PumpkinButt

I worked there for some time, but had to leave because it was killing me! I worked 12 hr nights and while I loved it, I couldn't handle all of the meetings, seminars, etc... They do not tailor them to nights and I'd work 1900-0730, have to come back for a meeting at 1 and then work again at 1900, all while living an hour away. When I'd try to reschedule for my day off, they'd say the class was full. I couldn't do it anymore with the drive, little ones at home, etc... If you lived in the area, by all means, the place is amazing. The things they do there and the patients you will see are phenomenal. You will get tons of experience with some pretty rare people and the fact that it's huge on trauma, you'll see some pretty messed up things. Like I said, I loved it, but nights didn't love me (and switching to days wasn't an option for me). Good luck with whatever you decide and if you have any ??, pm me. :)

Ditto to RNINME, I became a nurse not for the pay, but for what nursing gives back to me. If you're just doing it for the $, you're going to be sadly misled and miserable with your choice. That said, I'm 31, married with kids and make over $66,000/year working 3-12s a week. Not rich by any means, but we did just build a 3000 sq foot house 2 years ago and it's mint. We have land in 3 different places, a lake cabin and lots of "toys". Lots of hard work and long hours has paid for all of that. My husband's income also helps push us over that edge of being able to pay our bills and ability to be comfortable. Be wary of those hospitals that are offering unusually high wages or massive sign on bonuses. There's bound to be problems in-house with employee retention and no amount of $ is worth that b.s.

Why did they ask YOU to take a leave when the other nurse was the one causing the problems? You'd think they'd want to retain mgmt. If you've put in notice 3 times, I think you answered your own question about going back. Don't do it, and DON'T go in to talk to your mgr. She'll sucker you back in like before. Until we all stand up and refuse to be treated like doormats, all we'll have are footprints on our backs from admin. You deserve more. Go find that!

Ask for the time off! Heck, I would KILL for something like that right now! I'm off due to a C5-C7 discectomy and fusion but can do something like that since my disability co. is jacking me around and not paying me right now. If you don't, you're crazy and you'll kick yourself years from now!

*thud*

I do Altoids and a whole heckuva lot of mouth breathing some days! But, in time, your gag reflex will decrease although some things will still set you off. Everything made me gag as a new grad but since being "seasoned", the only thing that makes me heave is puke. :) I'll have to try smiling as I hadn't heard of that one! Haha....

If there's no drainage, then a wound vac isn't indicated. The foam was growing into granulated tissue, which is why it was so difficult to remove. I had a pt come from the hospital once with a chunk of foam shoved way into a tunnel but it hadn't touched another piece of foam for awhile, so the tissue was growing into it. I sent him out that day to have it cut out. He ended up with an abcess because of it. I use a stingless skin prep around the edges of the wound to protect the good tissue, and I always lay down thin strips of transpore over that to protect even further. I also use an adhesive remover to get the top opsite off. Just rub it over the top and it literally goos off in your hand. It's the best stuff! There's quite a bit of info in the wound forum here that I posted about wound vacs with some tips and tricks as well. Good luck with your next change! PB

It happens a lot more than people might think as well. I live in a tiny rural area and one of my classmates gave birth at home, put the baby in a garbage bag and buried it. One of my husband's classmates gave birth in a bathroom stall, hemorrhaged and died. Her baby drowned. I think it's wonderful that mothers can leave their babies in a safe place so they have a better future....hell, any future!! Sure beats what happened to these 2 babies. THAT was terribly sad. Giving your baby up is not. PB

What do you write when you have one line on a job application to describe your job duties as an RN? I find I run out of room, so I'm looking for something professional, but generic enough that it can be used for any position (OB, Neuro, etc...). Thanks! I hate online job apps. :angryfire

I've worked Neuro/Trauma and like others have said, it is fascinating. But, the only reason I left was due to the families. Trauma families can be very wearing.

I was paying $400/mth for the "premier" plan (still sucked) and $80/mth for dental. Now that I'm off, we had to go under my dh's plan and it's $750/mth for just medical. It's comparable to my old insurance but our meds are a lot cheaper. It was either that or pay $1290 for COBRA.

I think it could look bad d/t media portrayal. I mean, if she said anything at all (even w/o names) and the news had her interview along with his name, it could be bad. I've been hassled by reporters too, and I just say, "I have no comment. Please contact the hospital media center for any information," and walk away. I hope her atty settles all of this and she doesn't lose her license. Sounds like she did everything she could to save the pt. I hate HIPAA. Grrrr.....

What type of training/degree did the staff have that took the residents outside? I'm not sure what state you're in, but in WI aides or other ancillary staff are not allowed to administer any type of medication. To cover yourself in the future, you should have an RN supervisor assess the situation before assuming it's an anaphylactic reaction warranting epi use. With other comorbidities unknown, epi shouldn't be given 'willy nilly'. He could have been having an MI, going into DKA, etc... Never forget that it's always your license on the line before you delegate to unlicensed staff! Long-term care is tough! I used to be a nursing supervisor for a huge facility and it's the hardest job I ever had. Good luck to you in the future! PB

Yeah, you need the ATT (authorization to test) before you can schedule your date. It has numbers on it that you need for identification and stuff. Have you received that yet?

I'd question any PRN I had to give 35x in a shift to keep a patient comfortable. Just my .02

I thought it was because they have to pay for that fancy dancy power plant they're building.

Woops, sorry! I cut thin strips (1/2-1") of the Tegaderm sheets and go around the wounds (right on the edge) before I put the foam in and seal it. It gives the Tegaderm something to stick to, and if there was wound drainage before I sealed it, it will stop it from going under and breaking down the good tissue.

I was 27 weeks pregnant when I graduated nursing school. The hospital I was at did not hire me on, which was my "plan". I ended up hospitalized and very ill from influenza I was exposed to at work and almost lost the baby. I did find a position at 33 weeks at another hospital but only lasted a month before delivering. It is doable (this wasn't my first) but it's stressful, and if you're not going to make it through orientation, I'd say no. You never know what is going to happen (as in my case) and don't want to step out on the wrong foot with lots of absences (like I did). Not all are as forgiving as my NM. Get used to a job and what it is going to take to manage a home life with it. Enjoy a little time of not being in school!

When you talk about the 'white foam', are you talking about Versafoam? I use that exclusively for tunneling as it will not pull apart like Granufoam will. We had a situation once where some Granufoam was left behind in some tunneling and new tissue began to grow over it. It had to be debrided out or would eventually abcess. We don't "pack" anything, but make sure that there is a piece of Granufoam over the top and touching so that it will remove excess drainage. We thin our sponges when indicated. It's not the point of it to be 2 inches above the wound. 99% of our foam is cut in half. Make sure you cut away from the patient and "brush" the foam before applying it to their wound. You should eliminate any "crumbs" that way. All of our cutting is done over the clean table unless we need to trim, which is still done on another table specifically for this purpose. If a wound needs to be debrided, it's contraindicated in WoundVac. It needs to be debrided before it is applied or it does no good. I've never heard of using anything to debride while the system is running as a) it will get sucked out if it is a cream or b) it will adhere to the Versafoam and cause a barrier. We don't let any of our patients get the area wet with plain/soapy water. We use only sterile water for each of our procedures and if it's in a pt. that can shower, it must be bagged or covered or else they have a bed bath. You'd have to ask someone else on that one, although we do not let them "loosen it in the shower". Too many places for bugs to get into it. We use No Sting Skin Prep (i think by McKesson) for sealing the tegaderm and also window pane each wound to prevent drainage from seeping underneath. It's been a godsend to do it that way, although KCI doesn't show that on their training video. A knowledgable rep we had tipped me in on that one. :) I also use an adhesive dissolver for removal (also made by McKesson but can't remember the name). Regardless of age, location, depth, etc....WoundVac isn't going to work unless the patient is nutritionally sound. We feed our massive WV's almost like a burn patient, as they need massive amounts of protein for healing. Right now, I'm battling with one that has an albumin of 2.0. Not really conducive with wound healing. I have a love/hate relationship with WoundVacs. I've seen them work more often than not, but it's soooo time consuming battling those that aren't. HTH.