RNBillieBSN

I have had to stop "nursing" due to a diagnosis of Myasthenia Gravis. But I still have so much to offer to the nursing field. I've been in nursing 40+ years and have my BSN. I've done Long-Term Care, ER, ICU, Physician's Office and Home Health Care Nursing...from making visits to being the Clinical Director of a new agency...which was Medicare deficiency free the ten years I was there!! I am very proud of that. I have had to go on disability and really want to keep that.ninjust would like to do something to subsidize that income by working part time. Any ideas, please?

This type of thing happens so much more than people realize. Children override mom or dad's wishes to perform CPR rather than let their parent (s) go. They have no earthly idea what they have done...or are doing to their parent. And yes, I think there should be a special place in hell for these children if, after the physician has explained exactly what their parent is experiencing and they continue to want "everything done" and "don't want them to have any narcotics for pain".

I think those of you with the negative comments are a bit naive'. sheilagood52 is right...nurses are discriminated against when they are either admitted in the hospital themselves or they have a loved one in the hospital. Several years ago, my husband had a CVA and he also had a cardiac event because his troponins were elevated. I am an RN with my BSN and my husband worked in the ER in a Level I Trauma Center. His room was avoided like we had the plague. The Med Techs came in and checked his vitals signs and CBG's, the RN would come in in the morning and bring his medication in a cup...that was the one and only time we would see her. She did no neuro checks on him...nothing. About three days following his CVA, he began having chest pain, SOB and nausea/vomiting. We turned on the call light...no one ever came, so I left him to go out to the desk. His nurse was sitting at the desk, eating a piece of pie. I told her he was having chest pain. She looked at the monitor (he was on telemetry) and informed me he was in "normal sinus rhythm". I told her you treat the patient, not a monitor, and asked if he could have NTG. She said they didn't have what the doctor ordered...we're on the telemetry floor now...so I asked what dosage the doctor ordered and what they had on hand. She said 0.8 mg was ordered and they only had 0.4 mg on hand, so I asked her to give him two tabs SL. We never saw that. One of the physicians from the ER where he worked called to check on him. I explained what was going on and he said he would send the ground transport for him. To go out and tell "that nurse". I went back out to the desk...she continued to be sitting there and as I walked up, she rolled her eyes at her friend. I told her ground transport was coming for my husband...the name of the physician and he said they would be there in 39 minutes. She said "yeah right". I looked at her and I told her my husband had elevated troponins, he was having chest pain, SOB, n/v...she should have notified his MD of the change in his condition, started him on O2', given him NTG and she should be more concerned! Never moved from her seat! Ground transport from the Trauma Center arrived and they requested a nasal cannula from the nurse as well...she didn't even get one for them. They finally just loaded him up and got him out of there. He was in ICU at the other hospital for five days, then on the floor another two before I brought him home. i wrote a letter to the Director of Nursing and explained the poor care he received...as above. That I did think in part it had to do with the fact that we both in the nursing profession. The nurses and techs at the hospital wear tags that show up on a computer read-out each time they come and go in the patients rooms. When she called me to discuss my letter, she said the computer backed me up...there was no evidence that she came in to check in my husband when he began having problems. I told the DON that this nurse had failed to practice according to the Virginia Nurse Practice Act. I found out out much later this nurse had been let go from her job, which had not been my intention. I just did not want anyone else receiving the same treatment.

I don't really have any stories of people swallowing, but I do have a few of "placing"items in other orifices... In a LTC Facility...a little man used to put forks in his rectum...tines out. they finally began sending plastic ware; In the ER...young girl comes in with caginal drainage, I go in with doc, he pulls out a folded $100 dollar bill and begins waving it in her face, asking..."what the hell is this s**t?"; another young lady with a small stuffed animal in her lady parts...she would not let us remove it. her mother stated she had had a miscarriage and been "doing things like this since"...she was admitted to psych; then the druggy who came in with three bottles of drugs in her lady parts. she said she kept them thee so no one would take them from her. when she wanted to take one, she would go to the BR , take out a bottle, take the pill out and reinsert the bottle. YUCK!!! She was admitted to psych as well!

This is where that adage, "you can't fix stupid" comes in....

Target has a watch that is very much like the Apple Watch...its the Target Pebble Smart Watch. Works on the same principle...have to have an iPhone 4S and above and iOS 8 and above. The battery lasts a little longer than the Apple Watch, as well. The cost is the biggest difference...instead of paying $400, the Pebble Watch costs $100.00. Also comes with most apps and you can download most any apps you could with the Apple Watch. Check it out. Comes in black, red and white.

I agree with you... This has long been a pet-peeve of mine. We as nurses, who work with the sick and injured, we save lives, but we are paid so much less than so many others. People who work in the tire building plant. Those who work in a steel mill. My biggest pet peeve: sports-figures who throw or bounce balls and get paid mega-millions to play ball. That is SO WRONG!!!!

"I'm here to save your ass, not kiss it!" That was from my husband who worked in a Level 1 Trauma Center ER.

I have been a nurse for 42 years and I have ALWAYS been proud of my profession. I simply cannot imagine doing anything else with my life. I have had the honor and pleasure of meeting and caring for some of the nicest, kindest and sweetest people in all arena's I have worked.

On many, many nights going home, I would call my husband to let him know I was on my way. He would usually say, "you sound tired." My reply, "I am so tired, if it would help, I would cry." I mean, I would be that tired.

In a "perfect world", TEAM Nursing could work. But we all know this is not a perfect world. Having oriented for nine of the l-o-n-g-e-s-t weeks of my nursing career and life in an ICU Unit, I would have truly enjoyed the TEAM Nursing approach. But you have to be careful who and how you are partnered. If you are partnered with someone who is of the same energy and stamina, and knowledge level as yourself...then that's great...fine...it would probably be great! You DO NOT WANT to be partnered with someone who takes a lot of cigarette breaks, leans or sits while you provide care or you end up "teaching" the entire shift, because your partners knowledge base is not up to yours. You will end up working yourself to a nub and the patient will pay the ultimate price. (P.S. The reason my ICU experience was the longest in my life and my career, was because of my preceptor. I was older than she and had many more years of nursing experience. She said, "I feel like you have more nursing experience than I do, so if you need anything, I'll be at the desk." That was my orientation. She sat at the desk and read. I was given the hardest patients on the unit. One evening I had three patients on the vent, two others who were post-op and they brought me another from the floor who was crashing and as soon as he got there he went into V-tach and was unresponsive. No one had come in to help me get him situated. The floor nurses were gone. My preceptator was sitting at the desk reading. I finally went out and announced, "if someone doesn't come in here and help me, this man is going to die!" That got me some help. I ran my legs off all night long. My patients got high quality care. I had a compliment from a physician come morning because his patient's Swan's readings were readily available for him when he came in. As soon as I got off at 8:30 am I went to the Nurse Manager's office and that was my last shift in ICU. My preceptor, as I understood it, was given the option to transfer to the floor or be let go. Period. She put my patients in jeopardy. But I didn't care if it killed me...I was not going to let ANYTHING happen to them while under my charge. I would never do that to a patient or a co-worker.)

You know, I too have 40 years nursing experience. I am all for getting the nursing cause out there...But that last sentence sounds a lot like a threat to your congresswoman and Senator. I'm just saying.

I don't care what the article says, several years ago, a nurse I worked with changed a foley cath because the one that a female patient had in was blocked. This nurse, an LPN, inserted the new foley cath and when she saw urine left the room. The patient put out almost 1,000 mL's of urine in less than 20 minutes. The patient became shocky and had to be sent out to the hospital. She died shortly after that from shock. tell me it's an old wives tale all you want...I know patients can go into shock and die from it.

This was on "Young Frankenstein"...when Peter Boyle plays the monster and 'gets away'. As Gene Wilder is playing the violin and the monster (Peter Boyle) approaches, Teri Garr (Inga) and Marty Feldman (Igor) drop a net on the monster. Inga gives the monster a shot to calm him and it is given in his upper back and he is immediately calm. i always say, either to myself or to everyone in the room..."you don't give a shot in the back...number one and secondly, if medication were being given IM, it WOULD NOT act that fast. Aint Hollywood grand!! 'Shame real life doesn't work the same way!!

I admire all of you who are quoted and all Pediatric Nurses, everywhere. During my 40+ years of nursing, I worked in the ER and had two infants come in that were in full arrest and their codes were called. Both had been put in bed with momma and daddy. The first child was diagnosed SIDS and the second child had been rolled over on by her momma. The mom was a really tall and heavy lady. That was all I could take. I left the ER after the second child's death. Previous to my working there, I worked in a long-term care facility for twenty years. After a couple of years in the ER, I returned to the long-term care facility and returned to the generation of patients I truly loved to care for and that was the geriatric patient. When my wonderful patients passed away in the long-term care facility, it was sad, but I could always rationalize that they had lived a long, wonderful, happy life (for the most part). i've retired on disability with a diagnosis of Myasthenia Gravis and I miss nursing more than I can even tell you. It is an honor to be your sister in this most honorable profession we have chosen. You all hang in there and know that your sisters (and brothers) in nursing are always here for you. God Bless you all..... Billie Wyatt, RN, BSN, Danville, Virginia