I'm finally off orientation! Sunday was my first day on my own and it went pretty well. Just felt a little overwhelmed for it being my first day. I had three really heavy patients, all in isolation, and they all had something going on. I think I called docs on all three of them that night. And then I worked Monday and that went much better. Not that Sunday was bad or anything just Monday was better.
I came home Tuesday morning, grabbed a couple of hours of sleep and then packed up and headed out for Illinois for my little sister's graduation. I'm so proud of her!! And for so many reasons but to keep embarrassment to a minimum, we'll just say that I'm proud. I got to Illinois around 11 local time on Tuesday night. My new car sure makes the trip easier and more comfortable so I am so very greatful. Rachel got into town on Wednesday and it made Mom's house pretty crowded. Eric didn't get here until Thursday afternoon and I was missing my boys pretty badly. We got a hotel so as to not overcrowd my mom's house anymore and that's where I am now. Got a couple of hours of sleep last night and now I can't sleep anymore. Complication of night shift, I think. I couldn't sleep the last two nights and got very little sleep anyway. Now I slept at night so who knows how I'll be come tomorrow night. This is the first time I've switched back to days and I must say, I don't like it.
You know what else I don't like? People from Illinois. They are the rudest, nastiest people I've ever been around. I'm walking through the door way last night, like actually entering the door, and this lady out of nowhere walks right in front of me, like I wasn't there and never said a word. We had to park a few blocks away and walk to the school, not a problem. But I have little kids that I need to keep out of the street. These people were pushing my kids out of the way...and into the street. People let their kids kick us in the back while we were in the stadium. I know that a certain amount is to be expected but I always correct my kids and have them apologize. Apparently that is not the way they do things in Illinois, they just let their kids kick you as much as they want until you have to turn around and look at the kid yourself and then the parents go, "Oh, was she kicking you?" No "sorry" they just wanted to clarify I guess. Oh, and they weren't shy about hitting us either. Mom must have whacked me with balloons a dozen times. And the best part is, they had the whole row to themselves and could have spaced out.
Ugh. Ok. I feel better now.
So now I'm sitting in the hotel with Eric snoring away next to me. We hardly sleep at the same time anymore so I'm not used to it. I think he has sleep apnea. Actually, I'm sure he does. He just went 30 seconds without breathing and then out comes this giant snore. He's laying on his back; it's better when he's on his side. He doesn't get restful sleep so that's why he's such a grump. Even after 10 hours he's still tired. I'm sure we'll have a pleasant trip home. haha!
Well the boys are starting to toss and turn. It's time for them to wake up. I'm going to spend some time with them and then we're going to go see my brother at his place, my mom at work, and then my sister for her awesome present. :o) Then we're heading home. Who knew that I would miss Ohio so much.
Friday, May 14, 2010
Saturday, May 1, 2010
Interesting...
Just some of the interesting things that have happened to me:
Can I have another Ambien?
Sorry the doctor ordered only 1.
Well, you just give him a call and ask him for another.
(Looks at clock...12midnight) Suure...
I want my Ativan at 7, Vicodin at 8, and bring me all of the Morphine (4 mg) at 9. Just wake me up if I'm sleeping, that's fine.
Suure...
NURSE! HEY NUUUURRRRRSSSSE!! (screaming down the hall)
Walking in, Whatcha need?
Just wanted to make sure you could hear me if I needed you.
Guess who got a lesson on the call light?
What kind of hospital doesn't have chocolate ice cream?!
(Ok, since when is it a requirement that hospitals have chocolate ice cream?)
I never should have come to this hospital. All you guys have done since I've been here is poke me and prod me. You won't give me anything for pain or to help me sleep. The nurses run off and never come back. This is a sorry excuse for a hospital.
(Went on doing what I needed to do, the patient just kept going).
And just when are you going to bring me my Percocet??? It was due 3 minutes ago!! I've really had it with this hospital....
Put my head up! Not that high. What's wrong with you? Put it down.
Tell me when it's comfortable.
Right there! OH, you went too far again! You know, this really isn't that difficult. Now put that pillow under my head. No not that pillow, I need the fluffy pillow under my arm and the flatter pillow under my head.
I walked in to a non-isolation room to find my patient wearing an isolation mask.
Me: Honey, you don't have to wear that mask.
Oh, I need it. One of you people are bound to give me a bug!
(Says the lady with community acquired pneumonia.)
I answered the call light at the nurses station:
Me: how can I help you?
I just made a mess! It's everywhere!
Ok, I'll send your PCT in.
Tell 'em to come quick. There's SHIT everywhere!!
(Lo and behold, the PCT went in to find it literally everywhere.)
I walked into a patient's room to find the patient sitting in his chair picking at the stitches that were holding his central line in. Were holding.
He says: Ouch! Ouch! With each tug.
Oh, what happened honey?
I don't know. This thing's not supposed to be here. And it keeps hurting when I do this (and he pulled it again!!)
Well yes it was supposed to be there. Now we have to take it out though. (He had pulled it out about 2 inches).
Oh yeah? Hahahaha! Did I do that?
(I swear!)
Can I get some fresh water?
Sure, is there anything else I can get for you?
No that's it.
Here's your water.
Oh, great. How about some of those graham crackers?
Sure, do you want some peanut butter or anything?
No, just the crackers.
Here's the crackers.
Thank you. I meant to ask for some jello too.
(Sigh.)
I think that patient's tend to forget that health care workers are fallible and forgetful at times as well. They don't mind when they forget and ask for something else even after we have already asked. They don't mind sending us out of the room several times in what could have been one trip. But they sure do get upset when we forget to bring the graham crackers they asked for. I'm not trying to be rude about it at all. I love my job and I love taking care of patients but sometimes you just have to laugh. ;o)
Can I have another Ambien?
Sorry the doctor ordered only 1.
Well, you just give him a call and ask him for another.
(Looks at clock...12midnight) Suure...
I want my Ativan at 7, Vicodin at 8, and bring me all of the Morphine (4 mg) at 9. Just wake me up if I'm sleeping, that's fine.
Suure...
NURSE! HEY NUUUURRRRRSSSSE!! (screaming down the hall)
Walking in, Whatcha need?
Just wanted to make sure you could hear me if I needed you.
Guess who got a lesson on the call light?
What kind of hospital doesn't have chocolate ice cream?!
(Ok, since when is it a requirement that hospitals have chocolate ice cream?)
I never should have come to this hospital. All you guys have done since I've been here is poke me and prod me. You won't give me anything for pain or to help me sleep. The nurses run off and never come back. This is a sorry excuse for a hospital.
(Went on doing what I needed to do, the patient just kept going).
And just when are you going to bring me my Percocet??? It was due 3 minutes ago!! I've really had it with this hospital....
Put my head up! Not that high. What's wrong with you? Put it down.
Tell me when it's comfortable.
Right there! OH, you went too far again! You know, this really isn't that difficult. Now put that pillow under my head. No not that pillow, I need the fluffy pillow under my arm and the flatter pillow under my head.
I walked in to a non-isolation room to find my patient wearing an isolation mask.
Me: Honey, you don't have to wear that mask.
Oh, I need it. One of you people are bound to give me a bug!
(Says the lady with community acquired pneumonia.)
I answered the call light at the nurses station:
Me: how can I help you?
I just made a mess! It's everywhere!
Ok, I'll send your PCT in.
Tell 'em to come quick. There's SHIT everywhere!!
(Lo and behold, the PCT went in to find it literally everywhere.)
I walked into a patient's room to find the patient sitting in his chair picking at the stitches that were holding his central line in. Were holding.
He says: Ouch! Ouch! With each tug.
Oh, what happened honey?
I don't know. This thing's not supposed to be here. And it keeps hurting when I do this (and he pulled it again!!)
Well yes it was supposed to be there. Now we have to take it out though. (He had pulled it out about 2 inches).
Oh yeah? Hahahaha! Did I do that?
(I swear!)
Can I get some fresh water?
Sure, is there anything else I can get for you?
No that's it.
Here's your water.
Oh, great. How about some of those graham crackers?
Sure, do you want some peanut butter or anything?
No, just the crackers.
Here's the crackers.
Thank you. I meant to ask for some jello too.
(Sigh.)
I think that patient's tend to forget that health care workers are fallible and forgetful at times as well. They don't mind when they forget and ask for something else even after we have already asked. They don't mind sending us out of the room several times in what could have been one trip. But they sure do get upset when we forget to bring the graham crackers they asked for. I'm not trying to be rude about it at all. I love my job and I love taking care of patients but sometimes you just have to laugh. ;o)
Friday, April 23, 2010
Ramblings of Night Nurse
I'm half way done with night shift orientation-so far so good. I had my first rough night on Monday. I've had days where I just couldn't wait to get home but Monday night was something else. I wanted to tear out of that place. I wanted to scream. I wanted to cry. I wanted to call all of my best nursing friends and say, "I know it's 9 in the morning, but let's have a beer."
I picked up my team at 2300 instead of 1900 because we were going to a unit council meeting after report in the morning. I think that's where the trouble started; you just don't get in the right groove when you do that. You've missed the first assessment and you're actually coming in at a relatively busy time on the unit, especially when you have the heavier patients. I had one easy patient, she was already asleep and just needed assessments and meds and pain meds every four. I had one to come and two in isolation down the other hall. One is unresponsive and is a complete care and the other was doing well...until we found out we needed to start blood on her. So I start calling docs and putting in orders for type and crossmatch and transfuse 2 units PRBC's. They didn't type and cross until 0100 and then the blood wasn't ready til 0230, which was in the middle of my admission (with a heparin drip) for my 'to come'...about the time I was getting ready to go get the blood, something happened that caused me to have to rush down to blood bank and get the blood and rush back up and start the blood. My lunch (lunch is more scheduled on nights because of the cafeteria only being open from 0145-0345) didn't start until 0330 and then I ate as quick as I could to get back to everything. As soon as I got back, my other patient's PEG tube was clogged and we had to fix that. I got so busy and just trying to stay caught up, I forgot to draw labs on one of them and that put my even further behind. I didn't get off the unit until almost 0800. Just a lot of little things-and a few big things-that added up to make me very frustrated and very flustered.
But I went back on Wednesday night. And Thursday night. And since my preceptor was team leader she tweaked the assignment so I'd have at least one of the heavier patients I had before. I got the unresponsive one who began having blood pressure issues on Wednesday around 1500. They bolused and she was ok. Until 2100. Sigh. So all I did all night was do one bolus after another, trendelenburg and back up, BP checks every 3-5 minutes, all that fun stuff. I had the same team Thursday night and it went much more smoothly. Thank goodness.
I like 6SAC. ICU step down is great. We do have some patient's that aren't appropriate for the unit, either too medically stable or not stable enough but sometimes we can't transfer them out. Seems like people go bad on nights the most. But 6SAC is great because there aren't a lot of ego problems; nights wraps up what they can and so does days and no one is blaming anyone else for anything that wasn't done. Nights does a lot of the "housekeeping" type of stuff. Making sure that things are ready to go for days, paper work, strips are ready to be printed, people are cleaned up for the day shift since they tend to be busier. And I found out that I can apply to ICU (in a year, of course) and only do 6-10 weeks of orientation. That's all 6SAC nurses usually need. The other units have to do 6-12 months. Yikes!
Life is different on nights. I can't do the switching back and forth very well. My goal on my nights off is usually to go to bed around 0300 but this last week it's been 0600 which is kind of irritating. I sleep all day. I eat one meal while I'm at work and eat a piece of toast before. I drink a ton of water and lots of Amp and Diet Dr Pepper. But I wake up when the kids get home and see them for about an hour before work. I'm not as rushed. I have been able to go to swim lessons and play outside with them pretty much every day. The house is quiet while I do school work at midnight. I get all the laundry and dishes done while they're sleeping. I just wish Eric would put it away-it's hard to put laundry away in the dark when everyone is sleeping. haha! The worst part is feeling lonely. No one else is awake and most of my friends are day shift so I don't have anyone to call at 0200 when I feel like chatting.
School is going well. 100% in Sociology so far and a 98% in my NSG class at OU and I just have one more week of that class. Then I have a week off and start my Nursing Management course and continue on for a few more weeks of Sociology. I'll be so glad when that class is over. It's more work than my 5 credit hour nursing class, which I find to be quite ridiculous. I think I'll stick to just Nursing for a little while and fit my nutrition and English in at a later date. One year and I can have my BSN. :o)
One final thought-
Note to self: make sure my husband and family know that I am to be a DNR if I ever become unresponsive d/t brain injury. Do not, ever, trach me, PEG me, and leave me at a nursing facility. Do not stick a foley and dignicare in me; unless it's for comfort. I'm all about palliative care. Do not make me a full code if I have had a cardiac arrest that leaves me with an anoxic brain injury that leaves me unresponsive. What was the point in bringing me back the first time, let alone a second? Do not let me grow hairs on my chin-this is more of a general statement. If I am 100 years old sitting around my house, somebody better bring the tweezers over and take care of the old bearded lady. The do's: Please do help me put make up on when I'm old and have lipstick on my teeth. Send me to hospice if I'm terminally ill or unresponsive. Tell the nurses what I like to do at home. Come play music for me. Tell me stories. Bring pictures. Bring old friends to say good-bye. Say a prayer if you like. And when I die, please donate my organs. Donate my body to the med students or hang my skeleton in a class room somewhere. Let something good come from my death.
More night nurse ramblings coming soon...
I picked up my team at 2300 instead of 1900 because we were going to a unit council meeting after report in the morning. I think that's where the trouble started; you just don't get in the right groove when you do that. You've missed the first assessment and you're actually coming in at a relatively busy time on the unit, especially when you have the heavier patients. I had one easy patient, she was already asleep and just needed assessments and meds and pain meds every four. I had one to come and two in isolation down the other hall. One is unresponsive and is a complete care and the other was doing well...until we found out we needed to start blood on her. So I start calling docs and putting in orders for type and crossmatch and transfuse 2 units PRBC's. They didn't type and cross until 0100 and then the blood wasn't ready til 0230, which was in the middle of my admission (with a heparin drip) for my 'to come'...about the time I was getting ready to go get the blood, something happened that caused me to have to rush down to blood bank and get the blood and rush back up and start the blood. My lunch (lunch is more scheduled on nights because of the cafeteria only being open from 0145-0345) didn't start until 0330 and then I ate as quick as I could to get back to everything. As soon as I got back, my other patient's PEG tube was clogged and we had to fix that. I got so busy and just trying to stay caught up, I forgot to draw labs on one of them and that put my even further behind. I didn't get off the unit until almost 0800. Just a lot of little things-and a few big things-that added up to make me very frustrated and very flustered.
But I went back on Wednesday night. And Thursday night. And since my preceptor was team leader she tweaked the assignment so I'd have at least one of the heavier patients I had before. I got the unresponsive one who began having blood pressure issues on Wednesday around 1500. They bolused and she was ok. Until 2100. Sigh. So all I did all night was do one bolus after another, trendelenburg and back up, BP checks every 3-5 minutes, all that fun stuff. I had the same team Thursday night and it went much more smoothly. Thank goodness.
I like 6SAC. ICU step down is great. We do have some patient's that aren't appropriate for the unit, either too medically stable or not stable enough but sometimes we can't transfer them out. Seems like people go bad on nights the most. But 6SAC is great because there aren't a lot of ego problems; nights wraps up what they can and so does days and no one is blaming anyone else for anything that wasn't done. Nights does a lot of the "housekeeping" type of stuff. Making sure that things are ready to go for days, paper work, strips are ready to be printed, people are cleaned up for the day shift since they tend to be busier. And I found out that I can apply to ICU (in a year, of course) and only do 6-10 weeks of orientation. That's all 6SAC nurses usually need. The other units have to do 6-12 months. Yikes!
Life is different on nights. I can't do the switching back and forth very well. My goal on my nights off is usually to go to bed around 0300 but this last week it's been 0600 which is kind of irritating. I sleep all day. I eat one meal while I'm at work and eat a piece of toast before. I drink a ton of water and lots of Amp and Diet Dr Pepper. But I wake up when the kids get home and see them for about an hour before work. I'm not as rushed. I have been able to go to swim lessons and play outside with them pretty much every day. The house is quiet while I do school work at midnight. I get all the laundry and dishes done while they're sleeping. I just wish Eric would put it away-it's hard to put laundry away in the dark when everyone is sleeping. haha! The worst part is feeling lonely. No one else is awake and most of my friends are day shift so I don't have anyone to call at 0200 when I feel like chatting.
School is going well. 100% in Sociology so far and a 98% in my NSG class at OU and I just have one more week of that class. Then I have a week off and start my Nursing Management course and continue on for a few more weeks of Sociology. I'll be so glad when that class is over. It's more work than my 5 credit hour nursing class, which I find to be quite ridiculous. I think I'll stick to just Nursing for a little while and fit my nutrition and English in at a later date. One year and I can have my BSN. :o)
One final thought-
Note to self: make sure my husband and family know that I am to be a DNR if I ever become unresponsive d/t brain injury. Do not, ever, trach me, PEG me, and leave me at a nursing facility. Do not stick a foley and dignicare in me; unless it's for comfort. I'm all about palliative care. Do not make me a full code if I have had a cardiac arrest that leaves me with an anoxic brain injury that leaves me unresponsive. What was the point in bringing me back the first time, let alone a second? Do not let me grow hairs on my chin-this is more of a general statement. If I am 100 years old sitting around my house, somebody better bring the tweezers over and take care of the old bearded lady. The do's: Please do help me put make up on when I'm old and have lipstick on my teeth. Send me to hospice if I'm terminally ill or unresponsive. Tell the nurses what I like to do at home. Come play music for me. Tell me stories. Bring pictures. Bring old friends to say good-bye. Say a prayer if you like. And when I die, please donate my organs. Donate my body to the med students or hang my skeleton in a class room somewhere. Let something good come from my death.
More night nurse ramblings coming soon...
Monday, April 5, 2010
A little of this, a little of that
So my life has been a crazy mess for the last week. Last Monday I worked 7a-730p, had a job interview at 2p and started classes at Ohio University and Sinclair. I found out that my Sinclair class had due dates of Friday mornings at 0800...well, I had class Tuesday and worked my 12's on Thursday and Friday which gave me one day to get a weeks worth of work done. I don't know how I did it, but I did! I'm now slowly progressing through week 2. My NSG course at OU is pretty straightforward-I'm sure Amber will be pleased to know that.
On the upside, I knew in the interview that I had the job. And it became official by Wednesday morning. :0)
So, in about a week I'll be starting my position on 6SAC (6 South Advanced Care)...on nights. Dun dun dun!! I'm nervous about getting sleep during the day but I suppose it'll all work out, it'll just take time. You can do anything for a year, right? And the extra pay will surely be nice. The plan is to work every Saturday and Sunday night and then a Wednesday or Thursday. That's even more money. Gotta get a new car!!
Mommy Update:
Austin finally came out of Terrible Two's to enter the even more Terrible Three's. He has decided that "I don't care" is his favorite phrase...after, only, "You want a piece of me, Punk?!" Which I have no clue where he got that from. He can also spell his name and he can count to 36. Do not prompt him to count higher because he will get mad and ask you the above mentioned new favorite phrase. Well, either one of them really. Funny story though: We were out to dinner with grandma and as soon as we got there, I took him to the bathroom. We were getting ready to leave and some how according to Eric's logic, it was my turn (??? can someone explain that one to me???) again. So I tried to take him. He stops in front of me, puts his hands up and says "NO! Just my Gamma take me!" Alrighty then. Gamma takes him and she comes back giggling and all I can think is OMG, what did he do now? She says that he didn't want to go potty but wanted to play in the sink so she decided to go while he washed his hands. As she turned to sit on the toilet, Austin turned and said "OH GAMMA! What a big butt you have!!" And then went back to washing his hands. So now my mother in law is known as Gamma with the big butt. Kids say the darndest things, right? (I swear, I did not prompt him to say bad things about his grandma!!)
Ryan is doing well in school. His teacher thought maybe he didn't like her because he's always so serious. She was quite worried, because she really likes him and tries to do special things for him because he is always so good and he does everything he's supposed to do. So when she has to move his boat (their warning signs, like getting your name put on the board) she has a tough time with it. And Ryan remembers everything anyone has ever said to him. He still talks about how I put him in time-out one time and he didn't even do anything. Well, at the time I didn't know that and I apologized later but I guess I need to apologize for the rest of my life. I thought he was doing so much better. Eric and I joke a lot but Ryan always has taken things so seriously. He's finally started joking back and saying stuff like, "I know you're just kidding me." It's been a lot of fun. Ryan is on Spring Break this week-I'm taking him to day care tomorrow so I can catch up on school work and then he's staying home with me all day Thursday and going to Grandma and Papa's house on Friday. He's pretty excited. He's also quite excited about becoming a soldier. It's all he talks about. He's only 6. And this soldier kick isn't going away, it's already been here for two years.
A good reminder of why I love being a nurse:
Holding my patients' hands. It's the best feeling in the world. Not just for me either, but for them. It's not for every patient; but for those who benefit from it, it makes all the difference in the world to them. A lot of times, it's the older female who needs it most. They are very scared and feel so out of control. Just sitting down and talking to them does a lot. I can't do it with every patient and I can't do it every day. But if I feel like my patient really needs it, then I deal with the consequences of trying to catch up. Charting vitals every hour is not what is best for my patient, but making sure they are safe and comforted is. How's this for the day from hell: 4 patients and three of them have MRI's that day-one at 0830 (I get report at 0730) and the other at 1000. The third has not been scheduled and I have to complete the questionnaire. Along with a patient with discharge pending physical therapy (and a few other minor details), 0800 assessments and morning meds. The phone never stopped ringing and my pending d/c patient was not very nice. But I did it. I made it through the day. And without pulling my hair out. Woot! And I still had time to stop and answer her questions and hold her hand while she cried. Man, I love this job. Or is it profession? Question of the week for NSG class last week-is nursing a profession or job? What is the distinction and why?
Well, I had planned on writing some of my paper but it's almost done anyway so I think I'll spare myself tonight and finish it up tomorrow morning. Guess I'll read my Sookie Stackhouse book instead. Finally on book 6! Gotta hurry up cause book 9 is coming out this month and book 10 will be out in May. They are easy reads and a great way to get my mind off the rest of this crazy world.
On the upside, I knew in the interview that I had the job. And it became official by Wednesday morning. :0)
So, in about a week I'll be starting my position on 6SAC (6 South Advanced Care)...on nights. Dun dun dun!! I'm nervous about getting sleep during the day but I suppose it'll all work out, it'll just take time. You can do anything for a year, right? And the extra pay will surely be nice. The plan is to work every Saturday and Sunday night and then a Wednesday or Thursday. That's even more money. Gotta get a new car!!
Mommy Update:
Austin finally came out of Terrible Two's to enter the even more Terrible Three's. He has decided that "I don't care" is his favorite phrase...after, only, "You want a piece of me, Punk?!" Which I have no clue where he got that from. He can also spell his name and he can count to 36. Do not prompt him to count higher because he will get mad and ask you the above mentioned new favorite phrase. Well, either one of them really. Funny story though: We were out to dinner with grandma and as soon as we got there, I took him to the bathroom. We were getting ready to leave and some how according to Eric's logic, it was my turn (??? can someone explain that one to me???) again. So I tried to take him. He stops in front of me, puts his hands up and says "NO! Just my Gamma take me!" Alrighty then. Gamma takes him and she comes back giggling and all I can think is OMG, what did he do now? She says that he didn't want to go potty but wanted to play in the sink so she decided to go while he washed his hands. As she turned to sit on the toilet, Austin turned and said "OH GAMMA! What a big butt you have!!" And then went back to washing his hands. So now my mother in law is known as Gamma with the big butt. Kids say the darndest things, right? (I swear, I did not prompt him to say bad things about his grandma!!)
Ryan is doing well in school. His teacher thought maybe he didn't like her because he's always so serious. She was quite worried, because she really likes him and tries to do special things for him because he is always so good and he does everything he's supposed to do. So when she has to move his boat (their warning signs, like getting your name put on the board) she has a tough time with it. And Ryan remembers everything anyone has ever said to him. He still talks about how I put him in time-out one time and he didn't even do anything. Well, at the time I didn't know that and I apologized later but I guess I need to apologize for the rest of my life. I thought he was doing so much better. Eric and I joke a lot but Ryan always has taken things so seriously. He's finally started joking back and saying stuff like, "I know you're just kidding me." It's been a lot of fun. Ryan is on Spring Break this week-I'm taking him to day care tomorrow so I can catch up on school work and then he's staying home with me all day Thursday and going to Grandma and Papa's house on Friday. He's pretty excited. He's also quite excited about becoming a soldier. It's all he talks about. He's only 6. And this soldier kick isn't going away, it's already been here for two years.
A good reminder of why I love being a nurse:
Holding my patients' hands. It's the best feeling in the world. Not just for me either, but for them. It's not for every patient; but for those who benefit from it, it makes all the difference in the world to them. A lot of times, it's the older female who needs it most. They are very scared and feel so out of control. Just sitting down and talking to them does a lot. I can't do it with every patient and I can't do it every day. But if I feel like my patient really needs it, then I deal with the consequences of trying to catch up. Charting vitals every hour is not what is best for my patient, but making sure they are safe and comforted is. How's this for the day from hell: 4 patients and three of them have MRI's that day-one at 0830 (I get report at 0730) and the other at 1000. The third has not been scheduled and I have to complete the questionnaire. Along with a patient with discharge pending physical therapy (and a few other minor details), 0800 assessments and morning meds. The phone never stopped ringing and my pending d/c patient was not very nice. But I did it. I made it through the day. And without pulling my hair out. Woot! And I still had time to stop and answer her questions and hold her hand while she cried. Man, I love this job. Or is it profession? Question of the week for NSG class last week-is nursing a profession or job? What is the distinction and why?
Well, I had planned on writing some of my paper but it's almost done anyway so I think I'll spare myself tonight and finish it up tomorrow morning. Guess I'll read my Sookie Stackhouse book instead. Finally on book 6! Gotta hurry up cause book 9 is coming out this month and book 10 will be out in May. They are easy reads and a great way to get my mind off the rest of this crazy world.
Monday, March 22, 2010
Health Care
I tend to just keep my mouth shut as Health Care has become more about politics and which side you're on than about providing care to people, but seeing as this bill is happening I must say something.
Health care isn't perfect-it's far from perfect but I don't see where this bill helps correct the problem. They are "fixing" a problem and creating many, many more. I just can't see where the math adds up to make this better than what we have now.
Coming from the perspective of a nurse, this is what I see:
Many doctor's are going to leave the profession, the workload would be too great and the taxes too high to continue (see this article: http://www.cnsnews.com/news/print/62812), I've talked to a few docs at the hospital who would agree with this statement. So doctors leave and we have more patients flooding the hospitals-yes, the problems will continue in ER with people receiving their health care there because those docs that are leaving are GP's-so private physicians are gone. Where else do you go then? ER. While the Dayton area has been flooded with nurses, it is a temporary increase and the rest of the country isn't experiencing this-they are still in a nursing shortage. So now we have few doctors AND fewer nurses (and smaller paychecks for the nurses who are left, I'm sure) but MORE patients to care for. What does that mean? Well, in Advanced Care (step down ICU) we take 3-4 patient's depending on severity and work load of the patients. If we have fewer nurses then the nurse:patient ratio changes; nurses will carry a heavier team.
Nursing is a hard job, there is so much to think about and caring for 3-4 patients (and on Med Surg floors it's 5-6 patients) is difficult. We want the best for our patients. We want them to be safe, we don't want sentinel events, we don't want to miss something because we're behind and we're trying to catch up. I know for me, I like to know about my patients and their families. It's not just assess patient, pass meds, document, repeat. Not for me. I talk to my patients, I learn about them and spend time with them. I love getting to spend time with families. It's especially comforting for me to spend time with family members of someone who is critical or who is dying. And it's a great joy to take care of someone who has gotten well and comes back to tell you "thank you." It's the best part of my job. I hate to think that this will be taken away because I'll be caring for 5 or more patients on a daily basis. There won't be enough time. I know some people wouldn't think that's important but nurses treat the whole person-mind, body and soul (or mental, physical and spiritual, if you prefer) and I'll feel like such a bad nurse if I don't.
Not to mention that if you give these nurses heavier assignments that they'll get burnt out and leave the profession, giving us an even bigger shortage. And do you think many people will be waiting to become a nurse then? Sinclair won't have a waiting list for it's nursing program anymore, that's for sure.
I'm not saying we don't need changes to the way insurance companies practice and run health care. But I'm saying this is such a drastic way to change. I don't understand why we can't do little steps? Allow the purchase of insurance across state lines for starters. Don't tax people who don't have "acceptable" coverage (see house bill here: http://docs.house.gov/rules/health/111_ahcaa.pdf p 8 subpart A) {On a side note, I did hear that surrogates will be required to be covered under all insurance plans...not sure if that's a good idea or not...you'll start seeing surrogate companies pop up all over the place and a lot of people who shouldn't be doing it will be}.
Well, that's all I can post for now. Will follow up soon though. I'm still trying to read this stupid bill. It takes awhile! :D
More soon...
Health care isn't perfect-it's far from perfect but I don't see where this bill helps correct the problem. They are "fixing" a problem and creating many, many more. I just can't see where the math adds up to make this better than what we have now.
Coming from the perspective of a nurse, this is what I see:
Many doctor's are going to leave the profession, the workload would be too great and the taxes too high to continue (see this article: http://www.cnsnews.com/news/print/62812), I've talked to a few docs at the hospital who would agree with this statement. So doctors leave and we have more patients flooding the hospitals-yes, the problems will continue in ER with people receiving their health care there because those docs that are leaving are GP's-so private physicians are gone. Where else do you go then? ER. While the Dayton area has been flooded with nurses, it is a temporary increase and the rest of the country isn't experiencing this-they are still in a nursing shortage. So now we have few doctors AND fewer nurses (and smaller paychecks for the nurses who are left, I'm sure) but MORE patients to care for. What does that mean? Well, in Advanced Care (step down ICU) we take 3-4 patient's depending on severity and work load of the patients. If we have fewer nurses then the nurse:patient ratio changes; nurses will carry a heavier team.
Nursing is a hard job, there is so much to think about and caring for 3-4 patients (and on Med Surg floors it's 5-6 patients) is difficult. We want the best for our patients. We want them to be safe, we don't want sentinel events, we don't want to miss something because we're behind and we're trying to catch up. I know for me, I like to know about my patients and their families. It's not just assess patient, pass meds, document, repeat. Not for me. I talk to my patients, I learn about them and spend time with them. I love getting to spend time with families. It's especially comforting for me to spend time with family members of someone who is critical or who is dying. And it's a great joy to take care of someone who has gotten well and comes back to tell you "thank you." It's the best part of my job. I hate to think that this will be taken away because I'll be caring for 5 or more patients on a daily basis. There won't be enough time. I know some people wouldn't think that's important but nurses treat the whole person-mind, body and soul (or mental, physical and spiritual, if you prefer) and I'll feel like such a bad nurse if I don't.
Not to mention that if you give these nurses heavier assignments that they'll get burnt out and leave the profession, giving us an even bigger shortage. And do you think many people will be waiting to become a nurse then? Sinclair won't have a waiting list for it's nursing program anymore, that's for sure.
I'm not saying we don't need changes to the way insurance companies practice and run health care. But I'm saying this is such a drastic way to change. I don't understand why we can't do little steps? Allow the purchase of insurance across state lines for starters. Don't tax people who don't have "acceptable" coverage (see house bill here: http://docs.house.gov/rules/health/111_ahcaa.pdf p 8 subpart A) {On a side note, I did hear that surrogates will be required to be covered under all insurance plans...not sure if that's a good idea or not...you'll start seeing surrogate companies pop up all over the place and a lot of people who shouldn't be doing it will be}.
Well, that's all I can post for now. Will follow up soon though. I'm still trying to read this stupid bill. It takes awhile! :D
More soon...
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Anniversary
What a great weekend! I had class til about 3 on Friday, came home and got ready for our night out. I bought a new dress to wear-deep teal-and wore it with my new short trench coat from Marshall's. Felt nice to dress up. :o) My MiL was supposed to be here at 1630 but didn't make it til almost 1700 so by the time we got to The Cheesecake Factory we had a one hour wait but since we went to The Greene, we walked next door to Bath & Body Works, then to Kay's Jewelers. I found the perfect ring for me!! So excited-and for a lot less than I was afraid it was going to be so I'm even more excited. Don't know when we're going to get it, still want to look around and see what else is out there.
Anyway, dinner was very good but portion was huge and I took home 2/3 of it! When we left we headed for Richmond (with the plan of stopping at iHop for breakfast in the morning) to stay at a hotel. We got a room with jacuzzi, which was fabulous after the very long week we both had! We slept in, which was great, but slept in so much that iHop was packed by the time we got there. Maybe in a few weeks we'll make a quick trip over there. So we came home. It was the perfect time for us! Nothing busy or rushed; just relaxing and enjoyable. I loved it.
We came home to a very messy house that I got cleaned up nicely over the weekend. Ryan stayed at Grandma's on Saturday night and that gave us some time with just Austin. <3 We never get time alone with either of the boys so when the occasion comes up we take full advantage. I let him pick out a new toy and new pair of shoes. He even got some Toy Story bed sheets. He was the happiest little boy in the world, I think. Came home and played for awhile before bed. I'm trying to think of something we can do with Ryan on his Spring Break-he always loves the Air Force Museum so that might be just the ticket! I just need to figure out how to get some more of those "lunchables" that Seth had! haha! Can't believe how much he liked that thing.
Well, I think I'll be applying to 6SAC-I wanted to go for it and apply to Coronary but I just want to transition well through things, take my time and if I get to CICU then I get there. Advanced Care (6SAC) is a wonderful unit to start on. Unfortunately, the only jobs open anywhere in the hospital are on nights. Hopefully it will only be for 6 months to a year. I can handle that. Eric likes that idea better but I'm not sure why. I'm especially worried with our house being so small-how will I sleep on weekends??? And Eric will have to take time off for sick days and school vacation days anyway (at least on days I work). We'll figure it out. And the extra 10% will be nice for sure.
This week won't be quite as busy: class on Monday, work Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. I start Neuro on Monday and unfortunately with the way her schedule falls, I work next weekend too. Once again, the extra money will be nice, but I'm going to be beat! I am actually hoping to talk to one of my educators and see if I can just apply to 6SAC and stay there and not finish out the internship on Neuro. We all know I won't want to stay there. haha! My goal for this week is to make it to the gym Monday, Wednesday and Friday and hit the park track on Sunday if it's not raining. I am aiming for -3#. I'm doing pretty good but this weekend (pasta and cheesecake, even if it was only half of each) took it's toll! I don't have too many errands to run this week so maybe I'll get to catch up with my girls on Wednesday or Friday? We'll see.
Here's to a wonderful week!
Anyway, dinner was very good but portion was huge and I took home 2/3 of it! When we left we headed for Richmond (with the plan of stopping at iHop for breakfast in the morning) to stay at a hotel. We got a room with jacuzzi, which was fabulous after the very long week we both had! We slept in, which was great, but slept in so much that iHop was packed by the time we got there. Maybe in a few weeks we'll make a quick trip over there. So we came home. It was the perfect time for us! Nothing busy or rushed; just relaxing and enjoyable. I loved it.
We came home to a very messy house that I got cleaned up nicely over the weekend. Ryan stayed at Grandma's on Saturday night and that gave us some time with just Austin. <3 We never get time alone with either of the boys so when the occasion comes up we take full advantage. I let him pick out a new toy and new pair of shoes. He even got some Toy Story bed sheets. He was the happiest little boy in the world, I think. Came home and played for awhile before bed. I'm trying to think of something we can do with Ryan on his Spring Break-he always loves the Air Force Museum so that might be just the ticket! I just need to figure out how to get some more of those "lunchables" that Seth had! haha! Can't believe how much he liked that thing.
Well, I think I'll be applying to 6SAC-I wanted to go for it and apply to Coronary but I just want to transition well through things, take my time and if I get to CICU then I get there. Advanced Care (6SAC) is a wonderful unit to start on. Unfortunately, the only jobs open anywhere in the hospital are on nights. Hopefully it will only be for 6 months to a year. I can handle that. Eric likes that idea better but I'm not sure why. I'm especially worried with our house being so small-how will I sleep on weekends??? And Eric will have to take time off for sick days and school vacation days anyway (at least on days I work). We'll figure it out. And the extra 10% will be nice for sure.
This week won't be quite as busy: class on Monday, work Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. I start Neuro on Monday and unfortunately with the way her schedule falls, I work next weekend too. Once again, the extra money will be nice, but I'm going to be beat! I am actually hoping to talk to one of my educators and see if I can just apply to 6SAC and stay there and not finish out the internship on Neuro. We all know I won't want to stay there. haha! My goal for this week is to make it to the gym Monday, Wednesday and Friday and hit the park track on Sunday if it's not raining. I am aiming for -3#. I'm doing pretty good but this weekend (pasta and cheesecake, even if it was only half of each) took it's toll! I don't have too many errands to run this week so maybe I'll get to catch up with my girls on Wednesday or Friday? We'll see.
Here's to a wonderful week!
Monday, March 1, 2010
What is your deal?
We went to the Y tonight right after work, I still had my uniform on and it reminded me to ask them about a discount for being an employee at MVH. I asked front desk girl and the Director of Marketing (aka being a giant whore to get her job) or Employee Relations or some made up job title, said, "what did she ask?" Ok, I'm standing right there. Then she says "you can just come over here and talk to me." So I very nicely went over and smiled and said that I had been told that the Y was one of the places I could use my employee discount (by one of the YMCA employees, BTW) and now that I was full time I'd like to look into it. She looked up my acct and starts by saying "You're right where you should be." Ok, that's fine. "Why did you not have this discount set up before? Didn't you know you could do that?" (Do you know how hard it is for me to have someone talk to me like an idiot. I have to try very hard not to get kicked out of places.) I told her I wasn't FT before and was told by someone that after FT status I could get the discount.
Continuing on, "you're account is being charged at the reduced rate since you made less than $40,000 and you're not eligible for a discount. You're already reduced." Great, thank you for the information. Thank you for also making me feel like poor white trash. She said, "IF (and she did place that much emphasis on the word) you start making more than $60,000 a year (which, dare I tell her that I make more than Eric now? haha! AND Eric has gotten a few raises since we signed up) then you'll be eligible for a 10% discount." Fabulous. That's all I wanted to know. Why so bitchy about it?? She wouldn't look me in the eye, she talked down to me. Seriously? Why such a bitch? I thought, gee, it'd be great to come in here in a few weeks and be like "BAM!" We make more than $60,000 now, please kiss my behind. Thanks! Then I remembered, it goes off of this past years W2's. I get the reduced rate for another two years anyway. Guess I'll get my "BAM!" moment in two years.
For the record, didn't like her before, definitely don't like her now, and she really did sleep with her boss to get her job.
Continuing on, "you're account is being charged at the reduced rate since you made less than $40,000 and you're not eligible for a discount. You're already reduced." Great, thank you for the information. Thank you for also making me feel like poor white trash. She said, "IF (and she did place that much emphasis on the word) you start making more than $60,000 a year (which, dare I tell her that I make more than Eric now? haha! AND Eric has gotten a few raises since we signed up) then you'll be eligible for a 10% discount." Fabulous. That's all I wanted to know. Why so bitchy about it?? She wouldn't look me in the eye, she talked down to me. Seriously? Why such a bitch? I thought, gee, it'd be great to come in here in a few weeks and be like "BAM!" We make more than $60,000 now, please kiss my behind. Thanks! Then I remembered, it goes off of this past years W2's. I get the reduced rate for another two years anyway. Guess I'll get my "BAM!" moment in two years.
For the record, didn't like her before, definitely don't like her now, and she really did sleep with her boss to get her job.
Sunday, February 28, 2010
All kinds of stuff...
I've started my new rotation on Advanced Care...not bad, very busy but they are very sick patients. I enjoy it but there is not nearly enough heart stuff. I was so excited when one of my pts came back from an angiography and had had a fem line pulled...finally, something I can work with! hahaha! Had a couple of firsts occur this week but none I can speak of here.
Our anniversary is on Friday and we had planned on getting new rings but d/t an unforeseen circumstance with the car, we will not be able to. So now I have to find something to get Eric and only Wednesday to shop for it! I have class on Monday and Friday and I'm working on Tuesday and Thursday. (42 scheduled hours this week!) I can't believe it's been 7 years. You don't see how long it's been; like with kids, you see how they grow over the years...marriages aren't like that. I can't look at a picture of us from 5 years ago and "see" how we've grown. I guess that's why it's so hard to believe that we've been married for 7 years and how his parents can't believe they've been married for 40+ years. With the boys I'm even startled sometimes...we got a pair of pants a few years ago from my SIL and I thought, "gee, Ryan is never going to fit in those." Well, he barely does now, already ready to outgrow them. :o) I just can't wait to see what the next year, next seven years, next seventeen years will bring us.
This past Wednesday I got to have lunch with Amber and Jennifer, Mindy and Stacy were working/had just gotten off of work. After lunch the three of us went to Target and shopped around-had a wonderful time! Got to see Amber's themes throughout her house. It's going to be so nice and I'm so excited for her. Jennifer had to go home after that but Amber and I went to Marshall's where I bought a $380 short trench coat (Vertigo Paris) for $40 and my first Aigner purse for $30! So excited to use it this spring! The coat is stunning! And the lining is so soft!! It's kind of lame how excited I am about this. hahaha! Anyway, I had such a good time with them. I miss seeing them as often as I used to. I guess I just got spoiled being in school.
Surrogacy update: I am moving forward with another company. No clue on when I would be able to carry for a couple as they would have to buy the insurance for me but at least it's a possibility. I'm so excited!
Something happened at work this week. Very ill man, DNR, family having trouble dealing, the works. They prayed. I'm pretty open in the fact that I'm agnostic. I believe in God but not they way most people do. I can't not believe that there is something bigger than myself, something that is too great for me to understand. But I don't believe in heaven or hell, in prayer, some guy watching me up in the sky, etc. I don't mean to be crass or put down another person's belief's, at the end you'll see it's quite the opposite. See, I don't believe in these things myself, but I believe in them for my patients, their families, my friends and my family. I found such comfort that my patient and family found comfort in believing. I didn't feel like everything was going to be okay in the sense that he would live but that he could die peacefully and his family could cope in a way that was healing for them. I think when I say I'm agnostic people take it as I don't believe in anything. But I guess what I believe in is peace for yourself, whatever it is you take comfort in. I appreciate my friends praying for me (though, I didn't always) because I know they care and they find comfort in prayer. I hope this is all making sense. Religion always gets so complicated and I'm trying to describe it on a very basic level.
Well, I suppose I should call it a night soon. That 42 hours is going to be rough to get through...but at least I have three days off after that. And Friday night I get a date night with my hubby. <3 Nothing fancy, of course, because that's just not us. We are going to Red Robin, movies and maybe a hotel for the evening. We sure could use time by ourselves.
Our anniversary is on Friday and we had planned on getting new rings but d/t an unforeseen circumstance with the car, we will not be able to. So now I have to find something to get Eric and only Wednesday to shop for it! I have class on Monday and Friday and I'm working on Tuesday and Thursday. (42 scheduled hours this week!) I can't believe it's been 7 years. You don't see how long it's been; like with kids, you see how they grow over the years...marriages aren't like that. I can't look at a picture of us from 5 years ago and "see" how we've grown. I guess that's why it's so hard to believe that we've been married for 7 years and how his parents can't believe they've been married for 40+ years. With the boys I'm even startled sometimes...we got a pair of pants a few years ago from my SIL and I thought, "gee, Ryan is never going to fit in those." Well, he barely does now, already ready to outgrow them. :o) I just can't wait to see what the next year, next seven years, next seventeen years will bring us.
This past Wednesday I got to have lunch with Amber and Jennifer, Mindy and Stacy were working/had just gotten off of work. After lunch the three of us went to Target and shopped around-had a wonderful time! Got to see Amber's themes throughout her house. It's going to be so nice and I'm so excited for her. Jennifer had to go home after that but Amber and I went to Marshall's where I bought a $380 short trench coat (Vertigo Paris) for $40 and my first Aigner purse for $30! So excited to use it this spring! The coat is stunning! And the lining is so soft!! It's kind of lame how excited I am about this. hahaha! Anyway, I had such a good time with them. I miss seeing them as often as I used to. I guess I just got spoiled being in school.
Surrogacy update: I am moving forward with another company. No clue on when I would be able to carry for a couple as they would have to buy the insurance for me but at least it's a possibility. I'm so excited!
Something happened at work this week. Very ill man, DNR, family having trouble dealing, the works. They prayed. I'm pretty open in the fact that I'm agnostic. I believe in God but not they way most people do. I can't not believe that there is something bigger than myself, something that is too great for me to understand. But I don't believe in heaven or hell, in prayer, some guy watching me up in the sky, etc. I don't mean to be crass or put down another person's belief's, at the end you'll see it's quite the opposite. See, I don't believe in these things myself, but I believe in them for my patients, their families, my friends and my family. I found such comfort that my patient and family found comfort in believing. I didn't feel like everything was going to be okay in the sense that he would live but that he could die peacefully and his family could cope in a way that was healing for them. I think when I say I'm agnostic people take it as I don't believe in anything. But I guess what I believe in is peace for yourself, whatever it is you take comfort in. I appreciate my friends praying for me (though, I didn't always) because I know they care and they find comfort in prayer. I hope this is all making sense. Religion always gets so complicated and I'm trying to describe it on a very basic level.
Well, I suppose I should call it a night soon. That 42 hours is going to be rough to get through...but at least I have three days off after that. And Friday night I get a date night with my hubby. <3 Nothing fancy, of course, because that's just not us. We are going to Red Robin, movies and maybe a hotel for the evening. We sure could use time by ourselves.
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
What On Earth...
That seems to be how the bulk of my day has gone. Needless to say, it's how it seems to go when you take care of people with...well, I guess any people. LOL! (That's about all I can say without breaking HIPAA).
I started on Advanced Care today and I liked it, but I do miss 5NW. My heart lies in taking care of heart patients. It has for awhile and I guess it always will. Maybe I'll like this rotation more as I get into it but, man, what I'd give to get a day job on 5. I think today was especially hard since I'm switching my schedule up again-went from going to bed at 0100-0200 to getting up around 0500...it's hard on the body. A good point of being up there today, well sort of, the circumstances were less than ideal for this to occur but I pulled a central line today. :o) I'm becoming a big girl nurse!
I've gone back to WW. Actually have for a few weeks now. Did really well at first, lost 6.4 of the almost 20 (YIKES!) that I had gained back. Then TOM hit and it hasn't been pretty. Back on program and so far so good. Still trying to figure out how to eat well when you work 12.5 hours. And when the heck do you exercise? I've been running on my old treadmill at home but it's manual incline adjustment and it's always on an incline and the key is missing so I work harder to go a decent speed. But I've run at least one mile on an incline every day I've been off for the past week with the exception of Saturday. Can't wait to get back on the track though!
I'm looking forward to tomorrow and Friday. Tomorrow is Muffins with Mom at Ryan's school and it will be the first time in a long time that I've been able to participate in something like that. So excited! Then I might have lunch with Stacy-haven't seen her since Austin's bday party and I can't wait to hear about her job and catch up! Friday will be another enjoyable day as I head to lunch with at least Amber (yay!!!!) and maybe even Mindy and Jennifer. I miss my girls so much and with spring coming it just reminds me of how much fun we had and how close we all were last spring. Oh, how growing up can suck! :o)
And last but not least: my surrogacy path may not be over just yet. I have so been looking forward to doing this and I couldn't just leave it at "no" so I did some more research, found a company called 'Creative Beginnings' that is based in Cincinnati that will accept me (pending all their qualifications, etc) without the surrogacy insurance in hopes that I can match to a couple and they buy the insurance policy to cover the surrogate pregnancy. I do hope I can do this! It's such a gift to give to someone else-my boys are a blessing and I can't imagine life without them. I have friends and family who cannot conceive and would be the perfect parent...why should they be limited? I know that some people think it's for the money that goes along with it but that's just icing. I would be putting that money away for my boys for college. Not everyone can be a surrogate due to emotions, attachments, etc. I saw something about it on Dr. Phil today at work. (I was not watching voluntarily as much as being held captive in the land of never ending IV meds) I hope that I can be one of the people that can do it! I have a very supportive group of family and friends who I know will help me and support me every step of the way. They are the very best that anyone could have.
Well, I guess that's it for tonight. Better get some sleep. Morning will be here all too soon.
I started on Advanced Care today and I liked it, but I do miss 5NW. My heart lies in taking care of heart patients. It has for awhile and I guess it always will. Maybe I'll like this rotation more as I get into it but, man, what I'd give to get a day job on 5. I think today was especially hard since I'm switching my schedule up again-went from going to bed at 0100-0200 to getting up around 0500...it's hard on the body. A good point of being up there today, well sort of, the circumstances were less than ideal for this to occur but I pulled a central line today. :o) I'm becoming a big girl nurse!
I've gone back to WW. Actually have for a few weeks now. Did really well at first, lost 6.4 of the almost 20 (YIKES!) that I had gained back. Then TOM hit and it hasn't been pretty. Back on program and so far so good. Still trying to figure out how to eat well when you work 12.5 hours. And when the heck do you exercise? I've been running on my old treadmill at home but it's manual incline adjustment and it's always on an incline and the key is missing so I work harder to go a decent speed. But I've run at least one mile on an incline every day I've been off for the past week with the exception of Saturday. Can't wait to get back on the track though!
I'm looking forward to tomorrow and Friday. Tomorrow is Muffins with Mom at Ryan's school and it will be the first time in a long time that I've been able to participate in something like that. So excited! Then I might have lunch with Stacy-haven't seen her since Austin's bday party and I can't wait to hear about her job and catch up! Friday will be another enjoyable day as I head to lunch with at least Amber (yay!!!!) and maybe even Mindy and Jennifer. I miss my girls so much and with spring coming it just reminds me of how much fun we had and how close we all were last spring. Oh, how growing up can suck! :o)
And last but not least: my surrogacy path may not be over just yet. I have so been looking forward to doing this and I couldn't just leave it at "no" so I did some more research, found a company called 'Creative Beginnings' that is based in Cincinnati that will accept me (pending all their qualifications, etc) without the surrogacy insurance in hopes that I can match to a couple and they buy the insurance policy to cover the surrogate pregnancy. I do hope I can do this! It's such a gift to give to someone else-my boys are a blessing and I can't imagine life without them. I have friends and family who cannot conceive and would be the perfect parent...why should they be limited? I know that some people think it's for the money that goes along with it but that's just icing. I would be putting that money away for my boys for college. Not everyone can be a surrogate due to emotions, attachments, etc. I saw something about it on Dr. Phil today at work. (I was not watching voluntarily as much as being held captive in the land of never ending IV meds) I hope that I can be one of the people that can do it! I have a very supportive group of family and friends who I know will help me and support me every step of the way. They are the very best that anyone could have.
Well, I guess that's it for tonight. Better get some sleep. Morning will be here all too soon.
Friday, February 12, 2010
What a day!
I do enjoy my job. I get a lot of satisfaction from helping my patients and talking with their families. But days like today really drain me and I just don't have much left. Today was my first day with difficult patients-called docs and put in all kinds of orders. I gave plasma today...it's hard to talk about everything without violating HIPAA so I'll leave it at that. I had one patient with BP issues and another with respiratory issues. It was a crazy day.
I didn't eat breakfast, then no lunch til 1430 and tried to squeeze a very quick dinner in around 2000. I'm so glad tomorrow is my day off. I did call and schedule a dr appt for myself though because this cold is lingering around and my ears were so plugged up today that it was really hard to get a manual BP. Of course, two hours later my ears popped and no problem. If I wake up in the morning and my ears are ok, I might skip the appt. I should probably send Eric instead and see if he really does have pneumonia. LOL!
The snow has been ridiculous around here! I'm glad I don't live on the East Coast...but almost 2 feet of snow is more than enough to justify complaining. I guess we have more coming but I've heard conflicting reports on the amount. My days off have been ruined by snow days for the last week and I really need to get caught up on sleep and housework in a big way. Since the roads are clear, those kids are going to school! I wanted to sleep in until 10 but my appt is scheduled at 1010 in Kettering so I better be up before that I guess.
Eric's dad was supposed to head home from Florida today and be home on Sunday but Eric thought we should be nice and watch the dogs for another week so Papa could stay and avoid the snow. I'm so ready for these dogs to go home; it's been a month now and it's just too much. I can't believe how much two little dogs can upset the normalcy of our house. But our house is small and we're still getting used to Hank and getting Hank used to going us and getting house broken. We've gone through three big bags of dog food in the last month and tons of dog treats. I've lost pictures, a little stool that Eric got me in Texas, socks, shoes, carpet, blinds and a few of the kids' toys since the dogs have been here. So over it! Oh...my in-laws are buying a winter home in Florida, which means that if we want to we can vacation there in the summer. That might make up for this mess! hahaha!
Well, at 0130 I think I better get myself to bed. Just had to get some of this out so I could sleep. That's the worst part of working til 2330, no one to talk to on the way home or when I get home. I love the shift otherwise...especially the 10% shift diff from 1500-end of shift. I work this wknd so that's a 15% shift diff and I really like that. :o)
I didn't eat breakfast, then no lunch til 1430 and tried to squeeze a very quick dinner in around 2000. I'm so glad tomorrow is my day off. I did call and schedule a dr appt for myself though because this cold is lingering around and my ears were so plugged up today that it was really hard to get a manual BP. Of course, two hours later my ears popped and no problem. If I wake up in the morning and my ears are ok, I might skip the appt. I should probably send Eric instead and see if he really does have pneumonia. LOL!
The snow has been ridiculous around here! I'm glad I don't live on the East Coast...but almost 2 feet of snow is more than enough to justify complaining. I guess we have more coming but I've heard conflicting reports on the amount. My days off have been ruined by snow days for the last week and I really need to get caught up on sleep and housework in a big way. Since the roads are clear, those kids are going to school! I wanted to sleep in until 10 but my appt is scheduled at 1010 in Kettering so I better be up before that I guess.
Eric's dad was supposed to head home from Florida today and be home on Sunday but Eric thought we should be nice and watch the dogs for another week so Papa could stay and avoid the snow. I'm so ready for these dogs to go home; it's been a month now and it's just too much. I can't believe how much two little dogs can upset the normalcy of our house. But our house is small and we're still getting used to Hank and getting Hank used to going us and getting house broken. We've gone through three big bags of dog food in the last month and tons of dog treats. I've lost pictures, a little stool that Eric got me in Texas, socks, shoes, carpet, blinds and a few of the kids' toys since the dogs have been here. So over it! Oh...my in-laws are buying a winter home in Florida, which means that if we want to we can vacation there in the summer. That might make up for this mess! hahaha!
Well, at 0130 I think I better get myself to bed. Just had to get some of this out so I could sleep. That's the worst part of working til 2330, no one to talk to on the way home or when I get home. I love the shift otherwise...especially the 10% shift diff from 1500-end of shift. I work this wknd so that's a 15% shift diff and I really like that. :o)
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