Moving on up!

Starting any career can be difficult, and Nursing is falling into that category. When I was still a student I was filled with fear of screwing up, and in general felt completely retarded...but things they are a changing.

I'm not getting over confident, but I am celebrating the small victories!

When orienting to a unit, one normally spends about 2 weeks, or 8-10 shifts with a preceptor to keep an eye on you. I spent over a month on orientation in Pediatrics because I am a new nurse, and I was able to spend 2 nights on the Med-Surg floor while Peds was closed.

Peds was closed on Sunday night, so I thought I would just be on call but a nurse called in so I was headed to my first night shift alone on the Med-Surg floor. A seasoned nurse will take upwards of 8 patients on the night shift, but thankfully I only had 5! The problem was all but one of my patients had been admitted or transferred to the floor about 4 hrs before my shift. It took me 7 hrs to get caught up on my charting and be able to sit down to eat!

But, my major success was when it came to the 9pm med pass. I had a patient that was supposed to receive an EXTREMELY large dose of long-acting insulin at 9, but was also scheduled for short-acting insulin at the same time. I used my judgement, after bringing it to the attention of the charge nurse, and administered the long-acting insulin, but held the short-acting. I then waited til midnight and rechecked the patient's blood sugar, and it was where it needed to be. YEA!!!!!!!!! Had I gone by the schedule I could have ended up with a patient with extremely low blood sugar!

So, I have officially upgraded my status to not completely retarded :o)

My poor Koa...

Friday I noticed that Koa wasn't acting right & kind of crouched when he walked, so I told Eric to keep a close eye on him while I went to work that night. When Eric came to bring me dinner that night he said that Koa was definitely favoring his right front leg. This had me worried all night, and when I got home Saturday morning he was SUPER clingy and didn't want to put full pressure on his leg.

Thankfully I called the vet & they were able to squeeze me in for a 0915 appt. The vet said she was sure there was nothing broken, but he probably had a soft tissue injury & gave us some Rimadyl (which she said was a doggy NSAID, like motrin) and for him to take one a day.

So, as soon as I got home I gave him one and told Eric to watch him closely because I needed to get some sleep since I had to work that night. Thirty minutes later Eric comes into the bedroom with Koa in his arms & says he isn't acting right. He put Koa down and he couldn't walk straight and seemed completely out of it. I told him to get in the car and head to the vet & I'll call to let them know your coming.

I hurriedly got dressed and headed out shortly after and when I get in the room they said they are going to give him something to make him vomit & they'll be back with him in a few minutes. Immediately I was having flashbacks to last summer when I lost Tyler very unexpectedly, and fought to hold back the tears as we waited anxiously in that little room.

About 5 minutes later they brought a pitiful looking Koa back to us who continued to throw up two more times while we were talking with the vet. They gave him a morphine derivative via ointment in his eyelid to make him vomit, so she warned us that he would probably sleep the rest of the day. She also gave us a different pain pill to use if he needed it, and didn't charge us for the visit or the meds (which I am not going to give him unless he is visibly in pain).

The weird part is, Koa has taken Rimadyl before! We aren't sure why this happened, but I'm very glad that he is starting to feel better. We spent most of the day on the couch together & I was lucky that Pediatrics was closed and I could continue to keep a close eye on him throughout the night.

He's doing much better this morning, but this really makes me wonder about the drugs used in veterinary medicine, and how they are regulated.

Please, please, please, read the label!!!

Before I started in the health care field I wasn't the most responsible person when it came to being an active part of my care. I never questioned the medication or treatments that the physician ordered and felt that I was just stuck with whatever was given to me. I know I can't be the only one out there that rarely checked the labels of the medication I was prescribed, or read the additional information provided by the pharmacy. Today, I really want to change that.

We had a young child admitted to my unit for a drug overdose due to the pharmacy (not the doctor or the hospital) giving this child the wrong medication. The physician ordered Orapred (generic name: prednisolone) which is an anti-inflammatory, and the pharmacy gave this family Risperidone which is an antipsychotic/mood stabilizer that is used ONLY in adults because of the risk for extrapyramidal side effects, some of which may be permanent.

The label did read "risperidone," but how often do we really check to make sure the generic name is the same as the brand name the physician said, or wrote down. So, PLEASE double check your, and your children's, medications before taking them. One website that I have used in the past is http://www.drugs.com which has a wealth of information to include side effects & what the drug is used to treat. Or, feel free to email me & ask!!

So, please read ALL your labels!

Approach each situation with Love!

If the kids in my Sunday School classes over the past few years learn absolutely nothing else from me, I hope they can remember this phrase that I fit into almost every lesson, "approach each situation with love." This is much easier said than done, but I have found that what you put into a situation is almost always reciprocated.

I am starting to love my new job in Pediatrics!! I was very weary the first few weeks, and even came home in tears at times because I was having a hard time fitting into the dynamic of the this very small unit (only 6 full time employees). Before orienting to Pediatrics I was able to work a shift in most of the units throughout the hospital in an effort to do a more thorough New Graduate orientation. The other units each had their own dynamic as well, but I felt like I could be myself around the other employees.

Once I started to orient to my new unit it was a totally different change for me. When dealing with children, there is really no room for error, and thus much more intensity is required. Also, it is almost unheard of to take a brand new graduate into a Pediatric unit because it is such a specialized standard of care, so I was kind of waiting for the floor to drop out & them kick me out if I made a mistake. I believe that I was having a hard time because I wasn't able to "be myself" at work in fear that I would do something wrong, so naturally I stressed myself out.

I'm feeling slightly more comfortable at work, and I think it is in the most part because I made the active decision to be myself and keep an open mind. I am enjoying night shift & the people I have an opportunity to work with, and most of all seeing the dramatic change in these kids as they begin to heal and the smiles, that over several days, begin to emerge.

Don't be "that guy"

You know when you're driving down the road, with no one behind you, yet someone finds the need to pull out in front of you so you have to slam on the brakes... that is who "that guy" is, or in my case, "that girl."

I attended a class for pediatric advanced life support (PALS) last week & a few of the people there were not familiar with the area, so I told them where I was planning on going for lunch & about 6 others decided to follow me there. We went to La Rumba's which is a Mexican restaurant that has good cheap food. We sat down and one of the girls automatically started complaining because our waiter didn't speak Spanish (this girl was NOT Mexican or Spanish, but was married to one for many years) & because they didn't have a specific dish she wanted. I have to admit that our drinks took forever to come, and our ordering process was slowed even more by this girl. Even I couldn't tell if she was joking or rude because she would switch back and forth between serious & laughing so quickly. She continued to be completely obnoxious throughout lunch to not only the waiter but everyone else at the table too.
Although the service was not the greatest, I felt so horrible for the abuse the waiter was receiving from this girl that I left him a large tip, and apologized numerous times before we left.

Since I am trying hard not to be judgemental, and to approach each situation with love, I'm walking away from this situation with another lesson of how NOT to be "that guy."

Good God Almighty, free at last!!!!

I passed the NCLEX-RN!!!!!

I was pretty sure that I had failed because about 30% of my questions consisted of medication that I had never heard of, and I kept realizing that I had answered a question wrong, but the Lord was with me & I couldn't have done it without his help!

Thanks to everyone that kept me in their prayers these past few weeks, it means more to me than you could ever know. These past two years of Nursing School were some of the most challenging times in my life, but with the love & support of my family and friends I was able to achieve something great.

I'm sending big hugs your way!!!!!!! Thanks you!

Viva Le Tour!

Even though Eric & I aren't the most athletic people (mainly just me), we both enjoy watching the Tour de France every summer, not just for the crashes but we follow some of the American teams (Garmin & Columbia) along with Astana because Lance Armstrong will forever be my hero!

My favorite observation is that every summer, just before or as soon as the tour starts, Eric starts riding his bike for PT. The other 11 months of the year it sits in the garage. It's the one thing I can depend on in July :o)

I'm off to Mobile to take the NCLEX tomorrow, so please keep me in your prayers that I won't forget everything I've learned, or have a massive panic attack :o)

Mad Skilz

I wanted to share the result of my hard work on my birthday at Fired Up! in Fort Walton Beach. Although I had a blast painting pottery with Eric & Kim, I have to say that I'm not too impressed with the staff. The first girl that was there had her boyfriend with her & although I didn't mind her, but the guy was very annoying & they spent the whole time talking/fighting. The other chick that came in later was just plain rude & wanted everyone to know how much she didn't want to be there, which the same could be said about the chick that I picked up my stuff from. But, there was a weird couple & two chicks that made for some very entertaining ease-dropping while we painted :o) Enjoy!!

Here is my AWESOME Honu, I used 2 different speckled paints for his shell & I was thrilled with how well his eyes turned out! ***it is a TURTLE, not a frog***

Here is a new bowl for Koa, even though it's not perfect, it was definitely a labor of love...at least I know he could care less what he eats out of :o)

back-side view

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I'll continue to be absent from the blogging world until I take the NCLEX on July 10th. Please keep me in your prayers that day, I'll need all the strength, serenity, & help I can get!!
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When I joined blogger I met an amazing Army wife named Jeannie. She has such a bright shining personality & has brought some much needed pick-me-ups by sending me these special cards...I swear she knew just how much I needed them!

You'll never guess that she just started making cards this year :o)Please check out her site & her amazing talent!!