Sorry I haven't been updating my post as often as I should...
My last post was after I had passed my first class. I have since then completed my Pharmacology class (I got an A.. yahoo!) and I am now finishing up my med/surg clinicals. What a blast it has been!
When older nursing students tell me you will never forget the patients you take care of in clinicals... I didn't really believe them. We see so many different people, procedures, nurses, doctors etc, I thought that patients would just become a blur. I was wrong. I am going to try and tell the story without violating any HIPPAA rules (:
Yesterday I had my fourth day of clinical on a telemetry floor. I was helping the RN with a patient admitted with hyperglycemia (high blood sugar) and renal failure. They were admitted with a blood glucose level of 1500 (normal range is 60-100) and sent to the ICU. They were sent down to use from the ICU after their blood sugar levels started to come down.
That morning before breakfast the nurse asked me to get her blood sugar before she ate. I grabbed the glucometer, stuck her finger, and the glucometer read "HI, Out of Range." I thought I messed something up... but how hard is it to prick a finger and put blood on a strip? The nurse came back and redid it--she got the same reading.
She quickly ran to grab supplies for a STAT blood draw and sent it down to the lab. Once the stat results came back her glucose levels were above 700. If you don't know what that is High Glucose levels can cause organ failure, seizures, or diabetic coma. Not good.
Due to the extremely high glucose levels, the nurse called a Rapid Response Team. It seemed like organized chaos. The primary doctor, the charge nurse, respiratory therapy, nursing care partner, and a few other people I didn't know showed up. There were so many people in such a small room--but everyone knew what their role was and performed their tasks so smoothly.
They took labs, drew blood, gave insulin, and finally decided to send the patient back to ICU.
Of course, I was excited to help in anyway that I could. I am still new to the nursing world, so the only thing I got to do was help transfer the patient to the ICU.
After we dropped the patient off safely, we went back down to our unit and got started helping other patients on our floor. Maybe 15 minutes later, they called a code blue overhead for the ICU. It was the patient we had just dropped off.
We were lucky that she didn't code while we were transferring her to the ICU-- I am not sure if that's an experience I am ready for.
It was a crazy way to start off my morning of clinical. I was lucky to have seen the collaboration between all of the healthcare workers, and how cohesive the healthcare team can be. It makes me so excited to work as an RN. Everyday of clinical, I seem to love the healthcare field more and more.
Wednesday, June 25, 2014
Wednesday, February 19, 2014
Practicum Skills Test
I PASSED! (:
My first skills test is out of the way... I am on my way to becoming a Nurse!
I know I am a CNA, so I'm not quite sure why I was so worried--I have passed a test like this before. Even though I know these skills by hears, its different when you are performing them for a teacher. I do have to say--there is something terrifying about an instructor watching you perform a skill; watching your every move, waiting for you to make a mistake.
There were only 3 skills that we had to perform--Vital Signs (Pulse and Blood Pressure), Putting in a Urinary Cath, and a random skill out of the "grab bad" (I got change a sterile dressing). Seems pretty easy right?
Of course, the skill that I was most confident in gave me the most trouble--Vital Signs. I do these every time I work. I have done them dozens of times on old people--and those are the hardest to hear! The classmate I was paired up with was obviously super nervous. I second guessed myself when I heard her BP and had to take it twice to get my final number--but I got it correct. Whoo. My partner's pulse also threw me off completely... I took it on her wrist to start--I counted 72 for 30 seconds. That is also an extremely high number. Welcome to the world of nursing...where patients VS will be wacky everyday, and I will have to take them!
The rest of the skills were passed with ease, thankfully! So if anyone needs an enema or a catheter--I'm your lady! (;
I am ready for my first clinical adventure as a nursing student!
Our orientation is tomorrow morning at Maryview Medical Hospital in Portsmouth, VA.
Finally something exciting! I am beyond sick of power points and theory. I am ready to do some hands on learning and put this theory to good use! Thank goodness clinicals are finally here!!
My first skills test is out of the way... I am on my way to becoming a Nurse!
I know I am a CNA, so I'm not quite sure why I was so worried--I have passed a test like this before. Even though I know these skills by hears, its different when you are performing them for a teacher. I do have to say--there is something terrifying about an instructor watching you perform a skill; watching your every move, waiting for you to make a mistake.
There were only 3 skills that we had to perform--Vital Signs (Pulse and Blood Pressure), Putting in a Urinary Cath, and a random skill out of the "grab bad" (I got change a sterile dressing). Seems pretty easy right?
Of course, the skill that I was most confident in gave me the most trouble--Vital Signs. I do these every time I work. I have done them dozens of times on old people--and those are the hardest to hear! The classmate I was paired up with was obviously super nervous. I second guessed myself when I heard her BP and had to take it twice to get my final number--but I got it correct. Whoo. My partner's pulse also threw me off completely... I took it on her wrist to start--I counted 72 for 30 seconds. That is also an extremely high number. Welcome to the world of nursing...where patients VS will be wacky everyday, and I will have to take them!
The rest of the skills were passed with ease, thankfully! So if anyone needs an enema or a catheter--I'm your lady! (;
I am ready for my first clinical adventure as a nursing student!
Our orientation is tomorrow morning at Maryview Medical Hospital in Portsmouth, VA.
Finally something exciting! I am beyond sick of power points and theory. I am ready to do some hands on learning and put this theory to good use! Thank goodness clinicals are finally here!!
This is how I have felt all week...
Tuesday, February 11, 2014
Half Way done with my first Class!
It has been awhile since I have posted, but here is what you have been missing:
Well, after our first "winter storm" we were blessed with another 12'' of snow. Class was cancelled for another 2 days last week--putting us even more behind than we already were in class. The teachers were rushing through lectures and telling us to read the material. With snow days, that wasn't too hard to accomplish! We spent the first day out in the snow all morning--playing with the dog and drifting in empty parking lots. We even went to play in the beach for a little while... snow and sand is a very strange mix. We had a good week of snow days and I really enjoyed spending some time with my hubby.
My classes have been crammed and going over information extremely fast--we are now trying to pack an 8 week class into 6 weeks...
Luckily I have been passing my exams with a 94% average... thank god. I am not even learning the complicated things (yet) and I am already studying more than I ever have before. Luckily, I have a husband who forbids me from napping and gets me to focus on the things I need to learn. Although I am passing, many of my classmates are not. I am glad that I have such a great support system in place. Trevor has been helping me so I don't have to work, and his mom helps me when I have questions about skills we are learning. I don't know where I would be without them. Many people in my class aren't as blessed as I am.
We have learned many different skills over the past few weeks and are being tested over them on next Tuesday before we go to our clinical site on Thursday (yahoo!). My clinical site is called Maryview Hospital in Portsmouth, VA. I will be using my wonderful husband to practice all of my skills until then! (: He knew once we got married that he was officially a volunteer for me to practice on...poor guy.
So far, a grand total of 4 people have dropped the course completely--lets see how many are gone by next week.
Well, after our first "winter storm" we were blessed with another 12'' of snow. Class was cancelled for another 2 days last week--putting us even more behind than we already were in class. The teachers were rushing through lectures and telling us to read the material. With snow days, that wasn't too hard to accomplish! We spent the first day out in the snow all morning--playing with the dog and drifting in empty parking lots. We even went to play in the beach for a little while... snow and sand is a very strange mix. We had a good week of snow days and I really enjoyed spending some time with my hubby.
My classes have been crammed and going over information extremely fast--we are now trying to pack an 8 week class into 6 weeks...
Luckily I have been passing my exams with a 94% average... thank god. I am not even learning the complicated things (yet) and I am already studying more than I ever have before. Luckily, I have a husband who forbids me from napping and gets me to focus on the things I need to learn. Although I am passing, many of my classmates are not. I am glad that I have such a great support system in place. Trevor has been helping me so I don't have to work, and his mom helps me when I have questions about skills we are learning. I don't know where I would be without them. Many people in my class aren't as blessed as I am.
We have learned many different skills over the past few weeks and are being tested over them on next Tuesday before we go to our clinical site on Thursday (yahoo!). My clinical site is called Maryview Hospital in Portsmouth, VA. I will be using my wonderful husband to practice all of my skills until then! (: He knew once we got married that he was officially a volunteer for me to practice on...poor guy.
So far, a grand total of 4 people have dropped the course completely--lets see how many are gone by next week.
Thursday, January 23, 2014
Snow Day at the beach!
The adventure of this week-- Snow day!
We have gotten at least 4 inches of snow here--eeep!
Class was let out early on Tuesday due to "a threat of a winter storm." I didn't really get it... it was still sunny and 65 degrees when I left school at 2:00. I didn't understand why everyone was so worried. One of my classmates even said her son's school was being released early. What was the fuss about? People were freaking out, so I gather that it doesn't snow here very often... so it was kind of a big deal. People were acting like we were gonna be hit by a giant blizzard--the grocery store was packed and had a line at least 10 people long... oy.
It didn't actually start snowing until about 7 o'clock. So I think that people could have gone to class... But hey, more time for me to study! It was announced around 11:00pm that school was cancelled for the next day. Great. A 6 hour lecture (which has information for our exam on Monday) was cancelled.
I woke up this morning with snow and ice still on the ground--and a delay at school until noon. Oh, great. More class time and lecture material missed. I used to love snow days. Now, they just make me anxious and scared. It is crazy to me how missing a day and a half of class can put our class so far behind on the lesson plans.. Now I am stuck trying to gain a full understanding of topic solely from reading the book. I have no idea what parts of the book to focus on or what the test is going to ask about each section. So I am trying to read for understanding and memorize the vocab. ugh!
One more hoop to jump through! The world of nursing school is already kicking my butt. Hello reality!
Although, I did enjoy watching my husband run around the yard like a little kid, I am hoping that the snow gods wait to bless us with anymore snow--at least until the first few exams are over.
We have gotten at least 4 inches of snow here--eeep!
Class was let out early on Tuesday due to "a threat of a winter storm." I didn't really get it... it was still sunny and 65 degrees when I left school at 2:00. I didn't understand why everyone was so worried. One of my classmates even said her son's school was being released early. What was the fuss about? People were freaking out, so I gather that it doesn't snow here very often... so it was kind of a big deal. People were acting like we were gonna be hit by a giant blizzard--the grocery store was packed and had a line at least 10 people long... oy.
It didn't actually start snowing until about 7 o'clock. So I think that people could have gone to class... But hey, more time for me to study! It was announced around 11:00pm that school was cancelled for the next day. Great. A 6 hour lecture (which has information for our exam on Monday) was cancelled.
I woke up this morning with snow and ice still on the ground--and a delay at school until noon. Oh, great. More class time and lecture material missed. I used to love snow days. Now, they just make me anxious and scared. It is crazy to me how missing a day and a half of class can put our class so far behind on the lesson plans.. Now I am stuck trying to gain a full understanding of topic solely from reading the book. I have no idea what parts of the book to focus on or what the test is going to ask about each section. So I am trying to read for understanding and memorize the vocab. ugh!
One more hoop to jump through! The world of nursing school is already kicking my butt. Hello reality!
Although, I did enjoy watching my husband run around the yard like a little kid, I am hoping that the snow gods wait to bless us with anymore snow--at least until the first few exams are over.
Here are some Snaps of the "winter storm" (:
Monday, January 20, 2014
Frustrated.
This is a vent of this weeks nursing school hurdles...
The most important book of this course, Fundamentals of Nursing, comes with an online learning tool called my nursing lab. This is a requirment for the course. Of course, to save money on the originally 300+ dollar book-- I ordered my book and access code from amazon. Just my luck, when I go to register for the course-- it says my access code is not valid... Awesome. I called the customer service line for the online learning tool and they said I had to contact the seller from amazon and that they could do nothing about the code being invalid... Even better. So I am currently waiting to hear back from amazon as to when they can send mean new and hopefully valid code.
Second frustration of the week...
This course has a lot of lab time to get hands on practice with our skills. At the begining of the course the instructors told us that we needed to purchase a lab kit which they had us pre-order back in December. A few of my class members have already gotten their kits from the bookstore, but the few times I have gone they have told me that they are out of stock and said 'despite what your instructors might have told you, you do not need your lab kit the first two weeks of class.' Which is exactly the opposite of what the professors said. Despite what they might think I highly doubt someone working at a bookstore qualifies to teach nursing school, nor can they decide when I am required to have all my class materials. Lets hope they call me soon so my head doesn't explode!
Cheers to jumping through all of the hoops nursing school throws at me! I am sure they will become much much worse in weeks to come!
The most important book of this course, Fundamentals of Nursing, comes with an online learning tool called my nursing lab. This is a requirment for the course. Of course, to save money on the originally 300+ dollar book-- I ordered my book and access code from amazon. Just my luck, when I go to register for the course-- it says my access code is not valid... Awesome. I called the customer service line for the online learning tool and they said I had to contact the seller from amazon and that they could do nothing about the code being invalid... Even better. So I am currently waiting to hear back from amazon as to when they can send mean new and hopefully valid code.
Second frustration of the week...
This course has a lot of lab time to get hands on practice with our skills. At the begining of the course the instructors told us that we needed to purchase a lab kit which they had us pre-order back in December. A few of my class members have already gotten their kits from the bookstore, but the few times I have gone they have told me that they are out of stock and said 'despite what your instructors might have told you, you do not need your lab kit the first two weeks of class.' Which is exactly the opposite of what the professors said. Despite what they might think I highly doubt someone working at a bookstore qualifies to teach nursing school, nor can they decide when I am required to have all my class materials. Lets hope they call me soon so my head doesn't explode!
Cheers to jumping through all of the hoops nursing school throws at me! I am sure they will become much much worse in weeks to come!
Thursday, January 16, 2014
Week 1
Well, I have successfully survived the first week of nursing school! And now a 4 day weekend to study for Exam #1.
All the anxiety and excitement I have had over the past few months is finally at an end...for now.
This week has been fairly easy. Everyone in my class is excited to be there--and we are already getting to know each other and form study groups! Not many of the other students have experience in the medical field. I am glad that I have that advantage. I already know a lot of the material--but I am trying not to be over confident. Being a nursing assistant will obviously help my with my first few classes. Phew! We are learning how to take vital signs, documentation, and proper communication techniques--most of which is common sense (in my opinion). There is a lot of reading so far, which I know will only get worse. I just need to train myself to TURN MY PHONE OFF and focus on the material I need to get through. It is all a learning curve!
Not much excitement happening for me this week. I am just gonna focus on my reading and perfect the skills that I already know. There is always room for improvement, right?
Until next week... I'm off to read!
All the anxiety and excitement I have had over the past few months is finally at an end...for now.
This week has been fairly easy. Everyone in my class is excited to be there--and we are already getting to know each other and form study groups! Not many of the other students have experience in the medical field. I am glad that I have that advantage. I already know a lot of the material--but I am trying not to be over confident. Being a nursing assistant will obviously help my with my first few classes. Phew! We are learning how to take vital signs, documentation, and proper communication techniques--most of which is common sense (in my opinion). There is a lot of reading so far, which I know will only get worse. I just need to train myself to TURN MY PHONE OFF and focus on the material I need to get through. It is all a learning curve!
Not much excitement happening for me this week. I am just gonna focus on my reading and perfect the skills that I already know. There is always room for improvement, right?
Until next week... I'm off to read!
Saturday, January 4, 2014
Happy New Years!
Happy New Years, 2014!
I can't believe its already 2014. It seems that this time last year my life plan was entirely different than how it has turned out. This past year my life has changed drastically from what I ever thought it would be. I got married, moved to the east coast, and got accepted into nursing school--I couldn't have planned a better year. I never thought I would move 3000 miles away from home or be married at 21--but I did it! I have learned and grown so much over the past 12 months. I am thankful for everything that happened this past year. It seems like everything fell into place perfectly.
A new year and a new start! I am excited for the potential that this year holds. There is so much to do and so much to look forward to in the coming months! Planning a wedding and starting nursing school--two huge things to happen this year and it already feels like I am running out of time! This year has already started and I can already feel that it is going to fly past me. I am ready to see what this year holds on store for me and Trevor and ready to face whatever comes our way. 2013 was a great year--but 2014 will bring new opportunities and challenges that I am ready to face! Bring it on, 2014!
Happy New years from us to you!
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