i'm baaaaaaaaaaaack!

I love pediatrics!

Clinical conference today was awesome. We did blood draws and IV starts on each other. Succeeded at the blood draw, failed at the IV start (vein collapsed), but my clinical partner from last term said ages ago that I could practice on him.

YESSSSSS!

For the record, I want to be a trauma nurse someday, so I love needles and skills and doing things that some people think are gross.

Text message conversation following exciting clinical blood lab:

Me: "I did a blood draw! failed at IV start because her vein collapsed but OMG so much fun! You're next... mwahaha."
Him: "Ha nice! You can practice on me no problem. I'll show you a few pointers."
Me: "You're my favorite. For real. And hahaha, I could use some pointers."
Me: "Where would I get needles?"
Him: "That is the worst sounding message ever."
Me: "Hahaha you have a point. So do needles. Hahaha see what I did there?"
Him: "Yeah, you sound like a junkie... you need help."
Me: "Thanks. Did you expect any less of me?"

student nurse

eu estou estudando para ser uma enfeirmera.

('I'm studying to be a nurse' in Portuguese)

Student nurse. The words that define me and will for the next 14 months, not that I'm counting. It's both a blessing and a curse... a blessing when I ask a stupid question or do something asinine and then realize it, brushing it off with a "oh, I'm just a student nurse and I don't know very much yet" and receive a pat on the shoulder and maybe a bit of helpful advice, or when patients appreciate the extra TLC and attention that students are able to give. A curse when I introduce myself to a patient and receive a brusque "when's the real nurse gonna come in?" in reply, or when I stand around waiting helplessly for a real nurse to show up and assist me in administering narcotics or insulin (juniors can't without a licensed nurse).

I'm learning how to work the system, though. When patients ask me how long I've been in school, I answer that I'm graduating next August, rather than admitting I've been in school since January (and giving shots to real people since April). They hear "August" and are satisfied. Not that I'm bad at giving shots. I'm good at it. And for those other skills, I can fake confidence like you would not believe.

Patients are assigned an acuity level (number indicating how hard they are to take care of). I got my first level three today (harder than a level two) which made me feel like a big girl, which was awesome, and I am a fan of being challenged. I hate complacency. In other news, I'm still a "suppository virgin" -- the words my preceptor used when she found I hadn't given a missile pill yet. I almost had to today, but the patient refused at the last moment.

I have one more week of clinical at the big beautiful hospital with the gorgeous view. I hate getting ready to say goodbye just as I'm finally starting to get to know the staff and get used to the general run of the place.

I can totally do this nursing thing.

I love it.

they promised me this kind of exhaustion was "rewarding"...

Fourth week of med/surg clinical is officially over. They let me have two patients this week (at the same time!). Result: my boredom has ended.

Highlights:

-Successfully inserted a catheter. First cath, first try... never thought it would be such a thrill to poke rubber tubes into people.
-DC'd 2 IV sites, a catheter, and a hemovac. All this means pulling tubes out of various body parts.
-Made a patient's day by faxing her scrip to her hometown pharmacy... and it went through! (My lesser-known superhero name is Technologically Incompetent Girl)

In other news:

A cardiologist, a PA, an OT and a PT all treated me like an actual nurse and not just a probie today. By this I mean they asked me questions, discussed patient care and generally did not treat me like an idiot. Trust me, when you're a student nurse, it's cause for a party when people take you seriously. Or at least seriously enough to discuss stuff with you.

It was pretty funny when a patient asked me about something, and after talking to my preceptor and the occupational therapist (OT) about it, we told her to ask the doctor. The doctor came in while I was in her room, so she asked him. He said he didn't know and asked me.

Now I just have to get them to let me watch a surgery, like the cool kids on the ortho floor.

shoot 'em up

Injections lab tonight!

It was so much fun. I'm lucky enough to have a lab partner who's game for anything and doesn't mind a weekly dose of my crazy. My lab is the last one on Mondays, and it's half the size of the other five labs in my section. We ended up getting to give both IM and SC injections to each other... all of the other labs were short on time and had to pick one.

The hardest shot to give is always the first one, and it's just because of some weird psychological thing you have to get over when you're shanking your friend in the arm for the first time (I totally cheated and got to give a shot way back in January). Nobody minded GETTING a shot... it was the GIVING them that had everyone in knots. Everybody else was shaking, awkward and very timid about pushing the needle in all the way. My instructor said I did well and my lab partner was pleasantly surprised, so I'll take it.

The really funny thing is that I'm far more confident shoving needles into humans than I am about my medication test (on mannequins) next week. Ha.

I love lab. It's my favorite. I can't wait for real clinicals.

i love that our friendship is based predominantly on threats.

I did it.

I survived the first two weeks of nursing school.

They gave me a bag of needles and told me not to leave them in the soccer field. I feel so... reliable.

Then they told me all the ways I could potentially kill somebody. I feel so... inadequate.

Two weeks down, 18 months to go.


Oh. If you're one of those people and you're reading this, stop telling me how much you hate needles when I tell you I'm going into nursing. I really don't care, and they're so much less scary than crush injuries. Which I might give you if you keep making that comment.

stabbity stab

I got my second hepatitis B shot today. I was supposed to do it ages ago, but I thought I was afraid of needles, so I "forgot" on purpose. Then I found out that I definitely had to have it for nursing school, and the flu shot got me over my residual childhood needle issues, so I'm back on track.

Ha. So, they're regularly out of the hep B vaccine at work, but they had it in today. It was the proper needles they were out of. The nurse found a 22-gauge needle.

It's big.

Bigger than they usually use.

The nurse told me not to look at it. The medication aide couldn't tear his eyes away. She loaded the syringe and shanked me in the left deltoid.

It wasn't that bad... or maybe I was just playing tough for the med aide's benefit.

That doesn't mean I didn't guilt-trip her for the rest of the shift, just for fun.