Staying up with changing protocols

[Krista]

There I was getting into med-surg/hospital nursing after 7? years of nursing. And yes, I was precepted. Later in the year I was giving my first IM injection, a vaccine since I'd joined the hospital. Discussing in the med-room, a nurse straight out of school said, "Oh! You're old school! We don't do that anymore." She was referring to giving a shot without drawing back to check for blood anymore.

Where's a nurse go to check up on other 'stuff she doesn't know she doesn't know!"

This is my first time in a nurse chat and am also checking out popular blogs. The ANA website was zero helpful. Thanks! 

[Daisy4RN]

Unfortunately p/p are always changing. I would definitely start with your facilities p/p books/online. Some are different at different facilities so you need to know yours. Also, I wouldn't necessarily believe a new grad bc they might have missed something in school, misunderstood etc. Good luck!

[TheMoonisMyLantern, ADN, LPN, RN]

Yeah, aspirating for blood when giving an IM when the way of the dinosaur several years ago. It's hard to keep up with practice changes simply due to the sheer scope of practice that nursing covers! Becoming a member of a the national nursing association of your specialization can be helpful, making sure you stay on top of CEU's, websites such as Medscape, nursing blogs, even Allnurses is a great way to hear about practice changes!

Most hospitals have a committee or council dedicated to updating policies and procedures, check and see if your hospital or unit has such a committee.

Most of my info comes from the CEU's I seek out, as well as just random web surfing and research. 

[NurseLy, BSN, RN]

Do you have a place you can refer to before completing a task, if it is something you haven’t done recently? 

Separate from our policies we have access to lippincot, like an online archive of nursing procedures, where it tells you step by step what to do when completing a task.

Maybe see if any such resource is available to you?