lilund27

We use microfilters on our PIV lines running Amiodarone. It helps but its not 100%

Just this morning I decided to get my PCCN. I called my faculty nurse educator who is a PCCN and asked her to recommend a study guide. She recommended one from AACN. It is what she used. I ordered mine today. Core Curriculum for Progressive Care Nursing

I am part of the UBC where I work. I have been put in charge of finding or creating guidelines to having a conversational "safe zone" where my coworkers can address each other about issues that we notice without it being confrontational. (ex. "I noticed the IV tubing wasn't changed", "I noticed that our pt's room was littered with supplies and dirty linens after your shifts" ect.....) A coworker of mine told me about the "purple dot" conversations she had at her previous employer.......Basically a nurse noticed something left undone, or could have been done better and would approach the other nurse with......"can we have a purple dot conversation?" They would discuss the issue in a way that was not punitive. It was not meant to hurt someone's feelings or make them feel like they were in trouble or getting reamed. Many times she noticed that the observed behavior was improved after the conversations. Since I am in charge of creating these guidelines I would like to know if you have a similar program at your work that you can tell me about. Can you share your guidelines with me? I would also appreciate any evidenced based articles that you know of to support my guidelines, although its not required. Thanks a lot!!

Pentecostal Apostolic RN here!! I buy my skirts from Bettencourt Manufacturing Inc - www.TrendUniforms.com - Wholesale Scrubs. They are relatively cheap only costing $7-$9 plus shipping. They come in xs-5x. Im 5' 2" 215# and I buy the 2-3x skirts. They are all very comfortable and serve their purpose. I have even been tempted to wear them to church when brand new, lol. Unfortunately they but do come with slits. All my skirts fall mid-calf when standing and cover my knees and more when I sit. Plus I wear them hiked way up above my belly button so if a person wore them normally they would cover more. For me, I don't have a problem feeling or looking modest in them in the least. If I were concerned I could hand stitch the slits if I had too. I started a FB group for Apostolic nurses/students and healthcare in general. Its really small but I wanted to connect with others smarty skirts in health care. Join it and tell me you saw my post here. https://www.facebook.com/groups/191505727073/

After reading these posts and giving it a lot of thought, I realized that I enjoy bedside nursing a lot and that I am no where ready to be an NP. I did however apply and was accepted into a nurse educator program and in retrospect feel it is the right decision for me and meets my needs for right now. I realized that I still have options should I choose the NP/CNS route later. I know if I stop now I may never finish and reach my personal goal of earning a masters degree. Plus I have the desire now so why not pursue something greater for myself? Thank you all for your input. I did take it to heart and believe it helped me make the best decision I could make.

Congrats!! Your gonna love it. If I'm not mistaken that is the same book we teach out of to learn about basic cardiac rhythms. Its awesome and easy to read. I also work on acute tele and stroke. As far as orificenal.....you don't need anything special beside your stethoscope and a watch.....I actually use the clock on the wall. But if I were you I would get to know your critical drips and hospital policy regarding them. Where I work we get a lot of CHF pt's, so get familiar with diuretics, beta blockers and other cardiac drugs. We also see a lot of AFIB so you will need to know about anticoags, pt/inr, ect. As far as CP goes just remember MONA (Morphine, O2, Nitro, Aspirin). CP'ers also get a statin. The rest will fall into place as you learn about different cardiac disorders and their treatments. On the CVA side of things try to remember the difference in the types of stroke and the symptoms they present (Left side affects language, ect) Also if the pt was eligible and received TPA. You have to be mindful of the risk for bleeding. We assess for stroke using MEND and we score it using NIHSS. Always remember a stroke pt should remain NPO if they have slurred speech, drooling or facial droop. They should should have a swallow eval done beside a basic bedside swallow test. You never can tell who is a silent aspirator. Good Luck :)

I work on an Acute Tele Unit and have given small bolus's to CHF pt's. Sometimes the benefit out ways the risk. Odds are your pt was on diuretics and that could have been partially to blame for a low bp too. The main thing to watch for is fluid overload, respiratory distress, O2 levels, ect. I am glad you asked the doctor for a small bolus. I prolly would have done the same thing.

So a little more about myself..... I've been a nurse for 2.5 years and work on tele. I occasionally float to the ICU or Med-Surge. I really enjoy the clinical setting. I don't have much experience teaching but when I get the opportunity to I love it as well. I'm hoping begin precepting students this summer and start teaching clinical by this winter. I am certain that I don't want to teach theory. I guess my main concern is that the Nurse Ed track will limit me. On the other hand I don't know if I can handle the responsibility of being a NP. If I had my choice I would do both.

Im applying for my masters degree and I'm having trouble deciding which route to take. I'm looking for advice and the pros and cons of each route.