I've been asked to start the WILTW thread, and I'm more than happy to!
This has been an exciting week for me, as it was the last week of my Med/Surg I rotation. I'm trying not to feel too relieved though, because finals are next week. That being said, I will still absolutely squeeze in time to catch up on GOT.
This week I learned:
That my clinical instructor is a big ole softy. I can't believe that I thought she was super scary when the rotation first started.
That having just one year left of nursing school doesn't feel like enough time. Don't get me wrong, I feel like I've learned a ton in the one year of school I've had (and I'm more than ready to graduate so that I can get my social life back), but when I think of just how much I still don't know, I get a little worried.
That I wish I could take some patients home with me. Throughout clinical, I had nice patients, but none that really lingered in my thoughts when I went home for the day. But last week I had a patient who had already been through so much. His whole family had already been through so much. Sometimes it's hard to know just what to say, and I hope I was more helpful than I felt I was.
That I'm probably going to have a lifetime of telling family members, I'm not a doctor. You really need to talk to your doctor about that. I will probably NEVER be able to diagnose you.â€
I've also learned that said family members, when you actually do give them advice (such as dietary advice), will say Oh, you're just regurgitating what you've learned in school,†and will continue to eat everything under the sun while wondering why their blood pressure isn't controlled. Why yes, I am telling you what I've learned in school, but apparently you'd rather hear that steak for every meal paired with a margarita is the best possible chance for survival.
That being said, I do follow the steak and margarita diet. But hey, I'm working on it.
That the best way to get a resident to like you is to empathize. Let them vent. Losing my independence is something I can hardly fathom, and I'm sure I wouldn't handle it with grace. (Like, really I'm very certain that I'll be the LOL trying to escape everyday and falling out of my wheel chair in an attempt to lunge out the door). It's ok to let residents feel angry about it. It's ok let them know that, yes, it does suck, and that you'll be right around the corner when they're ready for help.
But it's not ok if they scratch you. Or bite you. Oh swear at you. We still need some limits.
That I will never ever forget to do an oral assessment on my patients. This is the second time I've shined a penlight in there and found a massive case of oral thrush.
On that note, I'm also very glad I'm not a dentist or dental hygienist. I'll wipe all the butts in the world, but don't bring that mouth any closer to me.
But what's grosser than the grossest mouth? Maggots. I was not pleased to learn that maggots are still being used for wound debridement. That...is my limit.
I learned today that when you put two different groups of college grads together for a Kaplan Nclex session, things get catty and mean girlish in a heartbeat.
Apparently the mean girls didn't like my questions and would group text each other when I would say something. My classmates sitting the row above me but behind them, saw this and the catty war began. I didn't find out until after class so... Oh well!
In a matter of weeks we could end up as coworkers. I ain't got time for this petty "Oh you went to that school" rolls eyes...
I read these every week (and love them!) and finally decided to join the conversations :)
I learned that when Medicaid insurance changes in your state it wreaks havoc for patients and staff alike. I have argued more with insurance companies in the last month than in three years combined. They denied an injectable anti-psychotic for a patient that has been stable on it for years. I argued for hours with them, only to continue to have them deny it. Thankfully, with the help of an amazing drug rep, who used to be a nurse, we were able to get her several months of free injectables and she can remain stable while I continue to advocate for her. Apparently the insurance company thinks it would be cheaper to hospitalize her when she lights herself on fire or drinks bleach, both of which she has done when not on her medication.
The psychiatrist I work with is correct - "the hardest part isn't connecting the dots, it is collecting the dots".
Getting a "thank you" from a patient who went from being acutely psychotic to much more level means a lot. She remembered that even though she had to be restrained for injections due to some violent episodes, that we were all "nice and didn't judge". wish I had more patients like that.
I've dealt with the insurance headaches as a parent, both psychiatric and endocrine meds being denied by insurance. Thank you for advocating!
I really wish there were more people like you in our local system.
I learned today that when you put two different groups of college grads together for a Kaplan Nclex session, things get catty and mean girlish in a heartbeat.
Did you find the Kaplan review helpful? We're doing a 4 day review with Kaplan after graduation. I'm curious to see how it compares to ATI.
I didn't find the ATI 3 day live review helpful at all. It felt too much like a bad cram session.
I learned today that when you put two different groups of college grads together for a Kaplan Nclex session, things get catty and mean girlish in a heartbeat.
Apparently the mean girls didn't like my questions and would group text each other when I would say something. My classmates sitting the row above me but behind them, saw this and the catty war began. I didn't find out until after class so... Oh well!
In a matter of weeks we could end up as coworkers. I ain't got time for this petty "Oh you went to that school" rolls eyes...
Of course my school is the best.... [emoji12]
I suppose it's good that you didn't find out until afterward...better to avoid all that drama. It amazes me that adults behave this way. It happens everywhere. Everywhere. [emoji58]
I've learned that I can study for 8+ hours in one day, practically fall asleep in my notes, get all curled up in bed, and then get a second wind. How annoying.
Did you find the Kaplan review helpful? We're doing a 4 day review with Kaplan after graduation. I'm curious to see how it compares to ATI.
I didn't find the ATI 3 day live review helpful at all. It felt too much like a bad cram session.
6 plus hours of questions for 3 days is not that helpful but what the instructor says in passing.. The little tidbits of info and learning Kaplan Decision tree is helpful. I write down her tips to help me when I study later on.
Ask them in site feedback. They will fix you up ASAP!
I asked in site feedback about the app disappearing from the Apple Store. They said they do not currently have a mobile app. (This was earlier today.) I hope it comes back soon!
Getting a "thank you" from a patient who went from being acutely psychotic to much more level means a lot. She remembered that even though she had to be restrained for injections due to some violent episodes, that we were all "nice and didn't judge". wish I had more patients like that.
Wish we had more nurses like that! Thanks for what you do; it's very badly needed.
I asked in site feedback about the app disappearing from the Apple Store. They said they do not currently have a mobile app. (This was earlier today.) I hope it comes back soon!
I recently asked about app functions not working (it teased me so badly by saying I could get a notification when one of my posts was directly quoted ) and Joe V said the mobile site was the priority. What worked in my app still works. The view of bookmarked threads is nice (mobile site is buggy and things overlap, doesn't include all the same info), but it doesn't know when you've gotten likes, much less send any of the other notifications it lets you select. I think it would be a REALLY fantastic app if it let you like others' posts, if all the features it appears to have worked, and if there were some way to have the front page not covered with all the nursing student posts looking for their classmates. Maybe it'll be back some day.
One thing I discovered about nursing school (post graduation): there is no way to fit in everything in the time spent in school to be able to learn everything there is to know about being a nurse. You get just enough (hopefully) to be able to then learn under a preceptor as a new grad. Then you just keep on learning your whole nursing career. Even then, when you retire, you still won't know everything there is to know about nursing.
I recall an awesome ICU instructor I had in the College of Nursing pounding in our heads how dangerous it is to NOT admit you don't know something. I have never been ashamed to admit when I don't know something, because there is so much to know I couldn't possibly know it all.
The more I learn, the less I realize I actually know. Nursing is a career long learning curve.
Long ago I learned that many patients and families are more comfortable asking the nurse for medical advice and diagnoses because they perceive there's too much professional distance from their physicians.
One time I asked one of my former patients, "The doctor was in your room 20 minutes ago. Why didn't you mention these issues while he was here in your room?"
The patient responded, "He seemed like he was in a hurry. I didn't want to bother him, so I thought I'd ask you."
I've been thinking about this since I first read it. Doctors ARE busy, yes, but they're busy providing PATIENT CARE like we are. When they approach with an attitude that they are simply there to do a 5-minute u-turn, it pisses me off. We run our asses off the entire day, yet patients generally don't get the feeling that we're too busy to hear them. Doctors give them this feeling. Its not okay!
This is a huge reason why I stalk patient rooms the entire morning to go in with rounding MDs. When something isn't mentioned in rounds, I bring it up. (Things I know they'd want brought up, like uncontrolled pain.)
) and Joe V said the mobile site was the priority. What worked in my app still works. The view of bookmarked threads is nice (mobile site is buggy and things overlap, doesn't include all the same info), but it doesn't know when you've gotten likes, much less send any of the other notifications it lets you select. I think it would be a REALLY fantastic app if it let you like others' posts, if all the features it appears to have worked, and if there were some way to have the front page not covered with all the nursing student posts looking for their classmates. Maybe it'll be back some day.
Lauraingalls, BSN, RN
169 Posts
I learned today that when you put two different groups of college grads together for a Kaplan Nclex session, things get catty and mean girlish in a heartbeat.
Apparently the mean girls didn't like my questions and would group text each other when I would say something. My classmates sitting the row above me but behind them, saw this and the catty war began. I didn't find out until after class so... Oh well!
In a matter of weeks we could end up as coworkers. I ain't got time for this petty "Oh you went to that school" rolls eyes...
Of course my school is the best.... 😜