Amen, sister!

 From CNN: Quarantined woman to be discharged, Christie's office announces

"It is not a sound public health decision and well-thought out," Hickox said. "Many of the experts in the field have come out to agree with me. So I think that we need to stress the fact that we don't need politicians to make these kinds of decisions. We need public health experts to make these decisions."

Two things:

One: How come Kaci Hickox, RN, a Real Nurse, isn't even noted as one? Sure might have been a different headline if she were an MD.

Two: It's about freaking time: we need more public health people working on this problem than the public health spin doctors, who know absolutely nothing about medical diagnoses.

Too bad, Mr. Christie is not here. Impersonating a medical professional (RN or MD) is a crime in RehabLand.

I'd have been hot, too, with all this c#$p!

Weekend diversions

What kinds of movies will a rehab nurse watch before hanging out with hundreds of other rehab nurses? Well, if you're into history and sports,like I am, you'll watch The Best of Men. My favorite part was watching it on Bubba's computer (which has a big screen). Somehow I got it on closed captioning by mistake.

Maybe because I have a lot of parental controls turned on (maybe note), but I noticed that all the swear words were not included.

Another interesting article I found today was this article about the big cheese at one hospital taking a pay cut. What a novel idea. Hope this one spreads.

Now I just get to make dinner and get ready for Monday.

More to come, so stay tuned!

Big Brother? Maybe...

Just minding my own business meandering around ye old Internet while I'm taking a break from chores, and look what I find.

Sounds innocuous enough: harness energy from the body.

Once you look at the photos, though, it doesn't look very comfortable or sanitary to me.

More to come...

Sometimes

It does not pay to air out your home storage area.

Especially when Dahey inadventenly lets in wildlife that dies there and stinks up the storage, and the whole house. It makes bowel programs at the Hotel smell good.

I am so glad I'm leaving for a week soon.

That is all. More to come...

Do it again? Well, maybe

I went to see my internist yesterday. I got my labs back pronto, so tonight I get a note that says "Take Vitamin D."

Yes, that lab was low. I thought the research that said calcium supplementation was hogwash so I started eating more cheese and Greek yogurt.

Too bad that's not fortified with Vitamin D. Yes, Dr. H., I'll be picking up the supplement tomorrow.

For fun, I decided to take an online course through work. Tonight I found out that the superduper steroid version on that subject that is limited to 35 people per session is still open. The best part: I may have to go visit my favorite pharmacist next year, since one of the class requirements is presenting your project at next year's conference.

Joy of joys. Now to just get management approval and apply by the end of the week.

Never ever a dull moment around here.

Stay tuned.

Mixed messages

We have a fledgling nurse manager on one of the rehab units. He/she's getting his/her feet wet. It's been nearly a year.

He/she has gone on record saying he/she'd really like to develop the people on his/her unit.

We work in a CARF certified rehab facility and someone today actually told me, "I want to get certified." Hooray! (There is an ulterior motive: our facility pays you a bonus to get certified.)

However, the next thing out of this person's mouth was that the "nurse manager says I shouldn't do it, because I don't want to be here forever."

I wanted to plant my head firmly into the desk, but I did not.

Looks like someone may need to attend a seminar on developing your staff soon at the Hotel.

Stay tuned...

We salute you

All of the front line health care personnel putting it on the line every day in today's environment.

This quote from a recent article about hazardous waste generated by Ebola patients was telling:

“It’s totally shocking,” Ms. Sharpe said. “It would take me anywhere from four to six weeks to train an employee to work in a high containment lab in a safe manner. It’s ludicrous to expect doctors and nurses to figure that out with a day’s worth of training.

Thank you, Ms. Sharpe. Hopefully, someone will listen and take care of the folks on the front lines, including all the staff who help take away all the remainders.

More to come.

We are getting there

Slowly, but surely our HAPU rate is going down. Why would we worry about it, anyway?

In rehab, HAPU is something that will derail the most eager patient. It can even kill you. 

As I tell the patients, your skin is a force field.If you damage it, your bones and everything else can suffer when dirt and microbes from the environment decide to invade and make you sick.

Simple but effective...for most people. All we can do is repeat and maybe by the hundredth time, it will stick.

So, we'll keep on going. TGIF to all wherever you are.

Jumpin' Jack Flash

It really is a gas eating all these vegetables on my current diet (clean eating with lots of vegetables and lean protein).

So far, so good. 

More later...

Hit the nail on the head

This could have easily been the theme of my week this week.

1. Yes, slacker coworker, when you sit in our weekly meeting and chart, instead of participating, you look like an idiot. When a patient with a LOS of 25 days and you really know NOTHING about him or her and they are your assigned patient, I only have one question. Why in Hades didn't you read THE CHART?! 

I know, rocket science...

2. The boss finally decides that the hallway consults are causing issues with continuity of care. Yes! That only took a year to convince him/her. We shall see what happens...

3. Thank you jo at Head Nurse for the link to this Suzanne Gordon article. Yes, communication is vital, and lack of it is deadly.

So far no Ebola in the Hotel Rehab and our specialty docs like it that way. We will keep praying it gets contained.

It's one souvenir from Dallas I'd prefer not to get on my next connecting flight.

Stay tuned...

Happy (Canadian) Thanksgiving!

Since it's Thanksgiving, it's time to give thanks!

First, I want to wish a Happy Thanksgiving to all our readers in Canada, who are enjoying their turkey and pumpkin pie today. I miss you so much Scrappy, Pierre, Monique, and Gord. Ah, another lifetime ago...(I am still going to visit EVERY provincial capital 'cause it's on the bucket list.)

However, since search engines can be flaky, I am happy to say I'm so thankful for the folks out in the audience who help you find your way here.

These are just some of them (and a couple of reviews). I am eternally thankful for you all, especially At Your Cervix (who sends more readers here than any other blog.)

Enjoy your day wherever you are!

http://www.rasmussen.edu/degrees/nursing/blog/nursing-blogs-you-need-to-read/

Rehab RN by RehabNurse

Rehab nurse offers a light-hearted and often comical view into the issues encountered by nurses working in rehabilitation. Chock full of relatable commentary – at times with life lessons outside the scope of nursing – this blog could easily be housed in the “entertainment” section as well.


http://ernursescare.blogspot.com/2013/05/top-30-nursing-blogs-2013-boy-i-am.html

RehabRN features the thoughts and experiences of a rehab nurse. The blog is engaging and shares stories of both success and failure, seeking always to provide the reader with a realistic sense of the job.


Other places to find me:
http://www.northeastcenter.com/links_nursing_blogs.htm
http://www.blognation.com/blog/9498/rehab-rn
http://ajnoffthecharts.com/nursing-blogs/

Something for the science teachers

My high school science teacher was a nun. She had a sibling (also religious) who would work with her on research and mission projects during summer vacation.

Sister L. was kind of out there but wickedly funny. She was also from Fargo. I could see her laughing about this one.

Many science teachers can appreciate the irony of physics.

Stay tuned...Nobel season continues this week.

Fall is here in RehabLand

The leaves have been turning shades of red and gold here in RehabLand. They aren't at their peak, but they are getting close.

Dahey, Bubba and I had a fun time taking a drive to the country to see my cousins who live in a quaint little town that dates back to the early 1800s. It's a blip in the road, but every year this time, the locals have their fall festival and people come from miles around. The cousins throw a party and invite all the relatives to see their place and go to the festival.

Bubba wasn't sure he liked it, because the corn maze was a longer walk than he expected. Some folks just don't get that, yes, there is indeed a big difference between 1/8 of a mile and 8/10s of a mile. He walked most of the way there, then decided to turn around.

We went back to the village green and signed up for the fun Money in the Hay contest. We missed the pumpkin decorating contest. Since he had a commitment at home, we couldn't stay long enough for him to enter the pumpkin pie eating contest. This was, of course, traumatic, for a preteen boy who can eat you out of house and home when you aren't looking.

Thankfully, he liked the soups and chili the cousins had, as well as the entire dining room full of sweets. He didn't make much money in the contest, but he had fun going out there with all the younger kids.

One of my cousins, an ER physician with three kids, showed up with his family. We talked shop among other things, since I rarely see him (he's always working). He's just hoping he never ever sees ebola at work. Since he practices in a much bigger town than PumpkinLand, but smaller than the regional centers, he hopes he's safe.

As we said our goodbyes, Bubba asked if we were coming back next year. I said "What do you think?"

He said, "Oh, yeah! Let's do it."

I'm so glad it turned out as well as it did.  Hope you enjoy your weekend wherever you are.

Resources I wished I had

This article for my patient who was so very unhappy with her ex-husband's last name. If the former Mrs. U. comes in, I'll print it out.

More often than not, I'd like opportunities like this one to volunteer. Some of my coworkers need rejuvenation more than others.

After a wild, blood moon kind of week, I am so happy it's the weekend!

TGIF all wherever you may be!

I'm waiting for this one to come to RehabLand

My ER nurse colleagues can tell you it's a common way to get out of the ER--go AMA when you don't hear what you want to hear, or when you hear you'll go to jail, or get a bill.

Now, instead of all those things, we have ebola showing up in ERs around the US, thanks to the marvels of modern transportation. 

Add them together and all you get is trouble.

That is all...stay tuned.

So many issues...

Two words: prosthetic butt.

Somethings really should be original....

That is all.

A reminder

Blessed are they who are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. RIP Alan Henning

The bitter and the sweet

So many things fit that description this week. Retirements and births in our little neck of the woods in RehabLand.

And I finally got the promotion I've been working on for the last three years. Sweet! Bitter: the attitude of the woman in HR who was supposed to answer my questions about it. (I wish SHE were on that retirement list...she needs something!) However, I was sweet in thanking her for her diatribe.

It doesn't matter when I get it, I know it's on the way...FINALLY!

The joys of parenting

Tonight was our first "free-for-all" parent/teacher conference in the RehabLand school district.

What does this mean? Take all the classroom teachers for a particular grade and stick them in the cafeteria. Leave the tables exactly as they are so no one can tell who is standing in what line. Put all the major subject teachers together, so the traffic jams are even more acute around their area.

Do this for three hours. Thankfully, Bubba took me over early and pointed out all the important teachers to talk to while we were there. And no, they weren't just the ones who gave him A's in their classes (although surprisingly, he loves school this year).

I hated it, but I cannot imagine what the teachers think of this.

Just like running the gauntlet...more to come.