Are you providing great or just good enough patient care?

I have been a nurse for a while now and have noticed through the years that some nurses seem to always have their work done and this is not always indicative of a job well done. The nurses that seem to have it all figured out from a time management perspective do not always provide a high level of patient care. I will see these same nurses talking about personal issues or navigating the internet when there are things that can be done to raise the quality of care they provide to their patients. This does not surprise me and I am sure it happens in every profession, but I think some nurses label themselves as slow when they are actually just providing great care. Read More

If You Give a Patient a Cookie

I am under the impression that it's impossible not to take pleasure in at least a little bit of dark humor as a nurse. It just comes with the territory. Much thanks to the original children's book this story is a satire of. Also to my coworker who noted that answering call lights is often like this book. Give a patient something little, and they just want more! Gotta love 'em. Read More

[Toon] You know you're a nurse when...

As a nurse, we do/say some funny things. Most things are out of habit. Some things we are not even aware of ... until after the fact. Let's have some fun with this ... finish the following line: You know you're a nurse when... Read More

Stop calling me sweetie! - How to get respect as a new nurse

I need to earn respect to get respect, but I don't know how to do it. I don't want to become a raging B-word .... that is not my style. I feel dismissed and not listened to from above and below, and it's starting to get me down. Read More

Any known connection between urination and VT?

I work in a CCU stepdown, almost everyone has an electrical problem. I've been on the unit for almost a year and I can't count the number of times someone has a run of non-sustained VT and as the nurse heads to the room he or she says, "I bet she's peeing again." A couple days ago a patient was peeing, went in to SVT @ 160, then VT to 240, coded and died. Is there a connection between urinating and arrhythmias? Read More

Job Fair Hints

I recently co-hosted a booth for my employer at a large nursing and healthcare worker job fair. I wanted to share some observations... Read More

How to Survive Nursing Profession: A Psychological Approach for New Nurses

There is a saying in the nursing field; Nursing, the hardest job you will ever love. Skills, knowledge and excellent time management are critical components in being a strong nurse. However, one of the most difficult tasks new nurses are required to have is being mentally prepared for such a challenge.

The psychological toll can weigh heavy. So how do you prepare yourself? How can you psychologically prepare for such a seemingly difficult task? The first step is... Read More

Would you accept this call out excuse?

I got a call at 7pm from a night shift CNA saying she was tired and didn't sleep that day and couldn't come in for her shift 11-7. I told her that I would write up the call-out slip, but I didn't think being tired was an acceptable excuse. I got a string of profanities and then "fine, I'll come in" Read More

Should we teach unlicensed caregiver...

The powers-that-be think we should teach the caregiver to give an IM of Haldol prn. I'm uncomfortable with this for 3 reasons... Read More!

It Only Takes a Smile.

Sometimes when we work in the hospital, where we are accustomed to patient’s dying, we become a little desensitized, even if it is one of our own. Sometimes nurses are so focused on their patients that we forget to care about our cohorts, our coworkers, on whom we depend. It costs nothing to lift one’s eyes up, and give a brief smile to say hello, and go back to our work, in general. Occasionally there are extraneous serious reasons why we cannot do this. I write this article about one of our own who passed suddenly. Read More

Being a Patient Where you Work

Just curious if any of you have been patients in the ER you work in? If you have never been in this situation, would you use your own ER if you or your family had an emergency? Read More

What is the worst hardship/story you have ever seen/heard in your nursing career?

As nurses, we get to know our patients intimately. So I'm asking this question: What was the worst hardship you have ever heard about that your patient has gone through? Abuse? Torment? Homelessness? AIDS? Trauma? Personal illness? Children with no parents? Read More