MD_Rn

1. RN 2. 6 3. Maryland 4. no 5. yes 6. yes 7. no 8. no 9. no 10. I love being a nurse, I hate all the politics that go with my job 11. no 12. I work a 12 hour shift and generally take about 20 minutes of my 1/2 hour lunch and none of my 3 15 min breaks 13. 12 hour days 14. half 15. Pro 16. for the right reasons, yes

Worked the first part of my career in NJ, now living in Maryland... The difference: I had more respect from pts, doctors and coworkers in NJ. I made more money in NJ (cost of living is about the same). I had more say in how I performed my job in NJ and I felt more secure in my position. I do not feel respected for my knowledge or practice in MD... I have worked at 3 different employers in MD and experienced the same thing. Never changed jobs in NJ.

I don't do peds but have done a handful of 18 yo brain tumors. They have done WONDERFUL!! They are healthy and have had few complications or side effects. One I remember came in after his opthamologist discovered increased IOP on his routine exam. He came straight to the hospital that day, had the MRI was scheduled for surgery the next day and went home 2 days later, no worse for the wear but with a new haircut and a story to tell. I think it was worse on his parents than on him Brain tumor resection is much more refined these days, surgery typically goes very well and recovery is especially easy and short in young individuals. Not knowing the specifics of size of tumor and symptoms your son is experiencing I can't really add too much more. But I have seen really good results in young people after tumor resection. Good Luck and God Bless!

Perfume is a BIG No-No in the neuro world. It can trigger all sorts of reactions in our pts from vomitting to seizures. As far as the nails go, not only do I find it irresponsible and unprofessional, but as a nursing student a baby in the hospital where I was assigned died from a fungal infection traced to the fake fingernails of her nurse. Use a little common sense.

Forensic nursing is very exciting. Unfortunately, the jobs are few and far between. The pay for death investigators is pretty low, too. The best advice I can give students is to get into the ED and get your experience, lots of it. Employers are looking for someone who is familliar with injuries and patterns, someone who is no stranger to abuses. In KS, you can attend the U of St. Louis Medicolegal Death Investigators Training Course. It is a week long. Once you get into the ED then maybe you can create your own position as a forensic specialist on call to your hospital with additional training. Then see if you can get an in with your coroner or ME, doing anything! And take it from there. Death Investigators positions are few and very saught after. I was once told that an investigator was retiring in 2 yrs and they already had 300 resumes! What were they looking for? Hands on experience. Good Luck to you. And join the International Assn of Forensic Nurses... go to their website for info. They will send you lots of great stuff in the mail regarding training in all aspects of forensic nursing. [This message has been edited by MD_Rn (edited March 01, 2001).]

Boy did you ask a loaded question I often hear my coworkers wondering actually where our manager is. I think it is important that a nurse manager be available to the staff. I know, I know you have like a zillion meetings to go to. But, I think it makes the staff feel better when they know they can go to their manager with issues and problems. I think they feel more confident in him/her if she is a visible presecnce on the unit. It isn't so bad in the trenches, c'mon down And of course, there is always the staffing issue... We need more staff, we are not saying it just to vent, b*tch, moan and grumble. Nurses are a conscientious bunch, we expect to give excellent patient care and we expect the staff to do so. We are not living under a rock, we are aware of the nursing shortage because we are feeling its impacts. But we are also aware of spending in hospitals that could be converted into contracting a nurse. We don't want to hear excuses drummed up by the executive upper crust. We want a pair of gloved hands. We want to give our patients our best. And we need a nurse manager who will listen, stand up for us, and not fill our heads with a bunch of manager-ese. We want to be reminded that our efforts are appreciated. Please let your staff know what a good job they are doing and that you are aware of how difficult it is to be a good nurse in these times. You may have no control over monetary praise, but sometimes just praise in and of itself works wonders too. Nurse manager... Listen, support, act, appreciate.

Boy did you ask a loaded question I often hear my coworkers wondering actually where our manager is. I think it is important that a nurse manager be available to the staff. I know, I know you have like a zillion meetings to go to. But, I think it makes the staff feel better when they know they can go to their manager with issues and problems. I think they feel more confident in him/her if she is a visible presecnce on the unit. It isn't so bad in the trenches, c'mon down And of course, there is always the staffing issue... We need more staff, we are not saying it just to vent, b*tch, moan and grumble. Nurses are a conscientious bunch, we expect to give excellent patient care and we expect the staff to do so. We are not living under a rock, we are aware of the nursing shortage because we are feeling its impacts. But we are also aware of spending in hospitals that could be converted into contracting a nurse. We don't want to hear excuses drummed up by the executive upper crust. We want a pair of gloved hands. We want to give our patients our best. And we need a nurse manager who will listen, stand up for us, and not fill our heads with a bunch of manager-ese. We want to be reminded that our efforts are appreciated. Please let your staff know what a good job they are doing and that you are aware of how difficult it is to be a good nurse in these times. You may have no control over monetary praise, but sometimes just praise in and of itself works wonders too. Nurse manager... Listen, support, act, appreciate.

1. Staffing... adequate staffing for safe pt care and to avoid nurse burn out 2. Supportive Mgt... goes with the adequate staff 3. Hours 4. Benefits 5. Money 6. Job security (only last because I feel very secure in my current position) Would love to see the stats on the end results of this survey

You might want to check out the results on the Lovenox studies... it is not effective for CVAs, good for DVTs though.

What is it about your current job that you love so much? You need to figure out what this is, if it is something that the small hospital can't offer you... such as fast pace. You may be terribly unhappy changing jobs. I went from a 200 bed hospital to an 800 bed and hated it... went back to a small community hospital. Every hospital has its own strengths and advantages, but ultimately you have to love what you do. I left the big city hospital not because of the pace, just because of the staff... who were all those people anyway. The turn over rate was awful. I find my job in the community hospital challenging, fast paced and enjoyable. Small hospitals have the advantage of being more friendly, because everyone knows one another and most people are there for a very long time. Figure out what it is that makes you happy in your current situation and then decide if you can find the same things in the new job and you will have your answer. Good Luck!

Hi, I completely agree... cover all your bases and think everything through. I went back to school to get my associates and it wasn't easy, but thank goodness I had a supportive husband and wonderful friends and relatives to help me out. I had people lined up to take care of my kids and we bit the bullet on the finances... spagetti and hot dogs for a while But I went part time, it took a little longer but I was available for my family and it wasn't so much of a financial strain. I am not sure what lpns are making in your area but you should really look at that... it may not be more than 13/hr. Good Luck to you.

While I don't have a policy for you, I can suggest you contact someone at NINDS, specializing in cjd, they can probably help you.... http://ninds.nih.gov/health_and_medical/disorders/cjd.htm Good Luck!

I have been absent from neuro nursing for 2 years... Couldn't stand it and came back...yes, I am crazy... But, my question is aboout the current treatment for ischemic strokes. The neuro guys where I am now are going stright for the Plavix? I guess I am just an old heparin/coumadin kinda girl. What are you all doing out there?

Could you clarify? They wanted you not to wear shoes??? Ewww.... I once had a homecare pt who was asian and did not allow any shoes inside the house, but it was spotless. No cockroaches. As far as working with diseases you have not been exposed to, we all do that every day, it is unfortunately part of the job description. But as an agency nurse, one of the benefits is being able to pick and choose assignments. Ok, I would not have worked shoeless with roaches, but I don't think not working because of chicken pox is a good reason.

Hi, I just left home health after 2 yrs there and returned to the hospital setting. As far as teamwork, you really need to be confident with your own assessment and skills, because your it! You can call in to the office or call the MD, but the bottom line is you are the only one who is actually physically with the pt. Home Health is a very autonomous career and I always worry about new grads going in to it, but if you are confident in your abilities and being on your own than I am sure you will do just fine. It is a great schedule for kids, just be careful to make sure you know what the on call requirements are. Why did I leave? The paper work sucks The new HCFA requirements for reimbursement made paperwork the majority of what I did. I missed seeing patients and I missed the challenges the hospital setting offers. Good Luck!

This past January I took the Medicolegal Death Investigator's Training Course at St. Louis University. It was a wonderful course, very informative with lots of great speakers and photos. However, when I tried to put my new skills to use... I fell flat. There is a huge number of investigators out there looking for jobs and training really makes no difference, they want the hands on expereince. Even in Baltimore, where we average close to 300 homicides only a year (not to mention all the other unattended deaths and MVAs), there were no jobs to be found. There are alot of great training programs out there, another great one out of Dade Cty Florida. But it is very difficult to get a job. I was once told by some one in the field, that they had an investigator retiring in 2 yrs and already had 300 applications! Good Luck and Be persistant.