2. When meth is combined with cocaine and booze, it can destroy a 28 year old heart.
3. When you have one random patient across the unit from your other patients, and that patient is the only patient without psych issues, that poor patient is unfortunately going to be a bit neglected.
4. A discharge with EMS transport, ICU transfer and admission happening simultaneously (literally all less than 5 minutes apart from one another) 2 hours before you're supposed to be giving report means you'll be giving report before your last round of (very late) meds will be given.
5. Never been happier for vacation time. (Today is day 4/15.)
6. All play and no work makes ixchel a very happy girl. :)
That's all I got this week! Not much to learn when all I've been doing is playing! :)
1. Little lovely patient can be very old, very with it, on room air and walking....and be in ICU at the 11th hour of my shift (not the first ever in my career, but when it does happen oooooh). Addressed for and intervened for all the ancillary stuff that could have been a concern throughout the day (admitted for rash, no hx of "cardiac," but well, watching alllllllsystems), and patient still crumped I'm still torn about this one.
2. I CAN HANDLE a gnarly buttocks abscess packing wound care dressing change....even when ancillary staff pass out and hit the floor! And keep everyone safe...
3. I CAN HANDLE 12 patients, 2 RNs, and one CNA....NO UNIT CLERK....and discharge 5 of my starting 6 and then admit 3....but for the love of everything good......DON't EXPECT THIS OF ME! (becoming more and more regular occurrence. mpf!)
4. I love the people I work with....and a spontaneous mutual high-fiving thank you at the end of this shift. For the love of everything else good, it did end!
5. My husband made dinner. Didn't remember that I hadn't eaten....Gosh, it was so good!
6. Reverse.....pt transfer that was for 1300 is now for NOW NOW NOW....and the transport is here, no unit clerk, paperwork scramble, 2 hours early. Oh Oh OH!
7. I average 7-8 miles per day on a 12 hour shift...15K steps or greater. Don't know if I'm "on it" or just inefficient
8. I'm really tired.
Ixchel...thanks, these are fun. And reflecting can be so good! --LobotRN
I learned that eating a whole bottle of vitamin gummies can have terrible consequences, and that I was a prudent nurse in choosing to call pharmacy and the doctors. Vitamin toxicity, it's a real thing.
Even though I'm looking out for the health and safety of a patient and I do my job, that does not make me a good nurse in their eyes.
Doctors are actual people. Well, first year residents are. I don't know about the actual Doctors. I think they may be a myth.
I learned from this thread that some people are experiencing some weird phenomenon called "summer low census" and I would like to know what that is. We are constantly 30/30 beds and are so short on help that we have offered critical staffing pay for every single shift, both nights and days, for the past two weeks, and we still end up tripled anyway. While I'm coming in on incentive on my main job, my second job blows up my phone about critical staffing needs at least three times per week. It's hard to believe people are actually getting cancelled for low census anywhere when it seems like everywhere around here is bursting at the seams with really crazy sick patients and we don't have enough help to take care of them.
I don't know what this "summer low census" means. Is it like when you start off the night shift with 27/30 beds on your unit? (Only to get three admits...) We're still having to keep our "winter" overflow unit open due to the need for beds. I think we've been having a lot of "summertime chemo" lately.
I learned this week that I have "ER stalkers"...those repeat families that come and know who I am and will recall what happened while I can't which further confirms that I successfully can decompress from work.
I learned that I'm more overwhelmed at my new LTC job than my corrections job medicating big burly murderers. I dont know why but just walking in the LTC facility makes me a little anxious. I guess I'll get the hang of it soon enough. I'm guessing it's because I haven't grasped the computer system yet. If I can medicate 160+ inmates at my other job, then why do I feel swamped medicating 27? Blows my mind.
LobotRN, BSN, RN
183 Posts
1. Little lovely patient can be very old, very with it, on room air and walking....and be in ICU at the 11th hour of my shift (not the first ever in my career, but when it does happen oooooh). Addressed for and intervened for all the ancillary stuff that could have been a concern throughout the day (admitted for rash, no hx of "cardiac," but well, watching alllllllsystems), and patient still crumped
I'm still torn about this one.
2. I CAN HANDLE a gnarly buttocks abscess packing wound care dressing change....even when ancillary staff pass out and hit the floor! And keep everyone safe...
3. I CAN HANDLE 12 patients, 2 RNs, and one CNA....NO UNIT CLERK....and discharge 5 of my starting 6 and then admit 3....but for the love of everything good......DON't EXPECT THIS OF ME! (becoming more and more regular occurrence. mpf!)
4. I love the people I work with....and a spontaneous mutual high-fiving thank you at the end of this shift. For the love of everything else good, it did end!
5. My husband made dinner. Didn't remember that I hadn't eaten....Gosh, it was so good!
6. Reverse.....pt transfer that was for 1300 is now for NOW NOW NOW....and the transport is here, no unit clerk, paperwork scramble, 2 hours early. Oh Oh OH!
7. I average 7-8 miles per day on a 12 hour shift...15K steps or greater. Don't know if I'm "on it" or just inefficient
8. I'm really tired.
Ixchel...thanks, these are fun. And reflecting can be so good! --LobotRN