Nursing: an occupational hazard
Fear not, those who know about HIPPA, I do not plan to reveal any patient personal information. But I feel the need to write.
Actually, that might be a nursing tendency. I swear most of my days at work are spent writing updates on the patient. I know it's necessary, but sometimes I wish I could just do more of the stuff that the words I write tell stuff about [is anyone picking up these "How to Train your Dragon" references?].
[+(;-) This is a nursing emoticon. notice the hat
So, little nursing stories, ones where I get to put my feelings in right alongside the facts:
I think the hardest days are when patients are in pain, not only because I feel bad for the patient, but because it can get stressful figuring out what pain medication works, or tracking down doctors to prescribe pain medication, and then waiting for the medication to come up from pharmacy. I'm sure the patients get very frustrated with it all. I wish we had time to have a little conference with the doctor, the patient, and the nurse to say: "look, this pain medication is not working. I'm giving pain medication every 2 hours, and his pain isn't dropping below a 5/10. what are your thoughts?"
sometimes giving pain meds can get me into amusing situations. A lot of my patients can't swallow any pills (or, actually, anything) but they do have a tube going into the stomach (called a G tube). So the medications are given in liquid form using a big plunger syringe to push the liquid through the tube. If the medication is really sticky, the syringe can naturally get stuck. So I've had times when I've accidently medicated the ceiling trying to get the syringe un-stuck, or accidently squirting myself in the face as the sudden increase in pressure pushes the syringe out of the G tube.
By the way, nurses don't just give medication (although I admit that it does take a lot of my time). We also are really big into measuring things: How many times have you walked today? How far did you walk? How many times have you eaten today? What percentage of your meals did you eat? How much did you drink? How many times have you used the restroom? What is your pain on a scale of 0 to 10? How many times are you doing your breathing exercises?
And we measure heart rate, respiratory rate, oxygen saturation of the blood, heart rhythm, blood pressure, capillary refill, body temperature, motor function, etc, etc.
It's stressful, and I'm developing a morbid sense of humor, and there are moments when I think, as I run around without breaks, "Is it always going to be like this?!" But then again, (speaking of measuring things) I can see that I am making a difference--decreasing pain, increasing patient independence; and in cases where I cannot achieve those changes, I can still show that I care. My job is awesome. I could get used to it.
Actually, that might be a nursing tendency. I swear most of my days at work are spent writing updates on the patient. I know it's necessary, but sometimes I wish I could just do more of the stuff that the words I write tell stuff about [is anyone picking up these "How to Train your Dragon" references?].
[+(;-) This is a nursing emoticon. notice the hat
So, little nursing stories, ones where I get to put my feelings in right alongside the facts:
I think the hardest days are when patients are in pain, not only because I feel bad for the patient, but because it can get stressful figuring out what pain medication works, or tracking down doctors to prescribe pain medication, and then waiting for the medication to come up from pharmacy. I'm sure the patients get very frustrated with it all. I wish we had time to have a little conference with the doctor, the patient, and the nurse to say: "look, this pain medication is not working. I'm giving pain medication every 2 hours, and his pain isn't dropping below a 5/10. what are your thoughts?"
sometimes giving pain meds can get me into amusing situations. A lot of my patients can't swallow any pills (or, actually, anything) but they do have a tube going into the stomach (called a G tube). So the medications are given in liquid form using a big plunger syringe to push the liquid through the tube. If the medication is really sticky, the syringe can naturally get stuck. So I've had times when I've accidently medicated the ceiling trying to get the syringe un-stuck, or accidently squirting myself in the face as the sudden increase in pressure pushes the syringe out of the G tube.
By the way, nurses don't just give medication (although I admit that it does take a lot of my time). We also are really big into measuring things: How many times have you walked today? How far did you walk? How many times have you eaten today? What percentage of your meals did you eat? How much did you drink? How many times have you used the restroom? What is your pain on a scale of 0 to 10? How many times are you doing your breathing exercises?
And we measure heart rate, respiratory rate, oxygen saturation of the blood, heart rhythm, blood pressure, capillary refill, body temperature, motor function, etc, etc.
It's stressful, and I'm developing a morbid sense of humor, and there are moments when I think, as I run around without breaks, "Is it always going to be like this?!" But then again, (speaking of measuring things) I can see that I am making a difference--decreasing pain, increasing patient independence; and in cases where I cannot achieve those changes, I can still show that I care. My job is awesome. I could get used to it.
It's a tough job and I admire anyone who chooses it for a profession. I wish sometimes would appreciate the nursing staff more though.
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