This week, I have learned... (5/30/15)

[ixchel]

This week I have learned.....

1. Cocaine is still a hell of a drug.

2. No matter how nice you are to everyone, there will be an "us vs. them" vibe between hospital divisions when you're a nurse. It makes me sad because I've gone out of my way to be nice to the workers of the rest of my facility. Can't win them all.

3. Making sure your nurse knows you have breast implants can prevent an embarrassing ICU transfer when a dislodged boob looks like a hematoma.

4. I miss night shift.

5. I'm allergic to Vicks vapo rub.

6. On a related note, I met my match in a colostomy bag and it was horrible.

7. Giving the caregiver the hand written prescriptions for the dementia lady STILL doesn't prevent an angry call from her the next day when she can't figure out which pharmacy has her meds.

8. I effing love the ED, but holy monkeys it makes me sore.

9. There really is no polite way to say, "Welcome to our hospital, new overly cocky (but strangely beautiful) 12-year old surgeon. By the way, if you don't want to get paged for the inpatient management of your surgical patients, then do us ALL a favor and transfer them to the hospitalist."

10. I feel a schadenfreude-like joy when I see the PVT is wrong, especially when people lose money and post about it on a 700-page thread that tells them what NOT to do. (Okay, that's really more of a confession than something I "learned".)

Bonus one - I've only been at this gig for a year and my already dark sense of humor has become sick to the point of disturbing.

What have you learned?

[InvisibleDove]

I've learned that Imdur can be used to treat overactive bladder! I had to apologize to my patients family because I was wrong!

Backstory: asked what med pt was now on for overactive/frequent urination, expecting another med, they handed me the Imdur, and my reply? "Oh that's a blood pressure med", and my patients family reply "it says right here on this handout from Kroger..... Used to treat overactive bladder".

Facepalm.... 😁 even after 4 years I still don't know these other uses for all these crazy pills?!? Maybe one day.

Until then,cheers. :)

[ixchel]

I've learned that Imdur can be used to treat overactive bladder! I had to apologize to my patients family because I was wrong!

Backstory: asked what med pt was now on for overactive/frequent urination, expecting another med, they handed me the Imdur, and my reply? "Oh that's a blood pressure med", and my patients family reply "it says right here on this handout from Kroger..... Used to treat overactive bladder".

Facepalm.... 😁 even after 4 years I still don't know these other uses for all these crazy pills?!? Maybe one day.

Until then,cheers. :)

I've seen a couple of people using an anti malarial for rheumatoid arthritis, and every time I give it, I say it's for malaria and ask where they've traveled. lol I just forget every time that it's also used for rheumatoid arthritis.

[PghRN15]

I learned that there I times when I cannot say anything to make it better when my patient is afraid. All I can do is sit, hold their hand and be a quiet but supportive presence in the room.

I learned that I must ALWAYS keep calm even when I am panicking on the inside.

I learned that I really can do this!

[nrsang97, BSN, RN]

I just learned that imdur can be used for over active bladder, malaria, and RA. Interesting the things you can learn while on AN.

[Rose_Queen, BSN, MSN, RN]

Speaking of drugs being used for not so common uses, the best relief I've ever gotten for my migraines has come from an antipsychotic. Make your own assumptions about that… they do say it takes a special type to work in the OR…

What I've learned this week: I hate being responsible for making staffing assignments, especially when working with fewer staff than usual. It's a difficult decision to make who does what surgeries when taking into consideration what cases will be running past the end of shift and who's on call and will end up staying late.

[WellThatsOod]

Rose_Queen, my Fioricet hasn't been working too well for me for the past few months. My doctor is trying to convince me to try depakote. What, if I may ask, was it that worked for you? There's also talk of botox injections or imitrex shots...

[Rose_Queen, BSN, MSN, RN]

Rose_Queen, my Fioricet hasn't been working too well for me for the past few months. My doctor is trying to convince me to try depakote. What, if I may ask, was it that worked for you? There's also talk of botox injections or imitrex shots...

it ends in -zine. There's a couple I've been given when I've ended up in the ER a few times with stroke-like symptoms from my migraines and they work wonders. Knock me on my backside for a week, but it beats the misery of not being able to control half of my body, not being coherent, the pain, the vomiting…

Migraines actually run in the family. My brother does well with an off-label use of propanalol. I can't take beta blockers due to a history of syncope. Neither of us gets migraines frequently enough that carrying around Imitrex injections has seemed like a worthy cost as it would most likely expire before being used. But don't take my experiences as something you should be doing- always discuss it with your PCP or a specialist.

[WellThatsOod]

Of course, of course. I just like to hear fellow experiences as well :)

[edge24bri]

Ditto on the...If you don't want to be called in the middle of the night, don't be on call or retire. Even the residents and fellow...you call them and say, patient so and so has a sodium level of 120, and they're like...are they this, are they that? Dude, get your butt up and come see the patient before they have a seizure....hello.......

[guestng82]

I learned that I will never, ever be able to read a doctor's handwriting when summarizing records. Thank you so much to all you nurses for having legible writing! It makes my job so much easier!

[FloatFNP-C, BSN, MSN, NP]

1. I didn't learn... But saw for the first time... The bad side of ambien. Naked patient in the hallway and severe restlessness. But I did learn to always ask HOW ambien affected you in the past instead of just, "you've taken this before, right?" "Yep!"

2. I still don't know how to handle chronic pain drug seeking patients. I feel like I'm feeding an addiction and it just kinda pisses me how this patient treated me when I gave Toradol instead of IV dilaudid. Ugh.

3. Flush your IV when you buff cap it if Anything with K was running through it because it will go bad. Duh.

4. Vistaril really helps with pruritis in a pancreatic cancer patient. Had never used it before.

On a side note, my patient kept sneaking Copenhagen all night before his wipplen surgery... What can ya do

[Animal House R.N., ADN, CNA, LVN]

Me too. Plus....have you ever smelled chicken poop?!

Give me horses any day.

Put hay on floor of coop.

I learned that I can still get attached in ltc. That having a greatt spouse is better than all the money in the world. And having bipolar 15 yr old daughter succeding will make you cry.