Guest856929

Well, the thread has found its rightful place. Thanks. I vehemently disagree with the bashing assertion however. Try, guiding...

Day 1: OMG! I just took the NCLEX today and I think I failed. I’m only here for reassurance from strangers so that I feel good. What’s an easy way of finding out my results? I’ve heard about trying the website with a credit card thing and if it doesn’t accept it, I passed, but I’m not sure. Please give me feedback. I’ve been stressing and praying for the last 2 weeks since I took it. I have a job pending in the CVICU. I hear nurses their eat they’re young. NETY anyone? Oh! I’ve read the most recent evidence-based literature on it and I’m wright on this. If you disagree with my POV you’re just old, jealous, and stuck in your ways. If you correct my perfect grandma, punctuation, incongruence, anachronism, or incoherence, I will conveniently get outraged and cancel you for being an ignorant and bigoted Neanderthal. 2 days later: OMG I passed. I only had 65 questions. The NCLEX ought to be made harder. I can’t believe I went to school for four years and obtained MY BSN just to be reduced to questions about minimum competency. Nursing needs a revolution. 3 days later: OMG! Look at my stats I’m applying to Harvard direct entry online NP Program. What do you guys think? I’ve decided bedside nursing is overrated and not for me. 4 days later: OMG! ALERT! This is a vent post!! (note the redundant exclamation marks!!) I’m on orientation on my 7th job and I hate my preceptor!! She’s so lazy!! I’m doing everything and she’s just at the nurses’ station eating chips, gossiping, and getting fatter! Is it okay if I ask for a new receptor?!? (Are you asking/requesting or demanding?) Oh!! Don’t dare correct me or offer any contrarian POV, I no it all! Lastly, I’ll appreciate any feedback, thanks guys. It’s so nice to have an online family/community of people going through the same struggle, ya dig?!! 5 days later: OMG! I got caught diverting and fired, but I landed a dream job the next day. I’m so confused as how this will affect my chances of getting into CRNA school ? Anyone else been through the same ordeal? Oh and my marriage is now failing, my dog had diarrhea while my aunt was on a trip in Cambodia. My sister put monkey glue on her hair and everyone is calling me because I’m a nurse and I hate the attention. Please help and validate my assertions because I’m sensitive to positive criticism. Who needs such negativity in life? Ugh! 6 days Later: OMG! Thank you so much for the responses and staying on topic guys. I'm like so overwhelmed. Have you noticed how people usually respond to OPs with impertinent feedback? It’s like so gross! Anywho, so, tomorrow we have a pizza party at work, but I’m scared because I only want to eat the pepperoni and toss away the crust because I’m gluten-free on Keto diet. Will that be offensive to the bitter biter old nurses? By the way, our dog’s name is dawg. He’s a vegan chihuahua and bulldog mixed mutt but identifies as a walrus. I don’t like it when people misidentify him as a canine. It's like so offensive. Sorry, I digressed with impertinent/irrelevant info. Anywho, so, my husband is downstairs with Dawg smoking PCP while playing video games in his Scoobie-doo onesie. My husband’s girlfriend is there too and she wants me to braid her hair, but she’s bald headed. What should I do? OMG! I’m like, so, stressed, right now! Please provide relevant and positive feedback only. 7 days Later: OMG!! Wow! I can't believe some of the responses. I’m like so outraged right now to the highest level of outragetivity. I’m flummoxed, appalled, dismayed, flabbergasted, hoodwinked, and bamboozled at how callous, insensitive, and ignorant some people are. Ugh! Namaste.

Kinky Kim is also loosely based on the amalgamation of two characters. One had the odd habit of grabbing and squeezing some of the male RNs in the butt then laughing about it. This was before the advent of me-too. Admittedly, most us laughed about it, and a few might’ve welcomed and enjoyed it. I don’t think she would get away with it today considering how “woke” we’ve become. In retrospect, I wonder if roles were reversed and it was a kinky Kyle doing the same acts to either guys or females. I don’t think he’d last an hour without promptly being summoned, if not frog-matched to HR. The other Kim, shortly after finally winning a daisy after several nominations was “encouraged” to leave the ICU. She then transferred to the ER. She talked big about the greener pastures in the ER, while loudly, repeatedly, and emphatically trashing the ICU including management. Nursing is a small world and she was quite oblivious of the paper trail the powers-that-be were laying on the ground, but most us knew there was a train approaching on the opposite end of the proverbial light in the tunnel. She was fired after a month or two for one of those ambiguous HR violations “conduct unbecoming” before the end of her 6 week orientation grace period. She transitioned to DON of a ramshackle LTC which was quite surprising because she lacked an iota of leadership, but certain standard bars in some facilities are lower than a snake’s belly in a wagon rut.

That is a good example of patching holes on the worn out denim, when you need a new pair. If the underlying cause of lack of morale is understaffing and high turnover, it would be an insult to any intelligent RN to offer a shout out corner as remedy. I remember having the burden of getting 3 patients in the ICU once when one of the patients qualified to be 1:1 on more than 1 factor (fresh Impella/balloon pump and CRRT w citrate) additionally, the pt. was on an insulin infusion and 3 vasopressors/inotropes, heparin gtt etc). The powers that be saw it fit to give me a psych patient and a post-CABG day 2 pt that needed to get lines D/C'd and transfer. Torturous task, because I "could handle it". I expressed my concern about patient safety, but to no avail. The tone-deaf, unencumbered, and in no uncertain terms, imbecilic manager bought pizza as solace. Talk about lack of leadership. How about you put on scrubs and get your hands dirty rather than patrolling the unit, combing through irrelevant details like who's doing bedside report and who did not write their names on the white board. The pizza gesture irritated all fibers of my anatomy. Work me like a mule then feed me swine. Ugh!

Why are you moaning and groaning about the possibility of strangers moaning and groaning? JK. I know you are not trolling. I, for one appreciate your unique post. I haven't seen anything like it here on AN. Anyway, yep, bedside nursing is overrated. Apply to direct entry, accelerated online CRNA programs. Another 16 months and you'll start at 250K. Easy-peasy stuff.

Hahaha! she caught me staring squarely at the goatee. She then said: "I know, this hospital coffee is as good as urine, ugh!" I couldn't hold my laughter and I tried very hard. I nearly spat my coffee. I had to go to the men's locker-room. I laughed for a good minute.

LOL! Yes, it is weird to work with people who you have never seen their faces before. One day I had my mask off in the lunch room and one of the managers looked at me with a surprised look and said, "I didn't know who you are. Are you Cyn? I guess I have never seen you without a mask before." I smiled and said, "oh! that's cool. Yeah, I'm Cyn RN, I blend well around here." (we both laugh) She says, "now I know who you are." What's hilarious is I think that she was serious, the fact that I'm the only black guy in this specialty right now withstanding ? That reminded me of another scenario in the cafeteria. Lady serving food, says I like the color of your stethoscope. It's a fancy purplish color. I said, "I figured, I don't stand out enough around here" LOL. She retorts: "Yeah, not everyone is as tall as you are." The entire cafeteria line bursts in wild laughter. That quick-witted old lady made my day. I'm smiling from molar to molar just thinking about it. Less than a minute interaction that made me deliriously jolly the entire day.

I saw a lady coworker take her mask down to sip coffee and she had a goatee that I had never seen before. I seriously thought I was hallucinating.

Most welcome. I’m glad you transitioned from your former self. Though I’m irreligious and hold divergent views regarding anthropomorphic deities, I respect your premise and shared sentiments. Stay positive and keep being good, especially to yourself. (Turns on MJ’s man in the mirror :).

Sending you virtual warm hugs. I have a tough shell, but something about your post made me a bit emotional (rare occurrence). I don't know why, but your post touched me in a positive way. Keep being awesome ?

Yellow-sleeve Yvonne is also based on a real character. Hardworking, beautiful, and innocent, I remember her starting in the unit. Her rooms were the neatest and her patients were the cleanest. In an alternate life, Yvonne would be an incredible interior designer. Yvonne had a sweet tooth -something we shared in common. I liked working with her because I knew she would have some good candy that she would bribe me with so that I could help her turn her patients. As such, we had a symbiotic relationship. She'd fondly say, "hey muscles, want some candy?" and I would promptly and grumpily retort: "skip the bribe and say what you need" LOL. It's easy to be mistaken as a forklift in an ICU as a male RN, but quid pro quo barter trades go a long ways. I loathed suctioning tracheostomies or changing colostomies and she would often do it for me with little to no solicitation. I digress. After a year or so of working, she started grad school and was in a new relationship with a guy who she occasionally complained to me about. She was not happy with how much he imbibed on alcohol. A few months down the line, I realized that occasionally, when she would go on lunch break, she would come back subtly different -peculiar disposition, but not quite out of the ordinary with seemingly pin-pointed pupils. Though I had my suspicions, I couldn't pinpoint (no pun) exactly what was going on. I'm typically quite observant to changing patterns, but I couldn't put my finger on what she was up to despite my suspicions. I never said anything to anyone else because I'm very cautious of slander and/or defamation of character in the absence of evidence. Moreover, the best business in nursing is minding your own business. Thereafter, I went on vacation and came back to find out that negative Nancy had found her in the bathroom, passed out with a needle stuck in her left AC with the tourniquet still on. Nancy was very suspicious of Yvonne and she tracked and knew her moves better than a preacher knows the Word. Though I felt guilty, I have reflected on the details of happened quite often. I'm still unsure about what I would've done differently in that dilemma. What would you have done?

Thank you. This is the precise crux of my contention. If I ain't growing, I ain't staying. A wise man once said: 'if you are the smartest person in the room, you are in the wrong room'. Though I hold divergent views, I respect those who choose to do 25-life by the bedside, especially in LTC.

Hehe fair enough. You raised valid assertions and I will concede to your point about perception. I did transition fairly smoothly to acute care, thanks to the SNF/LTC time management experience and familiarity of the things you mentioned. I’m not sure if I needed 2 years to be familiar with those skills. Nonetheless, the best thing I did was to go back to RN school and run away from LTC. I particularly disliked how management arbitrarily decided to change the modus operandi as they felt fit without consensus from floor nurses. Granted DONs got fired and hired frequently, the power vested in the DON was excessive and lacked the nuance typically seen in the hospital setting. Though I had and appreciated the rudimentary skills you mentioned, in acute care, the learning opportunities were endless —EKG proficiency, central and arterial lines, swan ganz catheters, ultrasound, variety of medications, etc. Most importantly I saw advance practice nurses like CRNAs, NPs, and even saw nurses go to med school. It was nice to see professionalism, especially from management.

At the minimum, I would go home, turn the news and open a beer. Not going to work is a foregone conclusion if my car is totaled in a pile-up. All nurses are replaceable and disposable. If you’re not desperate, never confuse work with anything other than an economical enterprise. Loyalty starts with the self.

I respect your premise. I think your interests are in the right place. You have had the privilege of testing the waters in other settings which is what I would encourage most new nurses to do. Nonetheless, I don't think your response addressed my point of contention -inherent opportunities for growth or lack thereof in LTC. I more than tripled my skills, knowledge, and potential by switching from SNF/LTC to the hospital acute setting. I was able to network with more allied professions and ended up carving a path that would have been implausible had I stayed in LTC. When I started in the ICU, one nurse mentioned something quite humbling that I have held dear to my heart since. He said, "you don't know what you don't know". I think it would be quite unfortunate for new RNs to start and end careers in the LTC setting. LTC nurses are needed and worthy. I don't know why you would infer uselessness regarding any nurses irrespective of specialty.

Yes, perhaps not total waste, but in the grand scheme of things, LTC was indeed a heap of rubbish in retrospect. I am one to look for learning opportunities and advancement of the self in all aspects of life. The ceiling for growth in LTC is very low. What is one supposed to aspire to become? DON? MDS coordinator? Granted, I was an LPN at the time and opportunities were generally limited. As such, I regrettably ended up doing SNF/LTC. I have since rectified that regret and moved on to loftier endeavors. Nonetheless, had I known what I know now, I would have gone straight to community college for ASN, then get the BSN and skip the LPN part. I think LTC/SNF is an excellent setting for the marginalized LPNs and perhaps some unambitious or nearing-retirement ADNs. However, any credentials past that is an overqualification for the responsibilities within the LTC setting. Half of what you learn in school will in fact go to waste in LTC. I would dissuade any RN, especially with grad school aspirations to stay away from LTC. For most nurses, after 1 yr in LTC, they will have experienced >95% of what they will ever see in that setting. Contrast that with the acute setting, and the inherent opportunities for growth, career-wise and educationally, it is candles to chandeliers. I'm not knocking LTC, but the aforementioned facts are indubitably inarguable.

Excellent feedback from various responders. I'm only going to add/encourage that you should consider leaving LTC, especially considering that you have a BSN. Career-wise and overall growth, few good things come from LTC in the long run. I wasted 2 years in LTC as a new nurse and it is the most regretful part of my career.

Ubiquitous Usher is based on a real character too. He was paying child support for 5 kids under 16 with 4 baby mamas. Poor guy was quite depressed. He made the most money of all nurses in the unit, but perhaps took home the least after paying unto Caesar. He overworked so much, I used to tell him he was omnipresent in the unit like bacteria. We became good work buddies and he would often ask me to draw his morning ABGs. Being new, naïve, and eager to impress, I took his requests as opportunities to gain more experience. As we became closer as time went by, I realized that he used to have tremors towards the tail end of the shift >9hrs of 12 hour shifts. IDK if that had an effect in his ability to stabilize ABG needles. Nonetheless, I was not sure whether he was having early Parkinsonian symptoms, or withdrawals d/t his fondness of volatile hydro-carbonous fluids. Ubiquitous Usher ended up with a back injury, most likely while helping joyful Joy move the quadriplegic pt. with c-diff to a bariatric bed. With nearly 20 years of ICU experience, Usher looked like he had been in the ICU for nearly 20 years. This is partly why I think that bedside nursing is overrated, especially after 5 years of experience, considering the prevalence of ungrateful, demanding, and self-negligent patients. #WordtoYoungNurses. I digress. Last I checked he was working for an insurance company making nearly twice without the physical rigors of the ICU.

Sarcastic Sue is definitely my favorite kind of nurse, the older the better. IDK how I left her out. I had one when I was a new nurse. Everyone had told me the entire week, wait until you meet sarcastic Sue, you will love her. She worked weekends. So, I had to wait until Friday night. She still wore a dress and a cap. Never met a nurse who was sweeter and kinder than her inside a patient's room. As soon as she steps out and closes the door, her alter-ego showed up. First time she gave me report, we go in the patient's room and she is the pinnacle of professionalism. We leave the room and I'm thinking report is over, she says "let me tell you about my night with that crazy butch b***h" (pointing at the pt's room). My mouth was agape, I nearly chocked on my gum. I think she was >60 years. Something I find extremely funny about a post-menopausal woman who cusses effortlessly and says the most inappropriate, yet hilarious things. She once found out that gorgeous Gina was having an affair with a resident. Sarcastic Sue went on the most epic rant that I can't even paraphrase without violating TOS. She shared her 70-80's escapades with various men and organic substances that resemble powdered Johnson & Johnson products. LOL. Hysterical stuff! That story juxtaposed to how demure she dressed increased the hilarity of the rant. I loved working with her.

hehe! A wise man recently told me to be cautious of being relegated to oblivion -the breakroom abyss. Nice to see you preaching and drinking water. LOL. kudos.

I edited it to fit the context of discussion ? Nixon was inadvertently hilarious.

https://www.liveabout.com/richard-nixon-quotes-2733879 You made me look up Nixon quotes. He was quite a character. "All nurses is a good place to productively waste time" -Sour Lemon. As such, wither thy eyesight on these quotes from a bizarre former POTUS on the attached link. "I was not lying. I said things that later on seemed to be untrue." —President Richard Nixon, reflecting on the Watergate scandal in 1978

That Ferris wheel is iron strong.

Hahaha! I know One-Upper Opal quite well. During report: hey Opal, the patient's blood sugar was 34. We did xyz, and his last 3 consecutive sugars have stabilized. Opal: Lemme tell you Cyn, yesterday I had a patient with a blood sugar of .08. I thought I was reading his creatinine level. I'm surprised you had to give D50 for your patient. I only gave two packets of orange juice and voila, BS was 120. Cyn: hey Opal, you gotta teach me that trick at some point. The patient was lucky to have you as the nurse. (Sarcasm galore:)

Wacky Willy is a real character too. Patient was complaining about him not answering call lights promptly and that he refused to let the patient have a pitcher of water by the bedside. Pt was on a Lasix drip with audible crackles sans stethoscope use. Willy was fed up and gave the patient the unit manager's business card with the cellphone number. He told the patient to call the manager and express his complaints. Being a new nurse with the false conception that patients' satisfaction was the barometer of measuring adequate delivery of care, I was amused and impressed by Willy's temerity.