HazeK

reasonable, for the area's cost of living... I've been here 23 years, and earn $30/hr, at the top of the pay scale for staff nurses. Per Diem's usually make $30-$35/hr. New Grads, Hmmm not sure. Compared to California, lower salaries...but not quite as high of cost of living. does this help any? Haze

We have built four new hospitals in the past decade...with three more to be built in the next five years... Yes, we need nurses! Haze Sunrise Hospital RN x 23 years... Spring Valley Hospital "moonlighter"

Changed several months ago from hospital scrubs to wear-your-own-from-home scrubs. No increase infection rates thus far. Doubt there will be! I loved the no cost part of hospital scrubs, but is surely is nice to wear some colors now and then besides a 'barfy-celery-green'! :chuckle

Love our disposable cuffs for L&D! We quite often have bloody messes at delivery...it is so nice to not have to try to clean out the nondisposable cuffs! Haze

I had RNY Gastric bypass last June, very successfully. Those who know me "before" and "after" often ask questions about the procedure, risks, benefits, etc. I often refer them to www.obesityhelp.com, a huge website full of info, data, stories, photos, reviews of MDs and hospitals, etc. I also refer them to OSSG at Yahoo!Groups.com, for an online support group. I also refer my L&D patients experiencing perinatal loss to websites for online support groups.

Yup! Come on down to L&D! Haze

LOVED the photo of Klinger, in his best "nurse garb" of the early '50's! Hugs, Haze

aldomet: used long-term in pregnancy to help control the BP, NOT for crisis management apresoline and Labetelol: used IVP for extreeme hypertensiive episodes where bringing down BP quickly is essential. Procardia: used sometimes post-delivery to help keep BP down, for short term use. Mag Sulfate: anti-seizure med, with nice side effect of lowering BP 10-20mmHg. Hope this helps. Haze

i am green with envy, yet excited for you! keep us all posted on how it is going! i wish my life had lead me that direction earlier. i would have enjoyed it! hugs haze

Our themesong in Las Vegas, in the desert: "A Hydrated Uterus is a Happy Uterus"! LOL!

My very healthy, but Down's Syndrome, 9 month old nephew was visiting. His mom treated him like he was "going to break" all the time, like he was delicate and fragile like a piece of glass. I suggested she instead treat him as she did her other child, only even moreso. (Like working with PT to strengthen his limbs his breathing, etc. rather than keeping him at home, in a car seat or stroller all the time). We all went to the pool. I, the eternal optimist. insisted the kid be hauled into the children's pool with all our other children. He LOVED the water, kicking and splashing everywhere....BUT after about 30 minutes, he deveolped a vivid Harlequin's Sign! We couldn't miss it! One half of him was pale pink, and one half of him was CYANOTIC BLUE! Of course, we hauled his cute little butt out of the water, and warmed him up pronto! I am NOT a peds nurse, but I had her get him to a cardiologist within the week...Yup, sure enough, he had cardiac defects that had been overlooked to that point! He since has had two major surgeries and is doing well. We tease each other that either I nearly killed the kid by freezing him in the pool OR I saved his life by noticing the Harlequin's Sign and getting him to a proper cardiologist. Haze

all good points... I have worked w/ managers that supported their staff...and those that didn't. Definately makes a big difference. Continuing Ed would be nice...I am 23 years in my field, so the little "in-house" attempts at CEUs are boring...an annual stipend for quality higher ed would be nice I want to know how to limit the patients to only nice, friendly patients! In L&D, we get visibly excited when we have married, educated parents! LOL! How about microphones on a lapel clip so we can just dictate our notes as we go? Woouldn't this be a big help?!? Haze

I wear New Balance also, as they actually come WIDE enough for my short, wide foot! They are the only brand I have been able to take out of the box and wear immediately x 12 hour shift, without "breaking them in" like in the olden days of Clinics, Nursemates, etc. Haze

great info...keep it comming...the inspectors are here on Wednesday! thanks! Haze

"Ready or not, here THEY come"! survey is next week. Anyone have a recent survey and want to share with me some of the teams primary focus? Thanks Haze

Any other suggestions from those that read this thread?? 'Cuz, ready or not, here THEY come! LOL! Haze :chuckle

From a consumer's point of view: LDRP's mean you don't have to move yourself, your stuff, etc. LDRP beds also are NOT as comfortable as regular hospital beds... most of my patients comment about how much better the bed is on the postpartum unit. From a nursing point of view: I love LDR's...but someone else can have the "P's"! I am a self-confessed adrenaline-junkie who likes the fast pace of L&D. I work in a unit that does 450 deliveries a month, so there is no way to be doing LDRP's effectively. But in our community, even the small "yuppie" hospitals are going to LDR's + postpartum units, as it seems more cost-effective use of floor space and staffing. In my hospital, the preferences/temperment of the postpartum staff is defferent than the L&D staff. Postpartum staff prefer rountines, teaching, team nursing while the L&D staff are very autonomous, assertive/aggressive staff who prefer 1:1 or 1:2 direct patient care...and more of a "move them in, delivery them, move them out" mentality. Not into the cutsy family moments as much as the postpartum gals! Haze

Nope, not this girl... I can barely stand to work as hard as I do for straight pay in my regular hours! This issue will have many more nurses unioninzing, to be sure that overtime pay is in their contract! Haze

Since sterility in lady partsl deliveries is sort of a moot point, I often have the dads open the bottle of sterile water and pour it into the sterile basin and tell them it is the modern equivelent of "boiling water" for the delivery! They get quite a chuckle out of this! (and no our docs never use the sterile basin during the delivery...it usually gets used for post-delivery cleanup!) Hugs Haze "Be who you are and say what you feel, becuase those who matter don't mind, and those that mind don't matter." Dr Seuss

same here in Las Vegas...great help in nsy, postpartum or as scrub techs... too many IV pushes, etc to be cost effective in L&D. Haze

don't get me wrong, I'd love to have manicured nails... but as a graduate of a conservative nursing program 30 years ago, I guess I got used to restrictions during my education! Clear polish on natural nails, only. One pair of earrings, plain studs only. One plain wedding band, left hand, if married. Hair above the collar line. Period. End of discussion. And the hospitals held to the same standard, so it was no different once we went to work. As an old nurse, I am often amazed at what fellow staff feel is appropriate! Long hair that falls into the nurses' eyes...or patient's beds, wounds, etc. dangling earrings that are a nusiance in the OR glitter eye shadow (oh, yes, believe it or not) six pairs of hoop earrings etc. When folks protest about their rights, I just laugh! This is NOT a public mall, or your own home. This is a JOB, a profession that you are paid for. It is appropriate to conform to one's employer's standards! (Heck, my boss picked lilac colored scrubs for us...yuck...but I wear them!) Hugs Haze :-)

OK, Seriously: "ER has been a very exciting yet stressful environment for me since you never know what is going to come in the door." ---Uh, THAT is the FUN part of L&D! Every day is different! "what is a "typical" day like?" ---No such thing as a typical day, unless you mean LOTS of hard work, few breaks, and maybe lunch by 3pm! "How many patients are you assigned too?" ---2 laboring patients or ---1 delivering patient or ---1 c/s patient or ---3 to 4 antepartum patients. "What do you do if more than one patient are fully dilated and ready to push...does another nurse take over?" ----yes, God willing...(pray for more woment to love Nursing! LOL) What is your typical stress level on average (1-10)? ---in my understaffed unit, with many non-English-speaking patients, a 12! "What is the best part of your job?" ---making a BIG difference in someone's life!! "What is the worst part of your job?" ---understaffing, physical fatigue, Do you think an ER nurse could make the transition easily or do you think it is a "whole other world"? ----nope...easy transition! You are used to direct patient care, mulitasking, working directly with physicians, time management, physical and emotional crisis intervention, etc. How long do you think the orientation would be? ---at my hospital, it is a 12 week Preceptorship, that includes classroom AND bedside teaching and supervision. Come on over! Hugs Haze Sunrise Hospital L&D Las Vegas, Nevada

Personally speaking, I think being a bit crazy helps alot!

Sure! I work full time in a High Risk L&D (>400 deliveries a month) AND per deim at a level one hospital with