Nursezine for Nurses #497 - Thankful To Be A Nurse On Thanksgiving

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Healthcare / Medicare / Medicaid

Thankful To Be A Nurse On Thanksgiving

I plan to work this upcoming Thanksgiving night. But, you know what? I really do not mind working on the holiday at all. I am a single gal with no family of my own, and even though a close friend invited me to spend the holiday with her family, I told her I was already scheduled to work on that day. Although I will not be celebrating the holiday in the traditionally festive manner that entails cooking and spending the day with a house full of extended family, I still have so much for which to be thankful on Thanksgiving. Read

Protect yourself, Protect your license, and most of all Protect your patient

Many of us believe we are providing the best possible care for our patients, many of us believe we are practicing the best way possible, many of us believe we are safe practitioners. We are! But in a court of law, unless we are following the policy and procedures available in the Policy and Procedures hand book of the facility were we work at, then we may be at risk of being sued or fired! Read

The Wise Nurse Speaks

If nursing doesn't make one an expert on human nature, nothing does. Here are some thoughts on the truths I've discovered during the course of my career that have served me well, not only in the workplace but in everyday life. May we all pursue wisdom and greater understanding of the humanity in us all. Read

Great New Reasons to Wash Your Hands, Often!

We as Nurses know this one. We even know little cute ways to know how long to wash them (i.e. alphabet song, happy birthday, etc) . A new study conducted by our University Hospital's Medical Tech Program reminded me that Bacterial Colonies, Fungal Spores, and Viruses love the things we touch the most! Here is the list of the top 10 "most infected" surfaces according to 10 Students swabbing 218 Inpatient Hospital Items. Read

To All Seasoned Nurses, Preceptors, and Nursing Instructors: You Rock!

Nursing instructors, professors, preceptors, and seasoned nurses are critical to the the future of nursing, because without their tenacity, no one would teach vital knowledge and skills to the next generation of nurses. In spite of this, the healthcare community does not always place a high value on the contributions made by nurses who educate. The purpose of this article is to express my deepest gratitude. Read.

What would cause Hgb to plummet?

I had a patient last week I can't stop thinking about. Med-surg floor, 40 yr old female, admitted with SOB and fevers one week s/p a Thymectomy to treat myasthenia gravis. After the surgery she had had some complications and ended up having to have a left thoracentesis to remove 850cc fluid. Then, she went home for a few days before being readmitted with the SOB and fevers... Read

Getting patient information before shift

My hospital just started strongly enforcing nurses to not login to a patient's chart unless you have clocked in. It hasn't been a big problem for me since I usually come into work around 6:50 or so. However, a lot of other nurses are having a difficult time with this and are trying to go around it. We also just started bedside shift report and the oncoming shift doesn't know much about the patient before report and it can get pretty lengthy if you have to explain pmh, h&p, assessment, etc. The nurses have gotten pretty frustrated with it lately and bedside report isn't consistent anymore. I was wondering what other hospitals have implemented for nurses to gather information before the start of the shift without clocking in or have it considered "working off the clock." I have read that some hospitals record the report on a tape or have a kardex. Any other suggestions? Read

Useless Hospital Committees

So maybe its just me, but it seems that every hospital has committees focused on 'improving patient care'/customer service, who spend time creating their vision statements and lead hospital retreats about how we have to put the patient first, and create newsletters and tests that we have to take.... I began to think of the resources these take, the cost to create all these puppies and butterflies material, salary time to present it and have staff listen, and the cost/benefit to the patient of taking yet another "just a minute of the nurse's time" away from the nurse. Read

How Would You Rate Your Pain????

How would you rate your pain???? As nurses, how many times have we asked that? Have you ever really thought about what you are asking and what the answer might mean? Have you ever had to give an answer to that question yourself? Just what does it mean to you? If you've even been forced to use a pain scale, you may have noticed some of its inadequacies. Read

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