rockin'1997

St Joe's is a great school...but, if time and travel are an issue I understand that Drexel has a terrific on-line masters in nursing education program. With the price of gas these days....on-line programs are much more appealing. I have taken a few on-line classes and really enjoy the opportunity to sit down at any hour of the day to do my assignments.

How you can tell you are a nurse if: 1) you have the patience of a saint 2) you have a bladder than can hold 3 liters of fluid 3) you have a smile for everyone 4) you have the ability to remember all 9,632 things you need to get done in 1 shift, and get them done 5) you can grap a piece of pizza and eat it while sitting on the toilet because they just called a trauma and it may be hours before you get the opportunity to eat and pee (you do what you gotta do) 6) you are not afraid to cry 7) you are not afraid to laugh I'm sure there are many others. I think it's time we start tooting our horns and letting the world know what a Nurse really looks like.-

I have worked and cared for as many as 10 patients in one shift on a busy cardio/pulmonary unit (sick calls left us short-staffed). This was becoming more and more frequent. I would leave in the morning wondering what I missed. We threatened union action and low and behold patient ratios dropped to 1:5/6. More manageable, but not always safe based on acuity. Politicians all talk a good game, but then they have the monetary resources to hire private duty nurses. I have witnessed poor patient care, missed medications, and unsafe practices strictly related to nurses trying to care for too many patients at one time. Until we, as a nation of nurses unites, this problem will not be solved.