JRapha'sRN

I took a travel assignment in MT. I loved it. I extended 3x then bought a house and moved. It is beautiful here.

Take comfort in your experience but don't dwell on it. By dwell on it I mean constantly say, "back at xx ER I used to..." Be eager to learn the flow of your new ER and the policies and procedures that may differ from where you just were. Relax, though, the patients and families stay the same regardless of where you are.

I had one of those mornings that you have to stay awake for a few hours before an appt. I had just bought fabric for a new quilt and thought, "how hard can it be to cut rectangles?" Well, I cut everything nice and straight, but the next day realized that I had reversed the colors. Another caution to all of you (us) sleepy night shift nurses. My husband went on an ambulance run one morning and saw our friend's van in the ditch, but couldn't recognize our friend due to his injuries. He ended up alive but with a halo and lots of broken bones as well as a 7 inch lac that exposed his skull. He had worked night shift that night and fell asleep during his 15 minute drive. PLEASE BE VERY CAREFUL!!!!!

I've got a network marketing business. I help others get healthy while making extra money! It's great because even when I'm not working with that business I still make money on stuff I've done in the past.

had someone come in by ambulance for verbal assault!!

We had a "celebration"... It was mandatory. It was a 5 hour long meeting about what we need to do better in our ED. Not really a celebration. (But they did say "happy ER nurses week")

I worked with them and never had any problems. Always paid on time and followed through with commitments. I think in the end it all comes down to your recruiter, regardless of the company.

great response!

:rotfl::roll:D I'd hate to see any of them later on that week...

since my water broke right after I climbed into bed and then my labor was so long, I was going on 45 hours of being awake by the time I finally could go to bed. We posted a note in the ER giving all the birth updates then requesting no visitors for 8 hours. I was able to sleep for about 5 of those hours... and it was beautiful!

UPDATE: Thanks for all your kind words of wisdom. I was able to focus on laboring then on my baby rather than worrying about trying to be a "good" pt. My labor was long... water broke at home, then I had 12 hours of walking to get the contractions working harder, then was on pit, then accepted an epidural, then had a c-section... baby boy was born 25.75 hours after my water broke. Now we know that my pelvic bones are too small (his head wasn't the problem, it was me) and all future babies will be c-sections. (baby boy; 6 lbs, 13.9 oz; 20 in long; 14 in hc; head full of hair; long eye-lashes (according to all the L&D nurses); and so adorably cute!) The nurses were amazing throughout my whole labor, recovery and post-partum stay! Thank you for all the care and expertise you offer to your patients!

I work in the ER, not NICU, but I'd be happy to answer some general questions. PM me if you want. I live on the "west end" and am in a nice new development; love my neighbors. I am 20 min from the hospitals (although I did it in 12 last week when I went into labor at 0100--I sped and hit all green lights :) ) I am about 10 min from the airport. There are tons of new developments all around Billings if you want new... I think the used market is a little harder to find good houses, but they are around.

I was wondering the same thing. I received a recruiting postcard from them, but it didn't say much about the facility.

Thank you for all your kind and helpful replies. I am more at ease now. I will take your advice and be myself and care for the baby. Sounds like the hardest tip to implement will be the one that said don't try to be a "good" patient, for those are sometimes the worst patients. You all had some good tips! Thank you. As far as not letting them know I'm a nurse... too late. :) I've gone into PTL x2 now and it's been while I was at work downstairs in the ER... nothing like going up to L&D with your scrubs on and pockets full of "nurse stuff" (along with your name tag) to declare your profession I also have to call up to L&D frequently when I'm the triage nurse to let them know I'm sending a laboring mom up to them. Based on my two short PTL experiences, I don't think I'll have any problems being a patient or with the nurses, but trapped at home on bedrest for the last 3 weeks, I think I've begun to go a little crazy and start to worry about silly things. :uhoh21: Tomorrow I hit 37 weeks and my Doc said I can quit bedresting and even go back to work for a little bit!! :) Then I'll be rational again :) Thanks again!

The Morrison's (the MN couple) gave a local TV News station exclusive coverage. On wcco.com I can't tell if they will release new information. the last line of the story about the 3rd baby dying said, "Hospital officials say no further information would be released." I took that to mean no more information related to that baby, but not sure if it means related to the other babies?? Also, in the same article, the parents say: "We continue to trust in the Lord and are hopeful for a good outcome for Cadence, Lucia and Sylas," Which leads me to believe that those three were still alive when the hospital said no more info... I just pray that the parents are doing ok. I can't imagine the post-partum depression combined with the emotions that you would experience with 6 very critical babies and then watching them die one by one.

I'm so glad to read this thread! I read "rapid push" in one of my drug books (can't remember which one right now and don't want to go dig) and ponder my rate every time I give it. 5 min seems like longer than forever so I usually tend towards the 2 min push.

:lol2: One change I've heard some talk about is that there has been a direct correlation between the rise in popularity of the cell phone and the calls for "found down" (our homeless drunks who state, "yeah, they always find me" when they wake up... Also with the increasing use of the internet you will find a lot more people who know exactly what's wrong with them and what tests you "need" to do. :trout: Welcome back! I'm sure you will find that a lot of it is just the same, after all, human nature doesn't change!

I've read the "Rules for the OB Unit" and love that thread! It has so much I can relate to as an ER nurse (and I love the ER thread of the same nature!) However, being about ready to deliver my first baby I don't want to be the PITA healthcare worker we have a reputation for. I know as an RN I enter L&D with a strike against me and want to be the best patient I can. Do you have any REAL tips for being a good patient? Obviously I already know that my nurses are not waitresses, so I don't need tips of that nature. I know the "Rules for the OB Unit" contains a lot of real thoughts, frustrations and rules you would like to post. I'm not asking for a repeat of that thread. I just know that healthcare workers make some of the worst patients and don't want to be "that nurse in room xx"... (I hope that makes sense.) (I would like to clarify that I am not asking for any medical advice, just advice on how you would like your patients to act)

As a traveler I worked in 2 different ERs with mom's still breastfeeding. I think that because nursing is filled with so many females you get great understanding when you need to go pump. Both of the moms I worked with would just have someone cover for them for a few minutes while they went to pump. One of them even had her little girl come in occasionally on her lunch break. Over all I think 90% of the co-workers were supportive and wanting to help make everything as easy as possible.

Me too! If they're going to leave AMA after getting to the back and seeing who the doc is anyway, I'll save us all the time and tell them at triage so they can leave. Just a side note: I don't particularly like triage, but I'm stuck at home on bedrest right now and would love to be back at triage!

:yeahthat: Whether or not it is tax deductible is dependent on your unique situation, not what the recruiter says. Unless your recruiter is a CPA I would not rely on them for tax advice Go to http://www.healthcaretraveler.com/healthcaretraveler/ for lots of tax advice including very informative articles written by tax professionals specializing in travel nursing. (look in the left side column for "tax tips" and you'll be directed to the archive of articles) (BTW, I've worked with OA and loved them.)

1: Yup, otherwise I wouldn't have continued for more than one contract 2: Yes, I didn't arrange anything myself, I just told my recruiter he was coming and let her do any extra work (ie: private housing) 3: Yes, most companies base their reputation on their housing 4-7: don't get your tax advice from me, I'm not an expert. Check out the following sites for accurate and reliable advice. (yes, you can get lots of advice on this board, but I've been more secure trusting a tax professional) http://www.traveltax.com/ http://kobaly.com/ http://www.healthcaretraveler.com/healthcaretraveler/ (look in the list on the left for "tax tips" and other helpful info) 8: I never needed a new MD. Occasionally if I needed something (a form signed or abx or something) I'd ask one of the docs I worked with and was comfortable with-- or there's always local walk-in clinics 9-11: varies with the company as do most of the other questions Hope this helps. Don't stress out. Enjoy your new experience.

As a traveler my take home pay was always similar or a bit more than the perm staff's pay, however I also got housing and travel expenses. The biggest perk for me was the ability to go to work and go home--no meetings or politics!

Also remember to take into consideration how tired you will be during your third trimester and after the baby comes. You will be tired going TO work and exhausted coming home. I would take the closer job. You haven't mentioned which you would rather work at if distance wasn't an issue. Unless you desperately want to work at the smaller hospital, I would choose the one closest to your home.

I just had my first one last week. I don't ever want another! I kept it down but it sure made me sick! I stick IVs in patients all day long, teach others, offer my hands/arms to the newbies to practice on... I don't have a problem with needles... When she was done drawing my blood I couldn't convince my head of that, I nearly passed out! I was so embarrassed! Thankfully they had some food by the lab they were willing to share with me (they had just had a potluck and had leftovers.) After some protein and veggies I felt much better.