sandytoes

Can you pinpoint what exactly you hate about it?? Is it the pace? The population? The hours? The unknown (aka you have so much more to learn and it is stressful being a new nurse!). No support on your unit?

Discharge orders. Verify with provider they are ready to send them now. Then I take and chart a set of discharge vitals. Review discharge instructions, meds, follow up schedule/appointments. Answer any questions. Then I remove the heart monitor and IV. Check the room for all belongings, send their ride for the car, and pt taken to the door in a wheelchair. I have more more than once found a patient suddenly hypotensive or febrile right at discharge time, hence my vitals check and waiting on the IV. Hate to have to stick them if they are staying after all...

I think the rounding sounds like an excellent idea. I work on a high acuity unit with a high proportion of RRT vs the rest of the hospital. Would be great to see the RRT and also get to know them outside of an urgent/emergent situation.

I did. Quite a big one. Nursing is harder than I ever imagined but I'm glad every day I go to work that I made the move. I was miserable in my old career. And life is too short to be miserable. Now I'm tired. A lot. But I'm happy. The money will come.

This is something I am working on. I have a hard time finishing report on time (not for me being wordy but for report being involved and having to report to multiple people and basically having to wait my turn...). I do try my hardest to have all my charting done before report but the 5-7 hours are so busy that doesn't always happen. I also struggle with knowing when it's OK to not do something for the oncoming shift. I'm a relatively new nurse and I want the reputation of helpful and the nurse you want to follow. But I know I need to find the sweet spot there too. Anyways, Getting out on time is on my list of things to do better this year... I imagine it's practice makes better (never will be perfect!!).

I'm a new nurse so I recognize that I'm overly cautious, but I do it for the same reason. That and I feel like it's never a bad habit to get into. That way no matter where the tube is for the patient, I pause the feed out of habit. Rather over pause than forget once and have a problem, I figure....

Where I work, you may be hired PT but you absolutely can work FT hours (and then some...). Before I started working as a nurse, I didn't see the value of m/s experience but now I do. It will be a good foundation for you.

Well it's only been 4 days?! So your assignments for those days can't really tell you if there is a pattern. Maybe all of the patients in the floor are less acute? Or maybe they are trying to keep nursing assignments consistent and another nurse had the harder patients on shifts previously?? Or maybe your charge is being easy on you because they recognize you are new and want to ease you in. If it was me, I would be so thankful. Being a new nurse is so hard and there is so much to learn and managing time and doing all the charting is much easier with a less acute load. I would take this as a blessing! The hard patients will come, trust me!!!!!

Ha I know it! I spent 10 minutes googling it and got both answers too. So who knows! Not trying to start an argument lol bc I have no clue! It's just one of those random things that boggles me!! (And I think I may have too much free time on my hands!! Hehe)

Funny - it's honestly one med I always feel weird saying. Our MAR actually lists it as ce-FAZ-olin (including the capitalization!) so that's how I say it, but I want to call it cef-ahh-zolin!

How does she say it?? I love that our MAR helps us with pronunciation bc I kill some med names sometimes!!

Just had to google more. It's apparently called a triple lumen hemodialysis catheter. I had never seen one before my current unit. They are pretty handy!

It's a lumen that looks like a lumen on a Picc or central line. I don't know if they have another name?! There are the 2 HD ports/accesses (usually taped off/together) and then the one lumen flopping out of there too that is used as a usual access for fluids or meds. I feel like I hijacked this thread (sorry!) so I can ask this somewhere else if I need to!

My unit often sees patients with a "nurse port" off a HD cath. I'm still nervous to even use those, never mind touch the HD cath (never never never). Any advice on those? Besides the obvious of good central line care/maintenance?

I don't like to carry a ton of stuff. My basics are Stethoscope Bandage scissors Pens Mini flashlight (on my badge!) Sharpie Hair ties Cell phone Also I bring a lunch bag every day that I keep extra snacks and a small pouch that has Tylenol and tampons and a deodorant. Never know when you will need any of those! Otherwise I use paper from work for report and don't drag a ton of stuff back and forth.