lvs2nrs3535

We all take the same NCLEX. We all do the same work. We all get paid the same. But as an ADN nursing student? We have to learn the same basics, in a much shorter time span. Its very challenging. (MAN is that an understatement!!!!!:chuckle) A friend of mine in a BSN program had 8 weeks of lectures on diabetes. We had TWO lectures. TOTAL:(. And still have to know all the same material. NOT that I think the BSN would be easier? But for some people, it might be better. I know it took me a lot of self direction to manage to get the studying in that I needed to pass the tests. You didnt need to know what was in the lectures. You just needed to know it all! JMO Lvn

Unfortunately...I have had that same experience in a couple of the nursing homes I temped in. Having no med tech to do the med pass leaves you with no time to deal with any of your actual nursing responsibilitied, never mind charting! I complained to my boss at the agency, told them that if they were not going to at least have a med tech, I wasnt going back. NO its not safe! Its YOUR license on the line, and bottom line? No one is going to stick up for you if you make a med error because you are completely overloaded. Never mind, when do you have time to document? No, no all the assignments I have gotten have been like...but I would consider no accepting another assignment there unless they get you a med tech. Talk you your agency. And remember how hard you worked for your license!!!!!!!!!! I hated to give up the shifts, sure the pay is good, but is it worth it? I decided not. JMO... Good LUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! lvs

Im working in a physicians office now as the triage nurse. Make SURE you know what your duties will be. Triage? I sit in an office and answer the phone all day! NOT what I wanted....and they only have one nurse, they use med techs for everything....and Im so frustrated watching them fumble their way through stuff I could do in two seconds...but no....I have to talk to a pt about whether they should keep taking prednisone or get that MRI....and of course its 95% about narcotics. I dont know. to be fair, the office is in transition. The med techs are all new. But, just make sure you are very clear what your role and responsibilities will be. This sounded like the perfect job. 8 to 5, and I have small boys in school. Its not. Im going crazy. JMO

Those half dose at bedtime insulins are a killer, especially if you are not used to second shift.... always recheck your insulins. Also, my biggest failing? Letting patients or other staff distract me when making a med pass. I beat myself up worse for those than any others. But what do you do when your charge nurse overloads you, and you end up making med errors because you are simply ridiculously overloaded? I was working as a rehab nurse, and with the high acuity patients we get now, (some are coming straight from the operating room now, directly from the ER after MVAs)...I have pts with picc lines, G tubes, IV's, trachs, amputations, huge wounds....anything and everything. Which is wonderful, as a newer nurse this was excellent training. But 7 patients is good. 8 was brutal. 10 impossible for anyone to handle. I was given ten. Theres just no way! I made a med error one night because of that...and Im so frustrated!!!!! Its my own fault...the MAR read 1 15mg dose, and 30 mg dose, with no 1 or 2 in front of it. Having so many people on narcotics which are 1 pill for 5mg dose, and 2pills for the ten....I took out two pills for the 30 mg dose. And they were 30 mg pills!!!!!!! As I said...there was NO one in front of the thirty, never mind a two...but that should have cued me in. I was running my butt off trying to keep up with the demands of ten high acuity patients, 7 of them diabetic, and I made a med error. Thank GOD the patient was not harmed. He was actually a very happy patient. But still. How do you fight back when they overload you like that? I ended p looking bad, no two ways about it...it was a flat our error. Most other med errors were actually documentation errors. Working with brain injured patients you often have to make multiple attempts to give them meds. I know I was written up at least four times for leaving meds in the drawer after I had attempted to give them three or four times. What I forgot to do was circle them and write pt refused, and dump the meds! But I was still written up. I stopped trying to give my pts meds after the fourth time. You refuse? Fine you refuse. But how fair is that to the brain injured pts? I just dont know anymore. I feel so discouraged. I ended up leaving my job because of it. And I loved my job....Im so depressed. I have been working agency since so I can get day shifts...... arrrrgh.... any advice?

Sorry, red spoon patient is a nickname for the patients with swallowing issues..which you have a lot of with strokes and brain injured pts. This pt did NOT have any swallowing issues...I researched it before I went to the doc. Thanks Phoebe... Im doing my best...it was retaliation on her part...It was over a month before I applied for and got unemployment...and I got a letter from her 5 days after that that she reported me to the board. If I was such an unsafe nurse...why did she wait 35 days? Go figure...

The ability to make a change in someones life. The satisfaction when a scared elderly woman holds your hand and tells you you are an angel just because you took the time to get her an extra blanket and tuck her in. The times when you coax, cajole, push, pull and scrap with rehab patients, and when they are walking out the door, they give you a hug and say.."I couldnt have done it without you." You tell them, of course you could have! But it still feels GREAT!!!!!!!!! Feeling pride in my vocation. What do you do? I...am a nurse.

I have always gone home from the interview and typed out a thank you letter immediately, and reiterated my interest in the position, and why I would be a good fit... I also called the unit and asked the nurse managers name...you dont have to tell them who you are, after all...just call and ask for the nursing station, and ask for the name with the correct spelling! I have also hand brought in the letter. Got the jobs! There are some excellent examples on the net...just good interview thank you letters.. its another option if you dont feel comfortable or that you might come across as pushy just going in. Good LUCK!

I worked for 9 months at a rehab facility. Very long story short...Another nurse who was a float stepped into a room where I was feeding a red spoon patient in a supine position, made a 10 second evaluation of the situation, and accused me of unsafe nursing. Although I proved later, I had the doctor come in and evaluate the patient, (the patient had no swallowing issues..only pain and limited ROM issues) and I was actually acting under that doctors orders...this nurse was a favorite of the Nurse Manager and DON....and my life subsequently became hell. They put me on probation, because of the supposed 'severity' of my unsafe actions. Even after I proved I was not acting unsafely, and wrote a letter of appeal to the DON, both as the DON and a member of the ethics committee...she completely ignored my letter..and they just said that I was on probation for to many med errors, to many latenesses, and to many missed shifts. I never once missed a shift! I traded shifts with verbal approval. I was in the right. I have never been written up for anything..never had patient complaints..as a matter of fact I was written up in the company newsletter for exemplary care of a patient due to a letter she wrote. I have had two verbal warnings for being late...and that was because I was dealing with domestic violence and my ex husband stalking me. I still came to work and was able to forget all that and immerse myself in my patients and their needs. This nurse actually caused my patient pain and harm with her actions...but somehow...Im the one out. She just happened to be best friends with the nurse manager AND the DON. I eventually had to leave my job. They changed my schedule to one I could not work, and when I told my nurse manager that...she said, well..dont work it, and its no call no show..and your done. Im miserable about it...but a lesson learned. Be careful whose toes you step on. They just might be attached to a butt you should be kissing. That did not matter...and Im now fighting for my license....after getting unemployement..(which I actually only collected for 4 weeks) Five days after getting unemployment? More than a MONTH after I was 'let go', The DON wrote a letter to my state board accusing me of multiple med errors, lateness and missed shifts. My life is hell...nursing IS my life, and now I am trying to write a letter to the board showing that this is retaliatory. I am devastated...I have nursing insurance, but I dont know if its to help me in a situation like this...isnt it just if a patient sues you? I am also supporting 2 children by myself, going through divorce, with no financial support. I am working right now, but Im so scared..... I do have all the documentation pertaining to the situation to support my side. The unemployment was granted because they tried to claim I chronically missed work. Simply, as a 32 hour a week employee..I showed unemployment my paystubs, and not ONCE did I get one under 74 hours, and most were 80 plus. I had to get unemployement due to my financial situation..it was not an option not to. Had I known this would happen...I wouldnt have. But..I cant believe a DON would abuse her powers this way. I am a good nurse...my skills have gotten better..my review was excellent, and my nurse manager took it and ripped it apart as a disciplinary action, instead of writing me up or following any of their own rules as a corporation. Again...Im devastated and frightened, I worked so hard to get my license...I am NOT a bad nurse...I had a 2 week orientation and was put on the floor with a full mod of high acuity patient..and over half my med errors are NOT even med errors, they are my documentation errors. Of course the DON did not send my med sheets where I explained the situation...just a list of med errors, 11 in 9 months, that make me look like an incompetent nurse. ANYBODY, ANYBODY with advice to help me...I am desperate for any advice...I have talked to a lawyer...but you know, if you do that, who will hire me then? Crushed in the NorthEast....

Expect high acuity patients, we got them from the ICU, with trachs, pegs, on precautions of all kinds..IV's of all types with TPN and mediports, picc lines and more... Its a wonderful learning opportunity for a new nurse, because (at least at our facility) you have a charge nurse to go to when unsure. This can be frustrating as you gain experience and you are overruled, especially when it turns out you were correct. Also, be very careful about your fellow nursing staff. Another nurse who was a float stepped into a room where I was feeding a red spoon patient in a supine position, made a 10 second evaluation of the situation, and accused me of unsafe nursing. Although I proved later, I had the doctor come in and evaluate the patient, (the patient had no swallowing issues..only pain and limited ROM issues) and I was actually acting under that doctors orders...this nurse was a favorite of the Nurse Manager and DON....and my life subsequently became hell. I eventually had to leave my job. They changed my schedule to one I could not work, and when I told my nurse manager that...she said, well..dont work it, and its no call no show..and your done. Im miserable about it...but a lesson learned. Be careful whose toes you step on. They just might be attached to a butt you should be kissing. This nurse actually caused my patient pain and harm with her actions...but somehow...Im the one out. Now...I do NOT believe this applies to Healthsouth as a rule. I think its an everywhere anywhere thing. I was in the right. That did not matter...and Im now fighting for my license....after getting unemployement..(which I actually only collected for 4 weeks) The DON wrote a letter to my state board accusing me of multiple med errors, ect.... My life is hell...nursing IS my life...I suppose I should start my own thread on this and ask for advice... But...back on topic...I loved my job...its rewarding to have patients for 4-6 weeks, and help them back to the highest level of functioning they can achieve, and they love you for it also. I miss it sooo much.

Hi everyone, Still hanging in there, the rehab job is working out wonderfully, I find it emotionally satisfying, financially rewarding, and everything I have been looking for in nursing. Personally, I am still battling my personal demons, but I am grateful for what I have, (after rehab nursing, and seeing young couples dealing with a 33 year old husband with expressive aphasia and total loss of use of one side of his body, just one small example,), well, my problems are a little less severe. Doesnt make it any less hard, but it does make me more grateful for what I do have. As always, thanks for the support!!! I love my job!! KristyB

I work evenings, 3-11:30, ratio is 7-9 patients, depending on acuity. Run my butt off from start to finish, but with good planning, it is awesome. Love the job. KristyBRN

Hint, usuallyfollowed by x2 or x3 or x4, days.

I didnt get the chance to browse the whole thread, so sorry if this is a repeat, but ive seen it 3 times, LOLFDNF

I hope nobody laughs at mine, but they probably will, I recently charted something very similar! patient was pleasantly demented, meaning he was sundowning, his dementia was showing, (sometimes he is A & O X3,), but he was a very happy, cooperative dementia patient!! I have had numerous dementia patients who were not so pleasant! I guess I will have to think better how to phrase that one, any suggestions?

I have to chime in again.... I love the reinforcement you get when a patient tells you you are an angel of mercy, and truly means it! I love being able to make a difference in a stroke patients life, (yes he had memory deficits, but physically he was fine, and I gently pointed out to him how much he had going for him, a huge supportive family, 6 siblings, a wife and kids who visited every night, and without revealing particulars, let him know about patients who have lost total function on one side of their body, or have no one who visits). I also spoke with his sister. The next day when i came in to work, his sister let me know that the patient had something to ask me. (he had had NO initiation when he first came, so remembering what he had to ask me was a big deal). When I got in the room, his sister had made a huge poster sayings BLANKS cheering squad, and his whole family had signed along with PT, OT, ect. ect. Pt asked me, would you please be part of my cheering section? I was so choked up, I signed and went and had a good cry. The patient went home the next week. Till then, he was getting depressed, having himself a big ole pity party. I pointed out with grace what he did have, his family took it and ran with it,,, and he is home now!!!! THAT is the kind of feeling that makes the difficult ones more bearable, cleaning up the nasty stuff okay. When a little old lady holds your hand and calls you an angel of mercy and means it, well, your heart fills up. My cup overflows. sometimes its with urine and feces,,, LOL, but hey, thats part of the job. I love being there for people in need. And... best of all, these people make me look at my life, (which has been tough traumatic, blah blah blah, and make me grateful for what I have.) Every day is a gift, and I am blessed. Did I say I love my job????? Smile everyone, we are a special set of people, and none of us is perfect, but we do something it truly takes a special kind of person to do. I am glowingly proud of this, and while Im still a new nurse, and I know 10 years from now the shine will be off, I still believe I have found my calling. God blessed us...and we get to share that. Oh jeeeeez, Im getting all teary here..... Love you guys! KristyBRN