EllaBella1

EllaBella1 BSN

ICU

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All Content by EllaBella1

  1. Do you have a free charge nurse on your unit?

    EllaBella1 replied to EllaBella1's topic in General Nursing

    Wow, so this is a lot more common than I expected to hear. I think in my unit part of the reason that this transition has been hard is that we are a large, high-turnover ICU with high acuity patients...

  2. Recognition of illness/condition by smell?

    EllaBella1 replied to Misstika's topic in General Nursing

    Cdiff. Once you smell it a few times you will be able to smell it from a mile

  3. Would You do This Commute?

    EllaBella1 replied to westieluv's topic in General Nursing

    I do a very similar commute. Mine is 51 miles door to door, 42 of which are interstate, about 6 are local highways, and 5 are city streets. It takes me about an hour total. I drive past several other...

  4. Dating a former patient

    EllaBella1 replied to sarahg88's topic in General Nursing

    Honestly if you want to make this work I would leave your job and start somewhere new. I don't think it's entirely ethical to date a former patient in the first place, but I for sure would not...

  5. Elective in the US

    EllaBella1 replied to vandiola's topic in International Nursing

    My nursing school program (in the US) had a 4 week capstone course my senior year in which we were placed in a hospital with a one on one preceptor. We worked their shifts with them for the 4 weeks....

  6. duties of a radiation therapist? Pros and cons of becoming one?

    EllaBella1 replied to briannad's topic in General Nursing

    Yeah, I don't think there would be a whole lot of growth in a position like that. I would look into respiratory therapy if I were you. That's a position with a lot more stability, no catheters,...

  7. When did you receive your ATT?

    EllaBella1 replied to katiebarron521's topic in NCLEX Exam, Programs

    When I graduated I finished in May and went to my school's graduation ceremony, which was also in May. But my school did not officially confer my degree until towards the end of June. The board didn't...

  8. Should I consider this job?

    EllaBella1 replied to Emm_RN's topic in General Nursing

    In my opinion unit culture, staffing, leadership and the level of patient experience that you would get are more important than the unit being messy and having poor (physical) organization and...

  9. Days to Nights

    EllaBella1 replied to CardiacDork's topic in General Nursing

    I also prefer working nights. I actually picked up a day shift this week because my unit was so short, and let me tell you, I am NOT a morning person. It took some getting used to, but I sleep well...

  10. Keeping textbooks for reference?

    EllaBella1 replied to cnsrn1's topic in General Nursing

    Get rid of them. I kept my ATI review books that I used to study for NCLEX for the same reason, and just listed them on ebay this week finally for $5 just to get rid of em. Haven't opened them once...

  11. Adjusting Dogs to Night Shift

    EllaBella1 replied to berry2008rn's topic in General Nursing

    Do you let them sleep in the room with you when you sleep during the day? My dog used to do the same thing, but she's so much happier when I let her sleep with me. She just wants to be near me part of...

  12. Flotrac Sensor

    EllaBella1 replied to Catticus11's topic in MICU, SICU

    Do you guys use EV1000s? They have pretty much replaced the Vigileo and are what we tend to use flotrac for in my

  13. Florida BON app timeframe

    EllaBella1 replied to Skyride's topic in Florida Nursing

    I had the opposite experience. I found that the FL BON was very fast for me. Much faster in fact than the northeast state that I went to school

  14. PROBATION

    EllaBella1 replied to 1235's topic in Licensure: Criminal History

    ...well that's a vague question with no clear answer. I would suggest hiring a lawyer who is familiar with the

  15. What is a med/surg - neuro floor like?

    EllaBella1 replied to DanielleD's topic in General Nursing

    I don't work on a Neuro M/S floor, but I work in a neuro ICU and we send patients out to them. Lots of post craniotomies, stroke patients after their 24 hour TPA window, patients who have seizures/are...

  16. Getting into nursing school buffalo w/music ed degree???

    EllaBella1 replied to jconceison's topic in New York Nursing

    You should apply to UB's accelerated BSN program too. It's an affordable program and is only 12 months. If you already have a bachelor's degree and have a solid GPA like that it makes more sense to...

  17. Urine specimen collection from indwelling catheter

    EllaBella1 replied to Miossy's topic in General Nursing

    Check your facility protocol. Mine says from the bag is ok if its just been inserted- i.e. if the bag and it's drain are still sterile. Otherwise port it

  18. IV extensions

    EllaBella1 replied to Dubs3035's topic in General Nursing

    Eh, I disagree. I think the risk is much higher when it comes to overloading one peripheral site with multiple medications all infusing at the same time. Now if you have a central line that's a...

  19. IV extensions

    EllaBella1 replied to Dubs3035's topic in General Nursing

    I guess you could, but I would be wary of putting so many meds through one peripheral IV together. If you really need that many ports I would start a second

  20. Can lungs be clear AND diminished?

    EllaBella1 replied to Cvepo's topic in Critical Care

    I agree with you that they can be clear and diminished. But I've had this same exact argument at work with other nurses who say that they can't be. I still chart it that way when I hear it like you...

  21. Placing NG tube in paraesophageal hernia repair patients

    EllaBella1 replied to NPark's topic in General Nursing

    I would have paged the surgeon to ask if it was ok and gone from

  22. Lab Values in the ICU

    EllaBella1 replied to Santiago Pinon III's topic in General Nursing

    We have an ISTAT for our ICU, but not all of our nurses are checked off on using them, and we really only use them in emergent

  23. 100k in loans worth it?

    EllaBella1 replied to ravindram's topic in General Nursing

    So I actually have done this, and can weigh in on my experience. I have a total of about $110k in student loans. Two Bachelors degrees, and a master's degree. My first college degree left me with...

  24. S.O.S. If a peripheral line gets wet in the shower, can water get inside?

    EllaBella1 replied to MissHopeful111's topic in General Nursing

    Strange that a patient would have a peripheral IV at home,

  25. Flexible acuity beds?

    EllaBella1 replied to martymoose's topic in General Nursing

    We have something in my unit that I assume is what you are describing. My ICU has a separate 6-bed section next to the main ICU that we use as ICU during times of high census, and operate as an...