Elliot.Kane

Isn't all rounding proactive? Usually a good nurse would let the hospitalist know first and then if they thought it was serious they'd contact the intensivist first. The intensivist would then probably go put eyes on this patient as a courtesy to determine if they are critical, or a basic floor level fix. You don't have to create a system for a system that already exists. Indeed, you may simply complicate an already simplified system that the family is unlikely to appropriately use. Furthermore, maybe this is simply a necessary reminder to reteach your nurses to use the chain of command. You can't get in trouble for calling a rapid. But you'd be better advised to seek help before a rapid is called, if you can. Also, the way this question is framed in a way that supposes you sit behind a desk that exposes you to little clinically and that you're seeking a kudos for the paperwork you create.

Would you take the advice if it was what you wanted to hear? Is it advice from those whose opinions you would blindly trust in other matters? I got some good advice early on that you may or may not find useful: don't seek validation; it's not important, and you won't get it anyway. Also, not everyone seeks fulfillment from their occupation. It doesn't have to be that missing thing that completes you. It's just as relevant and useful to utilize nursing as a means to an end, to work as a nurse as a means to do what you truly love.

1) Currently: just finished my first year of nursing in the ICU. I moved to take this job, to skip some of the steps that others listed as 2-3 years out, and it's going even more wonderfully than I could have anticipated. 2) Within the next 3 months: I'm doing something right, I think, because I'll be training as a preceptor in a few weeks. Not a preceptor for new grads, initially, but for practicum students. I just completed training to take patients on balloon pump, and soon I'll be taking CRRT training. May will include my level 2 clinician training. 3) By the end of this year: I'll have had the opportunity to train as a team leader (charge nurse). This is the one that I'm anticipating and looking most forward to, but it's also the training that makes me the most nervous. Also, TNCC training is obligatory by the end of this year. When I realized that I wanted to work intensive care, and before that, really, I thought CRNA was the next step. I have a CCRN book in my locker, and I know that this summer I'll have time to crack it's spine. CRNA possibilities are still in my mind but no longer at the forefront. Anesthesia still holds its obvious appeal, but recently I've been looking into business schools and MBA/MSN programs. 4) 3 years: this is the amount of time I feel will minimally prepare me for graduate school. By this time, I don't feel like I'll be applying to programs for school, but the fantasy will only be a year or two until realization. 5) Between my third and fifth year of nursing: what I'd really like to do is challenge myself in a new ICU. Maybe a higher level of care, a destination hospital, a research hospital, or a hospital with specialty ICUs. Who knows? 6) 5 years: Grad school. Maybe that MBA with a healthcare focus. I want/crave leadership training. My goal is to work in a large urban area again, but this time to work for a non-profit that benefits the underserved. Personally, I want to travel more. Nursing in just a year has already allowed me to do that, but I'm realizing more and more about myself through this wonderful vocation that I'm less interested in material and more interested in experience.

It's like anything else: people have poor experiences with nurses sometimes, and that's reflected in their opinions of the entire profession. One of the greatest aspects of nursing is its diversity. When people make broad, sweeping statements about an entire group it only serves to highlight their ignorance. Give them a positive reason to change their stance.

I disagree that med surg is foundational. It may serve that function for you, but in all the experiences that I've had floating to medical, I would call med surg a very valid specialty of its own. The ability to manage five, six or more patients is remarkable. But managing that many different diagnoses, doctors, specialties, and family needs takes a skill set of its own, in addition to a great deal of patience. Treating med surg like a spring board is unfair, and I would debate oftentimes unnecessary. If there is an endgame that you have in mind, why not apply for it directly? Maybe they will suggest acute care experience, but you might be surprised.

I wanted to reach out and see if there were any suggestions for nursing specific volunteer possibilities. What have you found? What did you enjoy about it? Any specific qualifications? I have some extra time and I wanted to do something rewarding, while also thinking about graduate school applications down the line.

Gauze and paper pore tape should be sufficient.

This is not true, and the literature repeatedly refutes it.

My friends have never given me a hard time about my career decisions. Maybe I have more supportive friends? I've never worked with females that weren't just as willing and capable of lifting and turning as any of the men on the unit. Turning a 400lb patient takes a toll on anyone's back. As far as drama, that seems to be a personal decision--not a gender based predisposition. When I was starting school and before I made the decision to go to nursing school, I thought being male would make the work different or more challenging or what not, but after working for a while, I've learned that no one cares. It's not an issue unless you make it one.

Sometimes my shifts will be grouped from Thursday to Tuesday, so it's 6 12's in a row. Or I'll have a random day off in between that I'll choose to pick up an extra shift. I try to get my hours between 85-95 a pay period. A regular 72-hour-no-overtime paycheck feels weak.

You can't judge a book by its cover...you can't judge a good nurse by appearance alone.

1 or 2

Isn't "insane" a legal designation?

I'm a nurse. When I introduce myself to my patients, I say, "I'm your nurse." So, it makes sense when they say, "where's my nurse?" When I hear people address or refer to CNAs, I have more of a problem when people use the word "just". As in, he/she is "just" a CNA. I think it's easy when people address you to determine if they are being disrespectful or not. If not, then let it go...if so, then have a private conversation with that specific person. I am an advocate for addressing issues at the lowest level--as we all know, problems breed problems.

What is included under the term professionalism seems to vary by subscriber. I would consider unprofessional the act of a supervisor discussing another associate with her peers. Furthermore, I would consider friending superiors on social media a blur of professional lines. It is hard to not show favoritism towards a subordinate when you're friends with them outside of work. Discussing coworkers at all, without them present, unless you're making positive comments is something I see as unprofessional. One thing that I've found that is a universal language--smiling and saying yes, even when you'd rather not and keeping your opinions of coworkers and patients to yourself.