What's your favorite nursing task?

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There's been a lot of rants and vents about nursing, but let's focus on the odd tasks that make you happy. Maybe you love post-OP patients or CRRT or giving bed baths...what's something that makes you happy?

Personally, I love enteral feedings. I love placing NGs and Dobhoffs. I love Kangaroo pumps, I love crushing meds, and flushing the line with 30 ccs. I love hearing the whoosh when I check placement q 4 h. It's my favorite thing!

Specializes in Psych.

None of them! Why I work psych.!

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I love seeing the blood make the first pass through a pristine white dialyzer! Something about knowing how much cleaner the blood is after it passes the artificial kidney and I know I have good access flow. A fresh dialysis treatment begins.

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Specializes in Private Duty Pediatrics.
On ‎5‎/‎5‎/‎2019 at 9:32 AM, rockchickrn said:

None of them! Why I work psych.!

And also why I work Peds Private Duty. I love happy play time with my toddler client who doesn't realize that we're accomplishing his physical therapy goals.

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Starting an IV!!!

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Starting IVs for sure. I’m one of those people who drools over nice looking veins.

I love how diverse the responses are. Reminds me of my old floor where we all had our own strengths and loved working as a team. We all pitched in to get the pt the best care possible.

One of the biggest things I love about nursing is the variety!

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Specializes in ICU/community health/school nursing.

I got to remember yesterday how satisfying it is to run a Kangaroo pump and prime the tubing.....

I also realize I forgot my hospital training (first, gather your supplies....).

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Specializes in retired LTC.

Just reading this late...

I was amazed & so satisfied when I would push a bolus of dextrose 50% for an unconscious pt. And then they responded within a few brief seconds. This is significant because only 1 NH I worked had facility standing orders/protocol for severe hypoglycemia.

Like another poster, I like to comb pts rat-nest hair. It just makes them look so much more neat, esp when visitors would come in.

And eyeglasses!!! I would just try to clear the smudges from all those 'Mr Magoo" type lens. Pts would almost start to cry with thankfulness. Eyeglasses were my really #1 thing.

I also liked to make sure pts were 'neat & presentable' after post-mortem care. I never wanted to be known as the nurse from the facility who sent pts to the funeral home so sloppy. I would try to straighten limbs (esp clean hands, close the jaw, fit dentures in (if poss), CLOSE the eyes, apply a clean ostomy bag, etc.

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Specializes in None yet.

On behalf of an anonymous nurse to whom I will be eternally grateful:

She is an ER nurse who treated me after the EMT crew brought me on a fall where I landed on my head on concrete tile. I had TURP and was released next day because my fu$#i g insurance insisted. Got home and could not fill my Foley bag. Urine collected in bladder and became so painful that on standing, I blacked out and hit the tile. When I was conscious again, crawled to my mobile phone and hit 911. They brought me to ER. The blessed nurse un-kinked the Foley house and my bladder emptied. Then they took me to the imaging machine to get my head examined.

The nurse told me that the best thing that happened for her that day was seeing my face when she fixed the hose. She also gave me a bath... something that was supposed to be done in the hospital but wasn't. She was particularly concerned about the anchor point on upper thigh for the tube and the cleanliness of the glans. There was evidence that it had not been cared for post-OP.

Anyway, she said she really was very happy to help.

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Specializes in ED, med-surg, peri op.

Task wise, I like wound dsg and removing wound drains. I’m very bad at cannulating so when I get one in its very exciting. I’m much better at taking blood, but still get excited when I get it. Even more so when they have bad veins.

I work in most departments of the hospital per diem, so I like seeing the same pt in different area and seeing what the outcome was. For example in one department I was there nurse when they were diagnose with cancer, then seeing them on the surgical floor a month later to find out that they removed the cancer and they don’t need further treatment and is cancer free.

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Specializes in EMS, ED, Trauma, CEN, CPEN, TCRN.

Peds IVs, I was usually very good at them. Adult IVs too. I also love triage. ?

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Specializes in school nurse.

...applying lotion/cream to feet. It feels good for most people, serves a purpose, and can convey caring in a way that some isolated or underserved people never get.

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Specializes in Emergency Room, CEN, TCRN.

Well, I know inserting dignishields is NOT my favorite task

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