elizabells BSN, RN

elizabells is a BSN, RN and specializes in NICU.

elizabells's Latest Activity

1. 

   LPCH-New grads?

   elizabells replied to Colo9740's topic in California

   My inside informant tells me that at least one of LPCH's units has such low census that other units had to absorb nurses who were at risk of being laid off. So basically no outside hiring was done this year.
2. 

   Problems with blood bank

   elizabells replied to Sweeper933's topic in NICU

   Okay, I know I'm terrible, and I'm sorry you're having frustrations with this (and I would be BOILING mad if I were you) but I'm giggling like a fiend right now. It's late, I guess. Nothing about this yet in NYC. But our blood bank suuuuuuuuhhhhuuuuu...
3. 

   One of those weeks

   elizabells replied to elizabells's topic in NICU

   The tally from the last M&M was 18 in a month. Which more than doubled our previous high, which was 8. We took the other NEC twin off the other day 2/2 a bad bleed. On the bright side, I had the most rock-star cardiac the other day. Extubated le...
4. 

   You Know You're a Nurse When...

   elizabells replied to Brownms46's topic in Humor

   You know you're a nurse when you find yourself trying to convince your cardiologist that it's different when YOU look to Dr Google for theories on what's wrong with you, not like when a REGULAR patient does it and it's annoying. Ahem.
5. 

   One of those weeks

   elizabells replied to elizabells's topic in NICU

   Jesus mercy. Now we have a neonatal leukemia. Our fellow told me today we've had fourteen deaths this month. The NEC kid died. We got another bad, bad NEC from an OSH a few days ago, and today they brought in her twin, also with terrible NEC. The he...
6. 

   One of those weeks

   elizabells posted a topic in NICU

   So in the past week, we've had: A former 36wk TGA who was grown for a while, full feeds, used to take him off the monitor and walk him around. Then we did his arterial switch. Died suddenly just after the OR. A harlequin ichthyosis. Died. Conjoined t...
7. 

   pain management in infants with chest tubes

   elizabells replied to dopeyrn's topic in NICU

   Well, we do have a new TEN PAGE flowsheet for PCAs and drips... that'll fix everything!
8. 

   pain management in infants with chest tubes

   elizabells replied to dopeyrn's topic in NICU

   yappy, the thing that's frustrating is that we've DONE all that. JHACO hit us hard on our (total lack of) pain management this summer. The issue is a total culture change at this point. The knowledge is there, but the will is not.
9. 

   pain management in infants with chest tubes

   elizabells replied to dopeyrn's topic in NICU

   You guys, if I told you how hard I had to fight and kick and scream today to get ONE DOSE of PO Tylenol for a kid who'd just been circed, who was lying there going ballistic, PIPP score of 10, with no fewer than FIVE doctors at my bedside watching hi...
10. 

    Things you'd LOVE to be able to tell patients, and get away with it.

    elizabells replied to AngelfireRN's topic in Relations

    1. PLEASE stop pretending you understand more than the most basic English. The doctors are starting to think I'm crazy when I call them back for the tenth time to explain the gravity of your child's condition to you because you keep saying "Okay" and...
11. 

    Things you'd LOVE to be able to tell patients, and get away with it.

    elizabells replied to AngelfireRN's topic in Relations

    "If the smell of smoke coming off you can knock me, who has smoked a pack a day for ten years, halfway off my feet and make me instantly nauseated when you come to visit your just-had-open-heart-surgery BABY, perhaps you should look into changing you...
12. 

    pain management in infants with chest tubes

    elizabells replied to dopeyrn's topic in NICU

    Oh, bitty, they hate me too. I got called into the principal's office and warned that my Pyxis usage was being monitored because I actually, you know, GAVE PRN's when they were ordered on an ECMO baby.
13. 

    pain management in infants with chest tubes

    elizabells replied to dopeyrn's topic in NICU

    Pain meds for chest tubes? Oh, that would be nice. Most of the time I can't get them to order meds when they're putting the chest tube IN, like not even lidocaine, let alone Fentanyl or somesuch.
14. 

    nursing assistants mixing breastmilk

    elizabells replied to Lil' sister's topic in NICU

    Man, we don't even let moms put their own breast milk in the fridge anymore. Like Steve said, triple scan with the barcode dealie. When a junior nurse screwed up EBM, they got suspended. Once it happened to a senior nurse, oh, hey, it's a SYSTEMS err...
15. 

    MRSA colonization and staff

    elizabells replied to oramar's topic in Disease

    Nope. They were off for two weeks, paid. I do know of one woman who was actually infected while working, and the strain was identified as originating with a particular patient. She had multiple abcesses that had to be I&E'ed, and it took her a re...