New Year, New Opportunities

As this year comes to a close we can sit back and reflect on what 2010 brought for us. Was it a good year? A bad one? I am very happy to say that this year ended up being pretty good. I started working in the hospital in March and got into the Nursing Program in August. It has been a very good year. I hope that this year will bring many good things to me. I'm sure that everyone has their share of new years resolutions. One of mine is to of course, pass all of my classes, as well as to write more of this blog. but when you are making your resolutions, also remember to aim for goals that are attainable. Many times we set the bar so high that we can't reach it. Be smart in your decisions. We achieve things one step at a time. It may take time, but it will be well worth the while. Good luck and may you all have a wonderful year!
Namaste

Alas

The semester has ended for me. My first semester in nursing school is over! I ended patho with a nice B under my belt. :) I still haven't recieved my grade for nursing 111, but I'm crossing my fingers that I passed. I got a C in clinical, which is okay by me. Next semester I will be concentrating on doing even better. This winter break, I will focus on Med Surge, which is what I have next semester (the last 8 weeks). It's supposed to be a pretty hard class, so I'm a bit nervous, but I want to try to stay ahead of the game. So, for now, that's all folks. I'm going to get extra hours of work over break. And that.

Update

I guess I could write a bit of an update since I have a little time. Let's see, I have about two weeks, maybe three left of school. Ohmygoshhhh. It's crazy that this semester has gone by so fast. I mean, I'm not done yet, who knows if I will pass. And I'm not kidding when I say that. The program that I'm in is extremely difficult. A lot of people have already gotten kicked out. :( I'm doing pretty well in Patho right now. I'm getting a B. As for my Nursing 111, I'm getting a C. But a C is passing, so I'm on the right track. I'm doing better in clinical now. My instructor wrote some pretty good comments on my evaluation. I have two more clinicals before I'm done. The thing that I'm scared of the most is the lab class. We have our skills testing next monday. So, a week from now. YIKES! I have been practicing, but I feel like it hasn't been enough. We have a number of things that we could be tested on. G-Tube medication administration, IM injections, Sterile procedure, applying restraints, oropharyngeal suctioning, collecting a urine specimen from a foley catheter, oxygen therapy, dry to moist dressing changes, applying an abdominal binder, administering a cleansing enema, and I think there are more that I don't want to list. Anyway, you get the picture. So, we could be tested on any of those skills. It's pretty scary when an instructor is standing right behind you watching. Very nervewracking. So for next semester, I am going to be preparing over the winter holiday. Reding up on Psych and Med-Surge. I seriously can't wait for school to be over.
Thanks for reading!

Happy Thanksgiving

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving! I wanted to wish everyone a happy Thanksgiving.
I am thankful for my family and all the support they have shown me this past semester. I am thankful for all my friends, new and old. I am thankful for all the experiences I have had ~ What doesn't kill you makes you stronger. Happy Thanksgiving.
Namaste

Thank Goodness

Well, it's been a while. I'm going to keep this post short. I know I haven't been writing much, but to be honest I'm exhausted. Gotta reserve my energy for long nights of studying. I am happy to say that I was finally able to pass oral medications as well as administer a subcutaneous injection at clinicals yesterday. I would have to say that clinicals went pretty well for me :). Better than the other days anyway. It's been a long week, but its not over yet. ^^ I have a lot of studying to do this weekend. I've got yet another exam coming up on Monday. I can't wait to get that out of the way. Thanksgiving is coming up soon. I am excited for it :) Have a wonderful holiday all. I know that I have a lot to be thankful for. I am very thankful to my family for being so supportive of me, I'm thankful for the fact that my clinical instructor is so kind and understanding. I'm thankful that I'm passing my classes!
Namaste

There Are Bright Days!

Well, the world decided to shine a little light my way. I got 100% on my Pathophysiology exam! My spirits have been boosted!!

:)

Mondays are always really hard for me. I get to school around 07:30 and don't leave until about 17:15 (5:30 pm). I was mentally exhausted today. I'm not even sure of what I want to write about. School has been going alright. I'm still passing all my classes, that's a relief. I took my fifth Pathophysiology exam today. It was on musculoskeletal disorders and neurological disorders, so kinda a heavy test. But I think I did alright. There are about four weeks left of school! I am so excited! And I cannot wait for a break. It's been more difficult that I thought it would be. This weekend, I had to work, I had to complete my holistic assessment, my self evaluation and I had to study for my Patho test. Well, I managed it. I don't like doing it this way. If I could go to school and not work, I definitly would. But this is what my life is like right now, and I will get through this. I have a support system, some of that support system wavers sometimes, but I am grateful for their understanding. I know that I may seem to not really care about other people at the moment, I feel bad, I am too self-absorbed right now. I will try harder to communicate with my friends and family. It's important to take care of my relationships as well as my career. Life is tough. But I can still enjoy every moment of it.

I'm Just Tired

This is so tough! The whole school thing, I mean. Who knew that clinical would be so HARD! After my clinical rotation at the hospital today, I went home and talked to my sister online. I burst into tears the moment I saw her. Why? Because right now, I HATE clinical rotation. It's tearing me apart. I have basically lost every bit of confidence I had. I'm always forgetting to do something. So far, in the three clinicals I have had, I've had some sort of difficulty with my patient. 1st patient: basically wasn't on the unit the whole time I was there. I got to see her once. 2nd patient: The family decided to put her on hospice that day, so they were in the room crying for most of the shift. How can I do a holistic assessment when that's happening? I really... can't? 3rd patient: Didn't think that anyone knew how sick she was, refused to talk to me about anything, yelled at me for trying to do my assessment, and yelled at her husband when he tried to talk to me. Is it obvious that I'm a bit overwhelmed??? I have to do a holistic assessment on my third patient. I worked on that for about three hours after I cried my eyes out. I think I MIGHT have enough information for this. But I'm just exhausted right now. I didn't even get to do my Med Pass today. I was supposed to do that. It's bringing me down. I'm going to talk to my clinical instructor, hopefully she can find a nice patient for me for next time. I'm not saying that I don't like the challenge, but I feel like I'm not learning enough, and I'm not doing as much as the rest of the people in my clinical group. I feel unorganized and scared. Does anyone have any pointers for me?

What Do You Do With a Difficult Patient?

What do you do when you get an extremely difficult patient? We all know that there are those people in the world who make people's lives hell. Whether they do it on purpose or not, I'm not too sure. Yesterday I had the oppurtunity (if that's what you can call it), to work with a very difficult pt. whose daughter was just like her, if not worse. When this particular patient saw me walk in, she took her finger and motioned for me to go over to her. Well, of course I did. She commenced on giving out to me, and telling me that when she got her food, I was not to just leave her there to eat it. "Well, of course!", I said, "I will help you set it up and make sure that you're comfortable." She thanked me gratefully. Sometime during the day, this woman's daughter came into the room and decided that there was no phone in the room because she couldn't find it. She looked at me and said, "Nancy, WHY doesn't she have a phone?" because obviously, the fact that she was without a phone was my fault. I smiled politely and looked around the room. I couldn't find it either. I told her that I would go and get her one. I got a bit caught up with something else and saw the daughter of the patient was at the front desk talking with the secretary. She had told the secretary that I had told her to ask the secretary to get the phone (if that makes any sense). Well, of course that wasn't the case. Thankfully the secretary was very kind and went to the room with me and found that in reality, there was a phone. I'm not sure why, but this woman was stressing me out. So much, that I wanted to cry. But, I didn't. The patient then got on my case later because her dinner had come while I was busy (bringing a body down to the morgue). This was after the family had left. She yelled at me, telling me that I had "promised" to come, and that I "never came." Yes, I understand, the hospital is a strange and scary place. But as a Tech, I have at least eight other patients to take care of. I was caring for her roommate and she was yelling my name, telling me that she needed her toothpaste at that MOMENT. No matter how many times I told her I would be there as soon as I was finished caring for her roommate, she would not stop yelling. I got so boiled up that I raised my voice. I showed her that she had a roommate by opening the curtain and told her that I have other people to take care of too. That she needs to wait for a while sometimes. She did calm down and did tell me that she would be nicer, but that was deffinitly the INCORRECT way to handle the situation. What should I have done? I was at a loss yesterday. I had been so patient, I had been calm, but my exhaustion got to the best of me. Being a nurses aid or a Patient Care Tech can help so much in learning how to deal with the everchanging situation of a hospital. What I should have done was to say, "Ok, I'm here now, what can I do for you?" In an ideal world. The patient would say thank you and calmly tell you what they need. But, unfortunately, a hospital's situations are hardly ever ideal. That's the truth. Nurses as well as Tech need to be flexible, need to anticipate, and need to be able to handle sitations. This is a job that is full of surprises. You're lucky if you get an "easy" day.

Clinicals: Day 1

Today was day one of my clinicals at the hospital. I have clinicals once a week for the rest of the semester. I had to wake up at 5am, which was absolute torture because I didn't get home from work until about 23:45 (I'm going to start writing military time because I need to get used to it.) last night. I didn't get to bed until after midnight. So basically I got less then 5 hours of sleep. TORTURE! I got ready, and then went to starbucks to get my drug (caffeine) fix. I felt a bit better once I got to the hospital, but not much better because it was still DARK out!!! Around 7:45 my clinical group got on the floor and I found out that my patient that I was supposed to work with had gone down for a SBFT (Small Bowel Follow Through). The nurse said that she should be back shortly. Well, the patient didn't come back for about 3 hours! I felt so behind! But I did get to do a bit of reading up on my patient and finding out what she had, what her history was, etc. If I haven't clarified already, because of HIPAA, which is the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, I will be saying very little about the patient's condition. Finally when the patient came back I got to perform a little bit of an assessment on her, but I felt pretty bad because she looked exhausted from going through the procedure. She was a very nice woman. I am really hoping that next week I can perform more of a assessment on a patient and hopefully be able to pass meds as well.

Time to Study is CRUCIAL!!!

Dearest readers, my apologies for not being able to write for so long. School is just, well, like I said in the previous post, overwhelming. This week I had not one, but TWO exams to take. I know that there were people in my classes who had up to four exmas that week, but still, two exams, one being a final, is hard. It was hard too because I worked the night before my pathophysiology exam and stayed up until one cramming for it. Let me tell you, I did not fare well, not at all. I ended up getting a 72% on the exam. That's not a C, that's a D. It shocked me so much. I am not used to getting D's. I had actually walked away from that exam feeling somewhat confident, so why did I do so terribly? I don't know, that's why I am making an appointment to talk to my professor about it. I cannot let that happen again. I took my nursing fundamentals final yesterday. I actually felt somewhat confident about that, but knowing me, I could have failed that one too. Like I said it's overwhelming. Nursing school isn't easy. I don't have much time to go out with friends, if I go out too much, this is what happens, I don't do well on tests and I start to panic. The next patho exam is on Pulmonary diseases. There are two lengthy chapters that I will start reading today. I need to catch up, and stay ahead. Always remember to divide your time wisely. Its a smart move.

Overwhelmed

Yep, that's pretty much all I have to say...

Med Pass

The other day I had my first skills test on passing medications. There is a lot more to giving a patient medication, then just handing it to them and making sure that they take it (see previous post for more details). At our school, we are lucky enough to have an amazing simulator hospital to practice our skills with. We even have two pyxis machines. Pyxis machines are computerized machines that lock up any medications that we get from the pharmacy. My mentor, who has been practicing this particular skill with me for a hile now, was the one who tested me. I'm happy to say that I passed. She told me a did a wonderful job, but I know there is a lot that I still need to work on. This sort of stuff is eventually going to be second nature to me. Two of the most important things in nursing are Patient Safety and Documantation. Patient safety is something that should always be remembered by any healthcare worker. We have to make sure that they don't fall out of bed, slip on the floor, get the wrong medication, take a medication that they are allergic to, etc. It's a lot of work, but that what we are there for. We also have to constantly document, because for example, if a nurse looks at a patient's wound and doesn't measure the size of it and document it, she could be liable. If a nurse doesn't document that she called a doctor about a certain medication that she/he held because it didn't interact well with another med, or the patient refused, then he/she has no protection if for some reason it goes to court. It's a scary world out there, and a nurse should always protect themselves when they are in the right. I am learning how to do physical assessments now! I feel like I am so behind! But I guess I always say that. Thanks for reading!

Survival 101

One thing that I have come to learn in my past five weeks of nursing school is that there is one thing that is VITAL to passing the classes. It's simple. Make friends in your classes. In nursing school, it is so important to have a group of friends who are in nursing school with you. They are going through the same stuff you are, you can study with them, bounce questions off of them and be each other's support groups. You need people to support you, so that you know you're not the only one struggling through the storm. They will cheer you on and help you. Make sure you are choosing the right people, not the people who are hoping for you to fail, but the people who want you there the whole time, who want you to PASS. Have study meetings with a group of friends, even if you're all just going to sit there quietly and study to yourselves. It's nice to have some company once in a while. Today I am going to study with a group of friends from school. These friends have been great. This doesn't just go for nursing school. It goes for any type of program. People are so used to studying alone, but we don't need to stick it out by ourselves. There are others doing the same thing. Take advantage of that and create a little circle. It will benefit you more than you may think.

You Can Acheive Anything If You Truly Believe

The title of my latest post may confuse you. Maybe not, but I want to send a message out there, to everyone. If you really really want something, then you will get it. How do people achieve their goals? How do people get from point A to point B? It's simple, when you want something badly enough, you will get it. That doesn't mean that you can just sit in your recliner and wish as hard as you can to be an olympic skater, it's not that easy. You have to actually work towards a goal. Today my twin sister found out that she was accepted into the top University in Poland. How did this happen? How did she go from an average student in high school to one of the best students I know now? Because this is what she wants. She has been working so hard to get into that school for about a year now. She excells in school and its because she tries. One can't get by in life without trying. If we didn't try, we wouldn't have all the literature there is in this world, the beautiful buildings that surround us, the political leaders that we have in our world (good or bad). These things as well as everything else came from effort. What I'm trying to say, is that you can't get what you want just wishing for it. You have to work for it. The same goes for a test. Lets say you have an exam in a week. You can't just sit around hoping for an A, 9 out of 10 times doesn't help. You have to put the work in, you have to give effort. Frank Lloyd Wright said "I know the price of success: dedication, hard work and an unremitting devotion to the things you want to see happen."

Numbers

Today was my first dosage calculations exam. Math has always been a stronger subject for me, but the fact that I haven't taken a math class since high school made the dosage calculations difficult for me to comprehend. It's basically all algebra. Algebra is easy, but taking a dosage that a doctor ordered and looking at what the pharmacy gave you, and then figuring out how many tablets/mLs/units/grains that you have to administer to a patient is a little difficult. I may have been stressing a little too much of my dosage calculations but I believe it was for a good cause. We had to get a hundred percent in order to pass the test. Thank goodness I did get a hundred. Otherwise I would have to do it again, but before the test I was stressing out. It didn't help that about an hour before, I was trying to figure out a problem and one of my classmates was yelling the answers at me and trying to dumb me down. I wasn't the only one who felt that way. She wasn't even explaining the method in the correct manner. Impatient people with huge ego's really shouldn't try to teach their classmates the material. I would have done much better without her help. Stress-wise anyway. I'm not the type of person who doesn't mind being yelled at by someone who thinks they know every answer in the book. It's just not fair to treat people as if they are beneath you because they aren't understanding a subject. There is no way I am ever going to study with that girl again. Thank you very much. Okay, enough of my venting. The exam is done and over with. I passed. That's all that matters!

Thank you for reading!!!

Nursing Philosophy: Draft I

We had to write a nursing philosophy for class. I thought I would just share mine with you. :) It's not very good, but I will revise it sooner or later.

Nursing Philosophy
by Nancy O'Toole

My nursing philosophy is based on four concepts. These four concepts are the person, the environment, health and nursing.
The person is a unique individual, who needs an individual plan of care. A person should be looked at as a holistic individual. They are not only made up of the physical body, they are also looked at as spiritual, and mindful. A person is individual, but is also influenced by the environment that surrounds them, including their environment, their family, and their situation. The person is made of the mind, body and spirit. The goal for an individual is that these three aspects work together harmoniously. To achieve this, each unique individual needs unique care. A person is not defined by their disease or condition. A person is defined by their history, a person is defined by their beliefs, by their habits, and by their actions.
The environment is what surrounds every being. An environment is constantly changing. The effects that the environment has on a person are constantly changing as well. An environment can have good influences or bad. Stress is a part of environment that will always be prominent. A nurse should know what kind of stressors have been in a person’s environment. Stressors have a lot to do with a person’s health and the effect it has on their future health. The environment the surrounds a person includes the weather, the living situations for a person, the people that surround the person, and the religious beliefs that the individual knows. All of these surroundings affect the person and their outcomes. It is the duty and responsibility of a nurse to provide a safe, stress-free environment for a person. The safer and healthier the environment in which a person is placed, the better the outcomes for that person.
The health of a person is unique to each individual. What may be healthy for one person may be different to another. Health is when the mind, body and soul are in union. The mind body and spirit are at peace together. When these three aspects are out of balance the health of a person is being compromised. When a person is ill, usually their physical health is weak. Illness can also affect a person’s mental health, and lastly it can affect a person’s spiritual health. Usually the physical health is under stress first. Around the same time, the person’s mental health may waver. The spiritual health of a person is usually the strongest, when a person has a reached a terminal illness, they may start to question God or rely on their beliefs even more. Each person’s physical, mental and spiritual health is different. The levels of health and the way they perceive them are unique to each individual.
Nursing is a unique career. It is an art as well as a science. A nurse must know how to bring the person, health and environment together. A nurse enables a person to regain their fullest potential. A nurse has the opportunity to make a difference in people’s lives. They have the ability to make choices that can help a person become as healthy and independent as possible. A nurse also has a responsibility. They have the responsibility to make critical choices that will affect a person and impact that person’s environment. A nurse is autonomic, and while they have autonomy, they are also caring. They care about the outcomes of the person; they care about the environment that surrounds that person. A nurse will look at the person as a whole, they will not define the person by their condition. They will see and treat the person as a human being. A nurse will help a person gain full potential and will educate that person in what they need to know. A nurse will release a person from suffering. A nurse is a caregiver who cares for each individual as uniquely as possible.

Thanks for reading!!! Namaste!!!

Make It or Break It

I took my first Pathophysiology exam today. It was difficult!!! Ugh, I don't even know how to say how frustrated I am with this whole school thing so far. I am happy to be in the program, I'm GOING to pass, but getting there is so hard. I feel like hitting my head against a wall. Every time I feel like I'm ahead, I realize that there are ten things that I still have to do. I am so behind it isn't funny. I know that probably everybody in the program feels the same way. I finally got in touch with my nursing mentor today, she is going to help me learn how to do my Med Pass. I feel bad because she was trying to get in touch with me, but I have been so bad with checking my school e mail that I never got back to her. She was a good teacher, although, I'm sure that I got super annoying. I constantly ask questions when I am learning. I have to know all the details in order for me to understand any kind of concept. So, today in my lab class, I went over passing meds with my mentor. It's scary, only being in my fourth week of class and I already have to know how to pass medications!!! I feel a headache coming on from all this thinking... I need to sit myself down and come up with some kind of checklist. I spent so much time studying for my patho test last week that I neglected my nursing lab class. I realized today that there was a worksheet that I was supposed to have done, so I thankfully was able to get that done in about an hour before class. *sigh* I will get through this!!! I can't believe I even have time to go to my Yoga class tonight. But, like everyone says, we need to make a little time for ourselves.

All the Studying Paid Off!!!

Well, needless to say, all that studying paid off! I got an 87% on my first nursing exam!!! Go me!!! I am super happy! Now I need to get back to my Pathophysiology books. :/ Not so fun.

Back to My Beginning

These next two years are going to change my life. I can just feel it hanging over me, a new outfit, ready to envelope me once I am finished with the NCLEX (the nursing licensure exam). I know that I am going to have almost no free time during these next few years. People keep saying that all I am going to be doing is studying, that's pretty much all I am doing besides work, and the occasional distraction. But I also think, that as a nursing student, I cannot neglect myself. Yes, school is hard, it is stressful, I am going to have to study a lot, and yes, study group will be my social life for a while. But it is important to give myself a break. Why have a stopped doing yoga as much as I used to? This stress that is surrounding me, all these stressors, are wearing me thin, THIS is the time for me to utilize my breath, to go back to my Yoga practice, to find my solace on the mat once again. It could be just 15 minutes of Yoga during a break from studying. But it is so important for me, so I need to keep it up. It will help me keep things off my mind, and focus more on my school work. Starting next week I am going to go to a Yoga class once a week. The class is a an hour and a half, and I think that is great. It will do me a tremendous amount of good. When I was thinking about things to stop doing while I was in school, Yoga never crossed my mind. This is an essential part of my life, of my well being. For you other readers, I recommend that you choose something that you love to do, that calms you (not drugs). Give yourself a break. It's just as important as studying every little detail of nursing, or whatever it is that you are persuing.
Thanks for reading!!!

Nursing Exam #1

Today I took my very first nursing exam. Let me tell you, I studied a lot this weekend, well, I could have studied more, but sometimes distractions are much more to my liking than the studying part. I studied a lot for this test. The exam was on Nursing theory, Nursing Philosophy, and some evidence based practice, and some nursing history. I got to the testing area twenty minutes ahead of time, made sure I had two pencils, read the rest of my twenty five page packet on Neuman's System of Nursing, and waited for the test to begin. The test was only seven pages long, and I don't think the material was very difficult. It's just the way the questions and answers are worded that is difficult to understand. When you are in a biology class, the answers to a question are pretty much black and white. In nursing, the answers can be very similar, so we have to choose the best possible answer. There were a couple of questions that I mused over, but I just decided to keep going. I'm not one of those test takers who likes to double and triple check. So, I was the first one finished with my test. I'm wondering whether or not that is a good thing. I don't like to stress over the test afterwards and discuss it with the rest of my peers, to me that is torture. What is done is done, it can't be changed, so I am refusing to discuss my answers until I get my exam back, and see how I did. I really am not sure how well I did. It's making me nervous. But now I have to crack down and study for my Pathophysiology exam. There is no time for fooling around. I have a feeling I am going to make enemies with these next two years, I will curse the nursing program for limiting my life. But I know that it is well worth it. To anyone else who is about to take a nursing test and who has already taken a nursing test. Good luck! We will all make it! As always, thanks for reading!

Peplau is Rolling In Her Grave

Today in my Nursing Fundamentals class we were discussing health and wellness. Most of us nursing students think of health and wellness as that of the patient. We also have to remember that health and wellness means ourselves to, both as future nurses and as nurses who are in the clinical practice. Burnout is something that a lot of people talk about and they talk about various reasons for feeling the symptoms of it. Nurses feel as if they get no credit for the work they do, they are stressed, they have a huge work load that is hard for them to deal with, they have a difficult patient. All of these are important factors that can lead to burnout. I know that I am no expert on this subject, I'm not even half a nurse yet, but from my observations I have seen one problem that can contribute to burnout. The problem is paperwork. How many nurses can say that they have spent more time looking at the computer than at the actual patient? I'm sure most of them. The nurses get frustrated because they have to help the patient with something, but they have to finish all the charting. I'm not saying that charting is a bad thing, it's absolutely essential when it comes to nursing care. I'm just saying that maybe there needs to be a change. Hildegard Peplau was the nurse who made the theory saying that the interaction between the nurse and the client is essential to the client's health. I'm sure they teach that all in nursing school, but does it really occur 100%on the floor? When does a nurse get to actually see their patients? During assessment, during med pass. Sorry, but that's about all I can think of. The nursing assistant is often times the one taking the patient to the bathroom and help with the other ADL's (Activities of Daily Living). So where is the reward in THAT? Don't we want to be nurses to make an impact and to see that change? Not just in the charts, but in the way the patient improves physically and psychologically. There is so much reward when getting to know a patient. I think that there would be so much less unhappiness, stress and burnout if the nurses would get their noses off the computer screen and into the patient's room. What ways can we help to keep that from happening? If you have any opinions, ideas, or comments, please share!
Thanks for reading!

So Much More Than You May Think

It's been a week since my last post. Before the nursing program I had no idea that school could be so hard. Have I been living in La-La Land or what? In one week I was expected to read 4 chapters for my pathophysiology (the study of disease) class and 6chapters for my nursing fundamentals class!! Let me tell you now, I have about half of it done... I spent my whole weekend studying for Patho and then realized on Monday that I hadn't read anything for my NUR 110 class. Despite the fact that the work load is so heavy, I am very excited about what it to come. :) I am taking an orientation class that is for the clinicals that will be in October. So far we have talked about what steps are included in passing oral medications. Now, you may think that passing meds is just, "Hi, here is your medication, take it." But it is so much more complex than that. You have to check the medication three times, correct medication, correct dosage, etc and you have to make sure you have your seven rights: right patient, right medication, right dosage, right time, right route, Right documentation and right reason. We have patients who scream at the nurse for not giving them their meds faster, but there is a lot of preparation in giving medicine. Nurses have to check for any allergies that the patient may have. Is the patient allergic to Furosemide? If they are, then they cannot get the Lasix that was precribed to them. Mistakes like these CAN occur, there can be multiple doctors working with one patient and sometimes there is no layover when it comes to passing information to a patient. Another thing to remember is that a nurse should always listen to the patient. The patient knows what they take at home, if they look at the nurse and say, "what is this pink pill? I always take a purple one." The nurse should always go back and check the orders. The med pass seems like such a simple thing, but nurses have a huge responsibility and need to do it right!

Day 1 and 2

So, finally I'm back. I started school on Monday. My first class was Pathophysiology. I really like my professor so far. He is entertaining, but he knows how to get to the point when he's teaching. I have a feeling this is going to be a very hard class. I loved physiology, but when I was taking it, it was the only class I had to worry about. This semester I have four classes, so I'm going to have to work my butt off in each and every one. We mostly went over the syllabus and then the professor lectured. Most of the material that he lectured on isn't even going to be on the test. It's a little bit confusing. After my patho class I had a Nursing 112 class. It is a lab class that prepares the students for their clinicals. Basically it was just an orientation on Monday. The nursing educators talked to us about the basic things, what books we will need, and we looked at the uniforms. These uniforms are $54 just for the TOPS! Thank goodness we aren't required to buy the bottoms as well. On Tuesday I had my Nursing Fundamentals class. I think I'm really going to like that class. The book is a bit wordy, but so far I don't mind reading it. Students who have gotten into this program before me told me and other students that there is a lot of reading in the class. I didn't really know what they were talking about until I went to class this week. Now I have about 3 chapters of reading for EACH class!!! On top of that they would like us to read ahead! I already feel like I'm getting behind. I've started working the day shift at the hospital,so it doesn't give me a chance to study at all. I'm going to have to work extra hard! Wish me luck! I'm going to need it!
Thanks for reading!!!

More to Come

I just wanted to update you. I will probably write tomorrow, but with school starting I have been so busy I haven't had the time to write a new post! Sorry guys! I promise there is more to come!!!

Homework, Homework, and more Homework

So nursing school doesn't start until Monday, but I already have ASSIGNMENTS!!! Before my nursing fundamentals class begins I have to read three chapters and complete assignments in the study guide. I don't mind it too much. It gives me something to do. The book that we are using in the Nursing Fundamentals class is called Fundamentals of Nursing by Potter and Perry. I'm not sure if any of my readers used or are using the same book. If so, is it a good book? Some text books are easy to read and some are so wordy that it is hard to get my head around. I believe I also have assigned reading for my Pathophysiology class, but I have to double check on that. I've been working a lot, so it has been difficult for me to find time to do these readings. I'm almost done with chapter 1... I know I will make sure to do these assignments before the school year begins. That gives me four more days to do it all. But I have time off of work, so I think I should be okay. Before the school year starts, all of the nursing students need to get a physical exam, TB test, Titers drawn, etc. Thankfully I talked to a nurse and she said that I don't have to do any of it besides the TB test because I got it all done for the job that I started in March. If you don't know already, I work as a PCT (Patient Care Tech.) at a hospital. Learning that I don't have to get the physical exam and the other things gets a lot off my shoulders. Those things can amount to a lot of money. I still have things that I need to buy, like the scrubs... and an expensive practice kit... But all this is going to be worth it! Nurses are paid well and they are needed! I am so excited for school to start on Monday! I just have to get this homework done.
Thanks for reading! I appreciate all your feedback!

Sometimes the Little things Are What Make All the Difference

The other day I was at work and one of the patients was having a very hard time falling asleep. She wanted a sleeping pill and I told her I would ask her nurse, then I looked at her. Maybe the fact that she couldn't get to sleep was due her positioning in bed. She was unable to move around very well. She was laying in a very awkward position. I asked her if she was comfortable and she shook her head, telling me "no, but I don't want to be a pest". I told her it was no problem and had someone help me pull her up in bed and we situated the pillows around her so that she was more comfortable. She sighed with relief and told me I was a lifesaver (that always makes me chuckle when someone tells me that.) I turned out her light and pretty soon she was asleep. The point of this story is to say that sometimes all a patient needs is to have a pillow situated better under their head, or the wrinkles to be straightened out of the draw sheet underneath them. Before throwing medication at someone we need to think, is there anything else we can do for them? Patients feel ten times better when they are clean and comfortable. We need to keep that in mind. When cleaning a patient, we need to do the job well. If we don't their skin can break down. When giving a patient a bath, give them warm washclothes, it's more comfortable. Let them wash their face, give them as much dignity as possible. When helping a patient to a chair, make sure that they are comfortable. Ask the patient if there is anything that you can get them before you go. It saves trips of going back and forth to the room. These little things that we do for the patients, like getting them a fresh pitcher of ice water, can make all the difference. So, yes, in nursing we really should "sweat the small stuff." It can make all the difference.

Practice Makes Prepared

I know it has been a while, but I really don't have too much to write about until school starts offcially on August 23rd. I have a lot of stuff to do before then, but it's really just the boring stuff (ie. Physical Exams, online inservice things, paperwork, etc.) But I did have to take a little bit of a test last week. I didn't want to write about it until everyone had taken it. It wasn't too bad of a test. The weeks prior, I had to practice basic skills like Transfering a patient, Ambulating (walking)with a patient, oral care, height and weight of a patient, taking a patients vital signs (blood pressure, Temperature, pulse, respirations)and those other basics. I was really nervous about the test while I was practicing, but once I got in the room and performed my skills, I was feeling confident. Now, I don't believe that practice necessarily makes perfect, but I do believe it makes prepared. I know a few people who hadn't practiced before the test because they thought they already knew what they were doing. The test didn't very well for them. They recieved slips of paper that stated that they had to practice the skills more. even though my performance during the test wasn't great, the teacher smiled and told me that I passed. She had known that I had been preparing for weeks. Being a student means that we need to humble ourselves. We are not at the top of the mountain, we are probably much closer to the bottom than we think. Yes, I made it into the nursing program, la-ti-da, but I have two years of this terror to get through. For those nursing students who still have an attitude going into the program, I am sure they will learn in time that its not all about the brains, it has just as much to do with the outlook, the enthusiasm, and the curiosity. We can't go into a test like that, not having studied at all, thinking that we know all the answers. We need to realize, we may not know, we need to practice. Chances are, the teachers may give you a heads-up, they may tell you what is going to be on the test, or what to eliminate. Practicing before the test gave me a chance to prepare, but it also gave me a chance to get to know a few of my teachers. I am really glad that I had done that, otherwise I don't think I would have done too well. Being a little bit humble, and even a little bit nervous will do no harm. It will most likely make you a more practiced and skilled nursing student. Thanks for reading.

Making the Grade

I know that they say that we should all try to conserve, recycle, reuse. Don't get me wrong, I do agree with that notion. Except when it comes to school. One semester while I was taking Human Anatomy, I used my computer to take notes. Let me tell you, it didn't go too well. In order for me to learn, I have to write things down on a piece of paper, in different colors. After I take my notes, I go back and look through the book. Any important points that were not covered during class or that I failed to note, I write down on a post-it note and stick it in my notebook. If my notes are in one color it looks too boring for me to read and I start skipping lines when I am studying. I understand that everyone has a different way of studying. I am sure that there are better and easier ways for me to learn. The nursing program is going to be long and difficult, the way I have been taking my notes may not work out. I will take notes the way I have been, but I am taking more classes than I was before and I know that I will have to come up with new strategies. I am interested in how you study! What do you do to memorize the points that you have to know for a test? How do YOU make sure you pass?

Getting Started

So, school is going to start in less than a month. I have a whole list of things today before my first semester as a nursing student! I am excited, but the cost of getting there is almost frightening. There are about ten books that I have to have before school starts. Thankfully there is amazon.com and I bought them all for half the original cost. Ten text books? Why do we need so many? I believe my first semester only consists of four classes. My goodness. If anyone is going through the process of entrance into a nursing program, be forwarned. There is a lot more to do than just buying books. I have to get a physical examination, my CPR certification is about to expire, I have to buy a nursing kit (I'm not sure what exactly is in the kit), I have to buy a stethescope (poopoo, those are a bit pricey), and of course my scrubs for clinicals at the hospital. The scrubs that I have to purchase are $54 per top. That is really expensive! And then I have to get the bottom, I have no idea ho much that is going to cost! But, do I really wanna know? I'm sure there is going to be lots more to buy before the first week of classes end. The teachers will probably add a few more books and supplies to the never-ending list of things to purchase. One thing I love to do is back-to-school shopping. I love the look of clean notebooks, ready to take on the struggles and scribbles of the year. I love taking notes, so I have a ton of supplies to get me organized (notebooks, colored pens, TONS of post-it notes, markers). Although, I think I have to start taking notes a bit differently. I tend to take a long time when I am taking my notes. They are extremely neat, ink in four different colors, and the pages are covered in every shape, size and color of sticky-tabs. It looks nice, and it helps me remember things, but it takes me too long. I have my notebooks, I have my pens. I am ready for the first battle, semester number, my freshman semester in nursing school. In the college I am going to, there are four semesters. Although I will be a sophomore (I haven't taken enough classes to have junior standing), I will be a freshman in nursing school. I am ready to take this head on! After I get the preliminaries out of the way.

Got Nurse?

Hello, this is my first post for my second blog. If you haven't read my first blog, you should. It's about yoga. A completely different subject than nursing, but still worth the read. In my opinion anyway. I am twenty years old and starting the nursing program at the community collegenear my home. It is a two year program that will qualify me to work as an RN, I won't have my bachelor's degree, I will have to go somewhere else for that, but I will be able to work in a hospital. I am soooo excited about this program! But I am also scared. I want to write this blog throughout my two years at school to share with other people, especially other nursing students about nursing school. The first thing that I would like to address is that a lot of people decide that they will go for nursing. One thing that I want to point out is, you have to know that you want to be a nurse. I wouldn't be surprised if it is the toughest job in the world. Ask any nurse if their job is easy and they will laugh at you. Anyone who wants to be a nurse should go and get a job in a hospital as a Patient Care Tech. It's like nursing, except that PCT's don't do paperwork, and they do more of the lifting and pulling than the nurses do. If you want to be a good nurse you have to be: Patient (patients require a heck of a lot of patience), caring, willing (to work hard, extra hours, etc.), fast, reasonable, strong (if you are a cripple, maybe try for med school... not to be mean, its just that heavy lifting is a requirement), able to take strong smells and keep a straight face, have a firewall in your head (it's hard not to cry when a patient runs out of their room swearing at you), look at a computer for long periods of time, sit for long periods of time, smile (it makes the job easier), fast thinking. This list could go on and on. Although I am not a nurse yet, I work at a hospital and I work with the nurses, I see what they do, I help them with their job. Remember, you're back is probably going to hurt a lot. Get used to it. No, just kidding, really try to prevent any back injury. So many healthcare workers have back problems because of their job. But so many of these nurses love their job. If you don't think you're going to like it, then I suggest you choose a different career. If you are ready to take on the hardest job in the world, then we're in the same boat! I am so excited for this blog and these next to years! Here's to helping people through the good times and bad! Cheers!