GinaDecorRN

That is false documentation if nothing else. Perhaps if the MD gets enough midnight calls then standing PRN orders will be available. I would never write "telephone order" for an order I did not call on, I value my license too much. We should all practice by the book.

On our telemetry unit we have seen more than one case of A-fib in young people with energy drinks perhaps being the triggering factor. Scary.

tragically hip "where in a nurse's training is "meeting the spiritual needs of the patient" covered? is there a certification for it?" from the university of texas arlington school of nursing catalog : nurs 3362. spiritual care in nursing (3-0) 3 hours credit. students will explore the aspects of spiritual care including the meaning of spirituality, assessment of spiritual well-being, diagnosis of spiritual needs, delivery of spiritual care, and evaluation of intervention effectiveness. transcultural views of spirituality will be discussed along with ethical implications of spiritual care in nursing. prerequisite:nurs 2240, 3420, 2365, 2366, 3532 or registered nurse students. nurs 3356. nursing care at the end of life (3-0) 3 hours credit. an overview of the nursing care of the terminally ill patient and family. explores the impact of personal values and beliefs about death on nursing care, the physiology of end stage disease processes, clinical approaches to pain and symptom management, societal issues and trends in end of life care and models of care delivery. prerequisite:bsn students must complete all required junior ii courses, or registered nurse students. nurs 3425. holistic health assessment (3-3) 4 hours credit. theory and practice of holistic health assessment of individuals and families across the life span with emphasis on normal findings. registered nurse students only. prerequisite: nurs 3342 or 3442. * many nursing courses consider the whole patient under the description of holistic nursing. body, mind and spirit. we are not mechanics taking care of the broken parts of a body but caring for the whole patient in their situation which is where family nursing comes in. the multi-faceted dynamics we deal with as nurses makes our work both challenging and rewarding. this is done as professionals maintaining boundaries to protect our patients and ourselves. if you have ever held a patients hand, that is holistic nursing, if you haven't then you are missing out.

The ALF I researched here in Missouri require that residents be alert/ oriented and sharp cognitively so that they can describe where the closest emergency exits are and ambulatory enough to get themselves to the exits during a fire drill. This was practiced to prepare for state inspections. Walkers were allowed but not wheelchairs. Occasional incontinence allowed but residents were expected to be able to toilet themselves. Indwelling foleys not allowed. Meals were taken in a common dining room, not in your room and residents fed themselves. The facility my mom was in had only med techs there in the evening / night shifts, with an LPN (the director) on call for emergencies. They did not have an RN on staff! This was strictly private pay and ran around $3500 / month. This was much less than the LTC faciluity which ran $5000 / month private pay but had Medicaid beds for when you had "spent down" and qualified.

Ask your local lifeguards or firemen. I found my class at the American Red Cross and was surprised how many lifeguards were in my class - and it was for professional first responders - medical personnel.

I don't force my faith on anyone, and would only share this if I felt it was appropriate with clients that may have talked openly about their belief in heaven and faith. Sunday mornings were always challenging when my son was a toddler. The crying would begin as we walked back to the church nursery, and though his class was filled with toys and friends and people who would provide loving care for him, his separation from me would cause stress, fear and sadness. But I left him. As I worshiped in the adjoining sanctuary I felt I was in the presence of the Lord. I was at peace and I was where I was supposed to be. I knew that my son was missing me, but our time apart would be short. I looked forward to the day he would be old enough to come with me into the sanctuary and we would stand before the Lord together. I was reminded of these emotions years later when I lost my dad. I was the crying child while he had stepped into God's sanctuary in heaven. At times when I think " I will never see him again" I am reminded that he is where he should be and when the time is right I will join him there. I have shared this analogy on occasion and hope it brings comfort.

Good plan. This will expose you to the good and bad aspects of nursing. Keep in mind that just in case you work with dissatisfied nurses doesn't mean that is how it is everywhere. ( I delayed nursing school because I thought all nurses were unhappy, then realized it was the department I was in. ) Also a CNA may be taught one way to do something but in nursing school clinicals do things the way they teach you. "We do it like this where I work" are not the words your instructors ever want to hear. You will learn a lot and be ahead of other students not previously exposed to patient care. Good Luck!

I just received my BSN from UTA. I found this accelerated program to be excellent. It required discipline, lots of reading and paper writing, and you need to keep track of which class to take next and buy your textbook on time. I did not work at a participating hospital. I completed my degree in 17 months. Good Luck and Go Mavericks!

I have never heard of a tear cloth but what a beautiful symbolic token of remembrance. My mother was virtually blind at the time of her death but seemed to be seeing something beautiful the day before she passed. She looked at the blank wall as if she was watching a movie, eyes following ...something, she reached towards what ever it was and amazingly smiled. Mom had advanced Alzheimer's and had not shown facial expression in a year or more. She also spoke of my father (deceased 10 years), although she had long forgotten him. "Your dad is waiting for me to come home, I don't want to keep him waiting." (goosebumps). She did not shed tears from what I remember. Only her family.

You may be fortunate enough to be offered a less physically demanding position by your employer. I was not. After injuring my back (SI joint) in a fall on my hospital's icy parking lot I was given a couple months of light duty while going to physical therapy. When the Workman's Comp physician said I had permanent limitations - a lifting restriction of 20 lbs - I was told I would be terminated. My employer felt it would be a liability if I were to have any patient contact reasoning that if they needed assistance ambulating, or fell, I would injury myself or them due to my limitation. My back injury has been a red flag on interviews with other department heads. I had been a model employee. Employee of the month award, and was transitioning from telemetry to ICU. I was terminated in 2009. I still have reoccurring back pain from simple tasks, and occasionally need physical therapy, but have refused to rely on pain medication. I was just hired as a substitute school nurse. I hope to eventually become a hospice nurse. Good luck. Back pain changes your life in countless ways.

Thank you all. At the time I had been working on a telemetry unit, my patients were seldom DNRs. They were on a monitor and I did q4 assessments. I had vital signs and lab results to measure status changes. With my mom I felt a bit...blindfolded. I had a brother out of state asking if I was sure he should fly home, and other family members asking me to predict how long mom had. I was not doing an assessment like I would my patients, but must admit I listened to her lungs and discussed with hospice staff if suctioning would make mom more comfortable or just stimulate her secretions, and we discussed if O2 nc 2L might make her more comfortable..... When I spoke to my family I did not "give report" as a nurse would, I spoke to them as a sibling. When my best friend, an ICU nurse,called I was able to give her a clear picture of what was going on. I kept my stethoscope in my bag, not around my neck. My sister is totally non-medical (engineering) and I did not want her uncomfortable. She had never seen anyone die. I did not want to "one up" her or make her uncomfortable when it was time for post mortem care of mom. That was another reason I didn't attend to mom's final bathing.

i felt an advantage being a nurse, acting as my mothers advocate as her advanced dementia required her being a ltc facility resident. i was her daughter and loved her, and part of that love was monitoring her care, reviewing her medication orders, labs and watching for skin breakdown, fall risks, etc. i was involved with her care plan and acted as her primary contact and power of attorney. i explained her medical issues to my siblings. i knew her medical history better than anyone. i had a history of caring for my mom since my fathers death 10 years before. my father's last words to me being "take care of your mother". and so i did. i moved her near me and then in with my family until her dementia made it unsafe for her to ever be alone. i worked full time on a telemetry unit, night shift and my husband a hospital pharmacist. i visited her frequently in ltc and took her to all doctor's appointments. i understood when it was time for hospice care and explained it to my brother and sister. my way of demonstrating love to my mother did not change when she was actively dying. i spoke to her, held her and brushed her hair, but i also assisted in turning her, fixing her pillows, listened to her heart and lung sounds and asked for heel protectors etc. i helped bathe her because i had been doing so for years. the hospice social worker admonished me for being a nurse instead of a daughter, and told me i should let others be the nurse now. he told me it was time to "take off my nurse's cap" and just be a daughter. this went against the grain for me. i don't think i was being the control freak nurse/daughter. ( we have all dealt with those before) i tried to explain that providing care to my mother was how i loved her. i felt self conscious asking about her vital signs or medication doses after that. after she passed i relented and let the nursing techs bathe her. often i have thought back and wished i had bathed her that last time. isn't it possible to be a good daughter and still think like a nurse? was my behavior any different than any other caregivers? how do you separate the roles?

Administrator removed it but I was allowed to post the link on my profile page. I was surprised at how much information is available on Compassion Fatigue and other websites dedicated to this.

Administrator removed it but I was allowed to post the link on my profile page. Come check it out and leave comments. thanks

My link was removed ( self promotion violation) but can be found on my profile page. Please leave comments. I thought this would be a good place to share, and didn't understand the rule about not posting other site info...sorry!