Half Way Done!

I've completed 14 out of 24 shifts of my new RN training.

I'm also done working on day shift...on Friday I will start training on the night shift (2300-0700). I'm nervous about changing my circadian rhythm, trying to sleep during the daytime, and just managing to stay awake past midnight!

I'm also sad to be leaving the people who work on the day shift. It's like I'm starting a whole new job with different staff, different hours, and a totally new set of priorities than the day shift. It will be interesting, to say the least.

I have learned quite a bit so far as a nurse. I've seen a lot of different patients come through. Patients recovering from strokes, end stage renal disease patients on dialysis, congestive heart failure patients, patients with pacemakers, GI bleeds, stage 4 pressure ulcers (ouch!), alcohol withdrawal, severe allergic reactions....

I'm also proud to say that I'm starting to decipher the mysteries of reading EKG strips. When I was supposed to learn those in my med-surg class I did the bare minimum, telling myself "Just pass this test, you will never end up working on a unit where you're required to interpret EKG's" Now, about a year later all of my patients are on telemetry and it's MY JOB TO INTERPRET EKG STRIPS every shift, and monitor my patients throughout the day! So now I plug along every shift. I have my own set of calipers and I reluctantly read my strips every shift. I see if the QRS intervals march out, I measure the PR, QRS, and QT intervals and determine the rhythm. Then I write down my findings in black pen and initial it. Just like Dr. Cooper told us to do :-) Maybe 1 day I'll actually enjoy EKG's...

A few other things I've learned so far:

- Make sure you have all of the information ready BEFORE you call the MD about a patient

- Trust your gut. If something doesn't seem right, it's probably not.

- Think about all of the supplies you'll need and gather them BEFORE you go into the patient's room.

- Your patients are only human. You are only human. Your colleagues are only human. Some people have bad days. Don't take it personally.

-When you have free time- DO YOUR CHARTING! You might not get the chance later.

- There is always enough time to gown and glove/get a drink of water/go pee/adjust things to a comfortable height/take your lunch break/ask for help moving a patient, etc. You only have 1 body and mind and it should be your priority to take care of them.

-Nurses are really superstitious. Don't say "Wow, it's such a slow day!" unless you want to have everyone glaring at you. Plus, then you will probably have a busy shift.

- I actually know a lot more than I thought I did, but...

- I don't know what I don't know (and that's ok, as long as I keep asking questions)

More to come once I start working the night shift, sleeping during daylight hours, and essentially become a vampire...