Something different

[Ned the Red]

My lovely wife just started working hospice and I'd like to find something really nifty that she could use in her job. She has all the usual stuff that an RN would have. But, have any of you found anything "special" that you really like for hospice work? I'm not sure what it would be but, like you, she's carrying her "office" around in her car, along with all her nursing gear.

So, what's the clever thing you've found that's specific to hospice that makes life easier for you?

Thanks,

Ned

[aimeee, BSN, RN]

Being as you are in Texas, I suppose you won't be needing a "blizzard" kit. :chuckle One ordinary thing that helped me out was my little mini cooler. Its tough to be in the right place at the right time for meals so its great to have a cooler with water and some good food to tide you over when you have to eat on the run.

Has she got a nice carrying case which will organize her clipboard, papers, pens, stethescope/bp cuff, and other odds and ends as well? That is indispensible too. Being prepared for every circumstance can mean hauling an awful lot of stuff around. I know one NP who put her case on one of those little luggage carts!

[Ned the Red]

No, I don't think we'll need long undies down here! She does have a carrying case for her cuff, steth, clipboard, and all that stuff. She bought a plastic tub to store all the "car stock" she'll need for the pts, along with a hard sided file folder for the zillion forms she needs. She also has a cooler for lunch and drinks. So, I think she's pretty organized. I saw a post on one of the boards about a clip board with a calculator in it and a lot of conversion charts and it got me thinking maybe there might be something like that I could get for her.

Not looking for anything expensive. I don't want to be the kind of guy who gets his wife a toaster for a present - I'll save my $$ for something nice. Just thought there might some sort of nifty gadget that a nurse could point me to. Something perhaps I've never heard of of and that she wouldn't buy for herself.

In my original post I asked for something specific to hospice but it doesn't really need to be just for hospice. Just something that would make her day easier.

[PrincessJ]

Few good music cd's would be nice

[Hellllllo Nurse, BSN, RN]

I was a hospice nurse for four years. Although I worked acute inpt hospice, not homecare. One item that was a wonderful resource for me to give to pt families was a great little booklet called "Gone From My Site- The Dying Experience"

The booklets were $2.00 each when I last ordered some. Perhaps you could give her a stack of ten to use with her pts to see how she likes them?

The author of the booklet has recently released a new publication called "The Final Act of Living -- Reflections of a Long Time Hospice Nurse"

Here is a description of it:

"The Final Act of Living " is a book detailing her insights and perceptions from years of working with end of life issues. Now her lectures and insights have been put on paper. Signs of approaching death, living with a life threatening illness, grief, living wills and more.

I have not read it, but it looks pretty good.

Here is a link to the booklets:

http://www.bkbooks.com/booklets.html