Decompress

Ah, it's so nice to be done for the weekend...and able to look forward to a week in which I don't have to go to work.

There have been a few surprises. The trainwreck elderly patient I ended up with on my assignment really wasn't bad at all. For a man of few words (can't speak due to a trach issue), he's pretty funny. Lots of flailing gestures and an animated face make it pretty interesting.

My other patient was grounded, too, due to some other health issues, but surprisingly, I found stuff to keep him busy and he was relaxed and happy. I was worried he was going to get wigged out about staying in bed.

Most of the people I work with were pretty good, too. We have a lot of new people floating around the unit, so maybe people were just on their best behavior. The Slug, of course, was not. He/she literally tied up every phone at the nurses' station (with personal calls) and even the boss thought it was funny. It just goes to show you what leadership (or lack thereof) we have. Someone else will have to fight that fight...I just don't care. Put me as far away from that phone as possible, so I don't have to answer it!

We got some new toys on the unit--lifts, stretchers and a new computer. I didn't have anyone to heave around or take anywhere, so I played with the computer. I like working with new stuff, even if some of my collegues recoil around anything new. I'd rather just play with it when things are slow and figure out how it works. We had another department come around with new snappy accessories for the computers, so we had fun with those.

While they won't be doing what they do in Europe, we will be getting tested for MRSA in the nares one of these days. One of my coworkers asked to have her MRSA scheduled for when her kids are out of school if she would have to stay home. Me, too! It would be the only way I'll ever get the summer off without having to go back to school to become a teacher.

Speaking of school, it will keep me busy this weekend. I have to work on several projects and write a paper for my class. When I get done with that, I'll be tackling the house the rest of the week. It should be fun.

More to come...stay tuned!