Med-Surg rotation 1 of 2

Well, I wasn't too excited about this rotation. I felt that I was mainly in the way and kept myself busy by helping the aides. Like I've said before...I'm comfortable with that role. I did alot of DC'ing (Discontinuing) IV's and couple of IV starts which apparently Im not so great at. It was easier on OB cause those women were young and had good veins. Older and sicker people are more dehydrated and that makes it harder to stick. I only got 1 out of 5. I have got to get the hang of it and SOON!
I didn't get to do anything crazy but I did change a colostomy, remove sutures, discharge teaching, wound vac dressing change on a stage 4 pressure ulcer, a couple of other dressing changes that were minor, a couple of admission databases, discharge teaching, and I learned that I will NEVER be snooty to nurse externs when Im in charge (LOL).
Tomorrow starts my ER rotation. Kim said she liked it so Im excited to see some action. I hope I don't make a fool of myself though :-)
Check back soon for my ER post!

LABOR AND DELIVERY

OMG...I definitely want to be a labor nurse. I even like the postpartum and babynursing. I have never been more enthused about coming to work and working for 12 hrs. I did get to see quite a lot during this rotation. I worked with some excellent nurses too.

My first day on the floor was kinda crazy. I was taking a mom and her baby out the door to go home and while I was fumbling with the car seat they called for an emergency c-section. When I got back to my floor there was nobody to be found. When I finally got the go ahead to go back to the section things were still not looking good. Baby was out but it wasn't breathing. It had been nearly 3 min. I felt like a knot on a log because I didn't know how I could help. They sent me to find the other nurse who stayed on the floor with the rest of the patients and had me get some Narcan. When I got back with the med, baby was doing fine. Whew! I did not want to experience death my first day. Whe we took the baby back to the nursery we had to suction so I got to insert the NG tube and suction. The nurses had to draw ABG's which wasn't easy. It took 4 nurses to get the job done. The baby was a level 2 baby so we kept him in the nursery for the rest of my shift.

The rest of the day went smoothly. I got to "babynurse" a few babies. For those of you who don't know what that is it is when the baby is delivered it has its own nurse who does all of the stimulating and warming. They also do all of the measuring and weighing and the APGAR's at 1 and 5 min. The baby will also get its first meds.

During this rotation I got to see circs, sections, natural labor, vacuuming, a 15 yr old giving birth, and sadly a fetal demise. I also got to hear my first heart murmur. I become proficient at inserting Foley's, I started 2 IV's, did initial assessments, and triaged a couple of ROL's. I did all of this with a nurse by my side of course. I also got to bathe a newborn and help a mom push for 2 hrs. This was by far the best clinical experience I have ever had even though it wasn't a clincial day. I talked with the person in charge and hopefully I will get to stay on OB when my summer extern program is through. She said that due to the budget she will only have room for 1 or 2. I sure hope I get it because this is definitely the spot for me.

This week I am scheduled for a much dreaded med-surg floor. I am not as excited but I am sure I will learn alot.

Nurse extern

Tomorrow is my day of orientation for the nurse extern program. I am so excited to get back into the swing of things. Tuesday is my very first official day in Labor and Delivery and I could not be more excited. I am definitely looking forward to having a patient that is not elderly (no offense, I am just looking for a change and I LOVE babies!) I feel like this is a mile stone in my career as I didn't get into anything maternal in my previous experience in LPN school. That was my main reason for going into the healthcare field in the first place. When I graduated high school, I was a computer major....how freaking boring is that! I ended up quiting school and having a baby and decided to return to school as a practical nursing student. I quit that after a year (i was almost finished lacking 3 mo.) and had another child. That along with other circumstances which I will not divulge into on here kept me away from my dream. To make a LONG story short, I had one more child, moved, changed the way I lived and started my journey to becoming an RN. It has been a long time coming.

NENE

Mary Virginia Wright

Oct 12, 1935-May 10, 2009
I just wanted to say few things about my grandmother. She passed away on Mother's Day evening. I will miss her wittiness and her kindness. She was a very special woman and she was the only one who really understood me. I couldn't get anything past her. She knew exactly what was going on in this crazy head of mine. I am thankful for the last 6 months that I have had with her. My kids got to know her and will have some good memories of her. R.I.P Nene, I will always love you.

HESI

I passed my HESI with a 978!!! I am sooo glad that is over. The exam setup was just like what was in the little HESI book, but it was easier. I was making 50's and 60's on the one with the book. I am glad that I passed the first time so I don't have to take the written final.
Well, today is Mother's day and we are supposed to have a BBQ, but guess what..it's RAINING. I guess we will just have to cook it all indoors.
I hope everyone has a GREAT Mother's day!

IV pics

IV check offs!

I did it. I did my first IV perfectly!! I am so excited! Maybe I do have what it takes to be a nurse..lol. I will post some pics of IV check offs as soon as my bestie Kim uploads them.
Meanwhile I am finishing up on my Pharmacology class and studying for the Mid-curricular at the same time. I am getting anxious. I so badly want to pass it the first time.
I hope I get to find out soon exactly where I will be "externing" this summer. I do know that I will be rotating through OB and ER. OB is where my heart is I think. I can't wait to know for sure if I like it. I think the ER will be fun cause I am nosy..lol. I think that is where I will get the most skills. Everybody who comes to floor already has an IV and a Foley cuz they got one in the ER.
Anyways, Im stoked about this summer!