praying_mantis

I know how you feel. I have pruigro nodularis on my arms, legs and hands. Its very noticable on my hands and it leaves me open to all sorts of infection, no matter how often I wash my hands. The sanitizer stings really bad too. I would recommend putting aquaphor on it (or some other ointment), then covering it up with a glove. Im sorry you're miserable....I truly understand.

Two of my favorites that my hubby has said: "You should douche every week because it prevents cervical cancer. It washes away all those pre-cancerous cells" and "Melanoma isnt caused by the sun. Its caused by friction. Thats why women should have moles removed if they are being rubbed by their bra strap." I didnt even have a response. I just stared at him. Arrrrrrgh.

Dont be too hard on yourself....it could have been alot worse. At least you didnt give the wrong me to the wrong pt, and at least the pt wasnt harmed! Now you will be extra vigilant about checking your MARS!

Answer D....you always assess first.

This technique has worked for me every time: Roll up a towel or wash cloth and put it under the pts occipital protuberance....then put a rolled up towel/wash cloth under the chin. The towel at the back of the head tips the chin to the chest and closes it better. The only time it didnt work for me was with a pt who had a really wierd facial structure....almost no chin or jaw line.

I set limits. Politely.

IMO, you are giving your so-called "friend" WAY too much power over you. I would distance myself from her as much as possible. Continue to do your work. You are obviously respected by your boss, which is more important that what the other CNA's think of you. As far as your CNA liscense, I wouldnt worry too much about that. You self reported. That goes along way. Besides, I think that they would be able to see right through the complaint. You did not cause a pt harm, and your supervisor took care of it. Keep up the good work.

It sounds to me like this was a case of a casual conversation being taken the wrong way. Who was it that complained to the head boss? the other CNA or the resident?

While I think its important to take precautions, I think most of this is being hyped up by the media.

justiceforjoy Im not sure what happened with your grandma, but I am certainly sorry for your loss. However, I think you missed the point of my OP. That poor man that was already dead when we reached him in the parking lot.....I can only pray that his soul was already at peace, despite our frantic attempts to recusitate him. If sparing my patients feelings, by not giving her the gory details of her fathers death, at such a traumatic time in her life makes me a liar, so be it.

You hit the nail on the head LV. Thanks.

I feel so stupid today....this happened two days ago and Im still thinking about it. I had nightmares about it the night before. I cant get the sound of his ribs breaking out of my head, and the way his face looked. I have lost count at the number of codes Ive been too...and Im not a new nurse. I keep trying to rationalize my thoughts but its not working.... Out of all the crap and sadness I have seen, why am I all of a sudden feeling messed up inside over this?

Thanks so much for your support everyone. It helps tremendously.:redbeathe

So tonight we heard the words "code blue, lobby gift shop." I ran down there, only to be directed to the parking lot, where and old man was being taken out of his car. No pulse, started CPR in the parking lot. Intubated him and got him to the ED where he was pronounced about 15 minutes later. We didnt know anything about him, but he had a cell phone in his car, and an asthma inhaler clutched in his hand. We found out later that he was here to visit his daughter, who is a pt on our unit. The daughter was just diagnosed with stage 4 liver cancer today. The family came to tell her that her dad passed away on his way to see her. After a while, I went in to check on the pt and sat on the bed with her....I told her that she was in everyones thoughts and prayers, and that I was with her dad when he passed. I didnt tell her that it was sad and scary. That we knew the code wasnt going to have a happy ending. That his ribs were crunching everytime we did compressions....that I cried when I took the crash cart back to the unit and saw that someone had thrown his jacket in the garbage can already......I told her that it was peaceful, and that there were so many nurses there that wanted to help him. What a crappy night. We all have so much to be thanful for and dont even realize it.

My advice? Leave. The sooner the better. My experience was bad. Reported a nurse for multiple screwups, many of them dangerous. She ended up being "friends" with the supervisor. The tables turned and they went after me. Sometimes you can win. There is no reason to stay in a toxic work environment.