kcollins08

I don't mean this in a condescending way... But. Study more. Also, study effectively. If flash cards work for you, make flash cards, if you have to read the content multiple times, read it multiple times. Attempt to teach the content to a friend or family member. I always found that that helped me with comprehension of a topic. Take small breaks. Whatever it is that works for you to make you more effective, do it.

Finishing my BSN and starting work at 22, I didn't FEEL young even though I did my BSN in one swoop right after high school...but I was definitely the youngest nurse on my unit. However, I precepted some juniors from UT's nursing program and that definitely made even ME feel old at the ripe old age of 23. Haha.

Just thought I'd throw it out there, because I want to see what students expect and like from their precepting nurses during clinical. I love having nursing students and I feel that I facilitate learning/teach as best as I can, but any suggestions from current students would be awesome! I had, in general, pretty bad experiences with a lot of nurses I was with when I was a student and thus want - as I'm sure many other nurses do - current students to have the best experience they can and have an environment conducive to learning while on the floor.

I want to say that you just kind of "know", but I thought I "knew" in nursing school that I wanted to do ICU even though I originally wanted to do something in emergency medicine from when I was a kid. Did my clinical specialty/capstone for my BSN in Pedi and also Adult ICUs because I wanted to do Pedi or adult ICU. After I graduated, I worked on a tele floor for a few months as a stepping stone to ICU (and because it was the first job I got) and ended up bored out of my mind once I started working ICU unless my patient(s) was(were) circling the toilet. Thus...I'm back to my first love - emergency. I do agree, however, with being very, very flexible when looking for your first job. It's a first job and you're a new graduate with no experience - be happy with getting that first job even if it is in (insertnotexactlyyourfavoritespecialtyhere) nursing. Once you have the ever important "experience" on your resume, the doors will open. Also, your foot will already be in the door. Make friends on other units. Make connections. Work hard and things will come around.

Another vote for either the Cardio III or the Master Cardiology. I personally use the Master Cardiology (I like the single sided design), but I've borrowed a friend's Cardiology III and liked it a lot as well. Served me well in telemetry, ICU, and hopefully will serve me well in my new ER job as well :)

:edit: In the last sentence of my first post, I meant led to the hypothermia

With a hx of ETOH abuse, the hyponatremia may be as a result of cirrhosis of the liver...beer potomania could also go hand in hand with that (hyponatremia induced by massive consumptions of beer/dilute alcoholic beverages), although you did say he didn't have any ETOH or drugs in his system at the time. What did they do for a work up? Myxedema coma can have hyponatremia and also cause a decrease in your body temperature. There IS an electrolyte shift in hypothermia - serum potassium usually decreases in the cool period and increases in the warming period, but in regards to hypothermia and it's correlation with sodium, I've read conflicting data on that - some have reported that serum sodium increases, some that it decreases. I'm guessing that in this case the hyponatremia caused the arrest and being down for so long, along with maybe underlying conditions, led to the hyponatremia?