 1) What types of pressure reducing aids/padding materials are being utilized in your OR to prevent skin breakdown? 2) In your professional opinion, what is the best material for use in protecting and avoiding skin breakdown of the intraoperative patient? 3) In regard to your answer to #2 above, what is the rationale for your answer? Thank you all for your help. We look forward to reading your responses.

Out of curiosity, what is an average salary for a triage nurse? Thanks.

I am a new grad interested in working in the PACU. Any advice/information from experienced PACU nurses on preparation, expectations etc. would be greatly appreciated. The PACU does not take new grads at the hospital I work at, so I have accepted a new grad position in the MICU. Am I headed in the right direction?

I took the test on June 1, it took one hour, and shut off at 75 questions. I found out the next day that I passed because my license was posted on our state nursing board web site in Arizona.

I am in the same boat as you GN1974. Took it today, only had 75 questions, and know for sure that I failed. BUT, at least I know I have the chance to take it again, unlike school where if you failed a test, you FAILED! PERIOD! I need to get myself out of the house and away from this computer (you know, the OCD part). But starting this evening, I will probably be checking the State Board site every 2 minutes to see if things have posted. Good luck to you all. I wish you all the best and hope all of us pass - this sitting and waiting thing really SUCKS!!!!!

I just came back from taking the test. I didn't have one question about delegation! I also had just 75 questions, and know for sure that I will be returning to take the test again. Good luck to you.

The same thing happened to me. I graduate in a week, and last week I joined a gym and this week have been working out with a trainer. I hope to lose the 20 pounds I put on over the past two years, and have a lot more muscle tone. I can tell you though, that I worked out yesterday and today, and tonight I am a hurtin' pup! (It's a good kind of hurt though!)

ERCP is endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography - radiography following injection of a radiopaque material into the papilla of Vater. This is done through a fiberoptic endoscope guided by use of fluoroscopy. The procedure is helpful in determing the cause of jaundice. It's an invasive procedure. MRCP is magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography which is an alternative to diagnostic endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) for imaging the biliary tree and investigating biliary obstruction. MRCP is a purely diagnostic test with no therapeutic value. It does not have the small but definite morbidity and mortality associated with ERCP. CA 19-9 is a tumor marker released into the bloodstream from both cancer cells and normal cells. Higher than normal amounts of CA 19-9 in the blood can be a sign of gallbladder or pancreatic cancer or other conditions.

ERCP - Endoscopic Retrograde Cholangiopancreatrophy MRCP - Magnetic Retrograde Cholangiopancreatography, also Member of the Royal College of Physicians CA 19-9 is a tumor marker released into the bloodstream from both cancer cells and normal cells. Higher than normal amounts of CA 19-9 in the blood can be a sign of gallbladder or pancreatic cancer or other conditions.

Does the PDA version of Davis' Drug Guide include nursing interventions?

I have a PDA and am looking for a good drug program that includes nursing interventions. Right now I have Epocrates which is good, but it does not include nursing interventions. Because I will be a new grad in 2 weeks, I want to be able to look up a drug really fast, and get info on interventions, how long I should take to give an IV drug - what I can give fast and what I can't, and other things that as a new nurse, I need to be aware of. I have also downloaded a demo of two other programs: RN Diseases and 5MCC. RN Diseases I like, but when I went to look up Rhabo, it wasn't included in the program, so I am wondering how comprehensive it really is. 5MCC 2004 2004 (5 Minute Clinical Consult) is more comprehensive, but it does not include Planning and Inplementation like RN Diseases does. If anyone has information and experience with any good PDA programs for nurses, I would love to hear from you. Thanks

You can say that again! And yes, I know that I will need to know the interventions, and writing care plans has been very helpful in that respect. Now I have to concentrate on my preceptorship (med/surg) and figure out what my learning objectives will be - there's so much that I want to do, but I wonder what my clinical instructor might consider important. Any clues/advice? Thanks.

Thanks Meownsmile for your reply. I used risk for infection RT surgery and foreign object in body; acute pain RT tissue trauma associated with surgery; and impaired physical mobility RT decreased muscle strength due to surgery. And yes, she was wearing a cervical collar. Looks like we were thinking along the same lines. Last care plan I'll ever have to do in school! Only 4 more weeks, then preceptorship, then pinning, then boards! Hooray!!!

Anterior C4-6 Cervical Discectomy. I am working on my care plan for tomorrow. I am having some trouble finding diagnoses that pertain specifically to spinal surgery. Thanks.

Those I discussed it with like the idea. We have 90 students in our class, so it might only end up costing each person $3-4 (although those that can would probably contribute more to offset and help those that cannot). The only problem - I don't know where to find a nice one!