You know you are a pediatric nurse when...

Double-Helix, BSN, RN · Mar 11, 2012

Haha. :-) But actually, I've never inserted a scalp IV, and I've only ever seen one. It was on a chronically ill child with extremely poor access. We don't use scalp IV's unless there is truly no other alternative. They don't tend to last very long and can you imagine an infiltration injury in the scalp? It's one thing to have an extravasation scar on the hand, but on the face?

But I definitely do notice the veins in all my friend's kiddos.

wooh, BSN, RN · Mar 12, 2012

I absolutely LOVE scalp IVs, they last WAY longer than hand and foot and AC. Party hats! Unicorns! Woot!

Although, I'd say you know you're a peds nurse when you look at a friend's baby pictures on FB and you think, "Ohhhh, that kid's syndromey."

Esme12, ASN, BSN, RN · Mar 12, 2012

Guilty......but I size up everybody's veins....

ro2878, ADN, BSN · Mar 12, 2012

You tell an adult to "look away and blow, blow, blow, blow" when you give them a flu shot!

Gold_SJ · Mar 12, 2012

When you find yourself feeling rather annoyed if a weight wasn't taken on the child prior to admission/before arrival to ward ^.^;;

Meaning you have to harrass all the ED Doctors due to the incorrect medication doses that they magically plucked out of the air and charted down, so medications are not at a thereuputic level.

(On a floor where there's no paed coverage except day shift Mon-FR otherwise ED has to cover) Some Doctors don't do the mg/kg for each drug correctly (a weight helps --.--) so you get underdoses/overdoses or just...WTH? Doses.

xoemmylouox, ASN, RN · Mar 12, 2012

When getting peed, pooped, or vomited on are just par for the course.

KelRN215, BSN, RN · Mar 12, 2012

When your friend asks you to hold her baby and, out of habit, you feel the baby's fontanelle.

When your cousin posts pictures of her baby on facebook and you look at her and think, "her head is really big... I wonder if she has hydrocephalus."

Gold_SJ · Mar 12, 2012

1) When you can work out who the stick figure pictures are and proudly display the artworks at the nurses station.

2) When you know 15mg/kg for Paracetamol and 10mg/kg for ibruprofen off by heart.

3)When you watch parents like a spy to see what method of rocking/patting/bouncing puts their babes to sleep before they head home to their own house.

4)When you know all the ins and outs of Dora, Diago, Curious george and High five.

5)When playing with children is just a normal part of your shift.

6)When maintaining patency of a toddlers drip is now a learned artform.

7)When you can discuss is detail all the different forms of recession for a respiratory child and can guess on whether it's whooping cough, bronchiolitis, asthma or croup.

8)When it amuses you how a six year old post appendectomy can clamber out of bed and bounce around the play room day one while the sixteen year old is so crippled they need help to sit up in bed.

9)When in the shopping centre you can recognise certain parents and try to find a store to duck into like a bat out of hell (I feel so guilty that I've done this ^.^; )

10)When you get rung at odd hours be friends/family wanting to inform you on their kids development milestones.

Reading all these is kinda fun :)

GitanoRN, BSN, MSN, RN · Mar 12, 2012

you know you're a pediatric nurse, when you know for sure by the color and density of the baby stool what was their last meal, and the smell doesn't seem to bother you :uhoh3: in addition, at the end of drawing a labs. or giving a shot you reach for a lollipop even if they are adults:lol2:

perfectbluebuildings, BSN, RN · Mar 17, 2012

Awesome replies! :) I knew I was not the only one... but it makes me feel better to hear it from the rest of you

Let's keep this going- it's a fun distraction during RSV/flu season!

-speaking of which-

...you have ever wished for a BBG to use at home when YOU get a cold!!

canned_bread · Mar 30, 2012

...When you apply a bandaid to an adult at home and ask them what they want you to draw on the bandaid...