Kim's got the place...

And yes, it's Change of Shift time again over at emergiblog....don't miss it!

Thanks for including me, Kim!

Nuggets for April 29

Oh, the joys of homework, yet again. Soon, however, this semester will be a memory.
So what does an avalanched grad student do in her free time outside with her laptop? Surf mindlessly, of course, in glorious weather, with her favorite brew at hand. Ah...if only life could be so sweet everyday.

Here are a few places of note from my meanderings on the internet lately.

From the blogosphere...
Gotta love teachers, and I just absolutely positively appreciated this post CrankyProf put up the other day. Priceless.

I got hooked on FML because Maha's got a link to it on her blog. As a mother, I especially appreciated this recent post. Thankfully, Bubba cannot take glass to school.

Finally, I ran into this article about names of famous diseases via casesblog.

More later...back to work...

How fast can you run?

To get two patients, up and out of their rooms, to therapy, and get their stuff moved so Bob, your favorite housekeeper, can get the waxing crew, in and out?

Never fast enough...arrgh!

At least, they'll have a bright, shiny floor today. Thanks Bob!

Dashed dreams

Yes, the full moon is coming, and craziness is just down the way. Lately, though, the mood has been mixed, somber and silly, crazy and cool at the Hotel.

I heard part two of a story about one of our new nurses. Funny thing, both stories about the same incident were completely different from nurses with many years of experience, one present for the whole thing and one who heard about the incident from the nurse directly. It just reminds me that scuttlebutt is just that...lots of rumor and not lots of substance.

For our pending Magnet application at our facility, we had to fill out the yearly satisfaction survey. I usually make a line down my paper, straight down the middle of all the dots. I chose not to do that this year. If they really want us to get Magnet, they really need to know what's going on. Difference tolerated? You must be kidding...Is your manager supportive? Sure, if you can come to work every day and not ask for anything out of the ordinary. Are your peers supportive? I nearly fell on the floor dying of laughter on that one, especially after the incident I mentioned earlier. How do we support and nurture new nurses if we don't talk to them rationally and make everything a turf war where someone has to "win"?

One of our patients recently went for a series of GI tests. One revealed a very large gastric "polyp". My heart sank when I read the procedure report. The colonoscopy revealed some issues, too, but none like that. They also ran the usual bug tests to see what else is going on. Now all we can do is wait.

The patients, however, were still the same, rolling around, going to therapy, watching TV.

And the story continues...stay tuned.

Complaints of the Day

Oh, you know it's exciting when lots of people have the same complaints. When the unit wasn't busy preparing for severe storms passing through, we've always got complaints. Here are the latest.

Of our 20 something people, at least 1/4 were complaining of itching last night. We lotioned, powdered and loaded up the Benadryl on all of them. Gotta love Benadryl...it keeps them quiet! No, we do not issue back scratchers. Maybe at those spa rehabs you've been to before, but not here, no sir!

Another favorite complaint: heat. Our unit is just not the place to be if you want actual climate control. We're the poster children for global warming, especially if you consider all the toxic fumes emitted during bowel programs.

And if specific complaints weren't enough, we had people complaining just so they could complain. Can you tell the full moon is coming soon? No...can't be!

Stay tuned...more complaints to come!

If it ain't broke...

Don't fix it. That also goes for contacting aliens on other planets, according to this recent BBC article.

Stephen Hawking may be a world famous astrophysicist and amazing ALS patient, so I have to agree with him.

I'm just hoping there are no aliens at work today. More to come...stay tuned!

Freaky Friday...epilogue

Things I learned today:

1. Your car really will be quieter when the exhaust system stays together. Any gaps can cause loud noises.

2. Good friends will always meet you for a cup of coffee, even if they're drinking something else.

3. Some patients, like boomerangs, will keep trying to get admitted to your unit, just like last year...and the year before...

Have a great weekend everyone! I will be working...at work and at home.

Stay tuned for more thrilling encounters...

Freaky Friday

You know it's going to be a long weekend, when, being the good wife and bringing your husband lunch home, your car becomes the loudest, most obnoxious vehicle on the road. And just coincidentally, it started it's roar just before the turn off to go to the mechanic.

Sometimes I swear this car knows where it is in town and decides to act up anywhere near the mechanic.

I know the mechanic needs business, but how about getting it from someone else?

More later...

Flashback

Once upon a time, I carried a laptop wherever I went for work. Every so often, I went to meetings with my team in restaurants. What better way to see what was happening out in the world.

Met up with a couple of members of the software madness team today for lunch...who brought laptops and met in a restaurant, some with nice, cold frosty beverages. I miss the people but not the neuroses of some of our customers.

Now if JCAHO would let us have beverages at the nurses' station....ahh!

More later...

I keep telling myself

I love evening shift, I love evening shift, I love evening shift.

Even if I don't. I know it's not nights, but I'm still tired!

A few more days...

Yes, I'm counting the days when I can escape the Hotel Rehab for a couple of fun conferences....

41 days until my travelling partner and I hit the road for conference #1

Please note, we will not be attending this conference, but it looks interesting!

and...

a mere 151 days when we roll the roadtrip map out again for conference #2, which is in that conference haven of all time, no, not Chicago...Las Vegas.

If only we could leave the bosses at home for both of them!

Nuggets for April 21

Oh yes, it's Nugget time again. Here's a few items I've found in my recent meanderings on the internet and visiting various blogs. Hope you enjoy!

From the blogosphere

Check out these treats from far and near in the blogosphere.

• Maha solves problems in the ER with tricks she learned at the salon in Bet they didn't teach that in med school
• Dr. Grumpy's got the power to check up on you if you're shopping for narcs, kiddies. Look out!
• Parents of pre-teens, you'll never think of this the same way again once you read ER Doc from Serenity Now Hospital's story called Does your 12 year old little girl shave? Just gives me the creeps...and slight homocidal feelings if that were my kid!
• I really enjoyed AtYourCervix's Lost and Found recently. One of my recurring nightmares often involves losing something valuable at work...and having to dig to find it.
• She's not a nurse, but Pissed Off Patient has some interesting things to say about life with chronic illness. Go on over and check her out!
  

The office
So many things to talk about...and sometimes there are things you'd just rather not know about your coworkers. Bowel habits, shaving preferences, reasons why they divorced xx spouse and the list could go on and on. This Yahoo!Finance article called Spare the Details is just the ticket. That boss in a Speedo image makes me thankful one of my bosses is not my Facebook friend.

School
It's a classic you'll hear about again in a few weeks, but I've loved this column since it came out. From the archives of the Chicago Tribune, just remember to wear sunscreen.

Brain training
Yes, I've bought those brain training games and used them to no avail. They're cool at first, but end up boring. Check out this article from www.forbes.com called Becoming a Memory Whiz for a few tips on sharpening your memory.

An eye-opener
Many RNs already know about the contentious nature of the DNP credential in healthcare. My good friends from Ye Olde State Nurses' Association hooked me up with this interesting article written by an actual MD, Dr. Bernadine Healy, called The New Doctors in the House.

Did you know
Robert Pound, the physicist behind everyone's favorite noisy and claustrophobia-inducing diagnostic machine, the MRI passed away recently. As it turns out, Mr. Pound was a great British car buff. I really enjoyed the last line of his obit.

"Others recall that when confronted with a mechanical problem in a laboratory setting, he often gave the same advice as he would in the garage: “Did you try whacking it?” "

And I left the cool gloves at home

So Bubba and the scouts had to put up with plain, old white vinyl gloves. No pretty purple nitriles for the kiddies.

Thankfully, while we were cleaning up our section of adopted road recently, the following things occurred:

• No kids fell into the creek from a height of 12 feet or greater.
• No one was cut by broken glass.
• No one ran into the street.
  
• And last but not least, there was no need to explain uncapped needles or pornographic magazines as they did last time on this cleanup.

Maybe they'll get me a Scout Mom shirt for the next outing.

Stay tuned...

Mondays are fun...

The boss is away so the mice will play.

The Slug and company were at it again with their two hour lunches. If only someone cared.

One of our scatterbrained former educator nurses (we have three, so let's call him/her Scatty) griped and complained about his/her assignment. Since Mom/Dad, the nurse manager, was gone to a conference today, Scatty had no one to complain to and get the assignment changed. So what happened?

Scatty sat around when he/she could have been working. Scatty couldn't possibly get his/her patient up right away. Nope, Scatty didn't even try until NurseMom ('cause she is like everyone's mom) and I went to him/her and said we'd help. The Slug can't stand Scatty, so he/she sent minions in to find out if Scatty 'helped' get the patient out of bed. I really wanted to tell minion to tell the Slug to bugger off, but in my best customer service voice, I said, "Scatty sure did!"

For our gratitude, Scatty left the campus, practiced some retail therapy, then went to lunch. It would have been nice if Scatty would have remembered to tell someone, perhaps even the charge? Nah...not when the boss is gone!

NurseMom went to a meeting so I covered some of her stuff for our charge. My people did not want to go to bed, so they rolled around and visited with relatives.

We had some NFL types roaming around with the customary PR toadies in tow. Some interesting dilemmas...how do you get a linebacker in one of our isolation gowns? They were nice though, and the patients had fun with it all, toadies or no.

Finally, I did my stuff, got my goodies and went on my merry way. More to come...

It's almost over...

It's almost over, I keep telling myself, as I look at the tree I murdered for my class to print out all of the handouts, instead of reading them all online.

In mere weeks, I'll actually get a vacation from school...for about three weeks.

I am motivated! Motivated to get done.

Stay tuned...and note, no tree was murdered to post this, either. ;->

Hannibal used to say...

"I love it when a plan comes together." and chomped on his cigar, in just about every episode.
I thought of this very saying when I read Theresa Brown's latest installment called When Nursing is a Team Sport.

Makes me wish this happened more often on our unit. She mentioned some valid concerns--especially ego and too much overtime.

Hope you enjoy this happy phenomenon wherever you are today...stay tuned for more excitement.

Spring has sprung, part 37

The sun is finally shining, the birds are singing, and we are all sneezing at home and at the Hotel Rehab.

The seasons change, but for the most part, the stories remain the same...with a few variations.

Some of our regulars come in for annual testing and we see them on the unit. Sometimes they have good news, and sometimes they have not so good news. One character came in with bandaged feet. We just wonder how long it will be before he stays with us again.

And if they can survive the hell that is flu season, we hear from them. Some, however, didn't make it this year. One of our recent visitors left and never returned. He/she got a cold, turned into pneumonia, and not long after, he/she was dead.

The flowers are beautiful in our garden, with the tulips and other flowers. It's too beautiful to stay inside.

More to come...

The weekend? Yes!

I'll be so happy it's the weekend. My day was not bad, but lots of physical labor. I found out today a few people wonder if my true calling is "upstairs" (in the offices).

Sure, if it means I can keep my back a bit longer!

I'll be resting up this weekend...sort of. Should be interesting. I hope the rains will wash ALL the pollen away.

More to come...

Spring has sprung

There's no patio furniture outside, but with all the stretchers and wheelchairs on the back patio, you'd think we were having a party.

At least, it keeps people out of trouble...and gets some of the nurses outside on "business". It's rough when you have to eat your lunch with a patient outside.

More to come...stay tuned

A good Nurses' Week gift

Tired of all that stupid stuff you get for Nurses' Week? Are you creative?

Here's your chance to 1) get something you want, 2) potentially win a real prize and 3) support a good cause, the March of Dimes.

I got this note from the mailbag today, so read and have a look.

Dear RehabRN,

My name is Josh Lohr and I am the Promotions Manager at Fibers.com. Fibers.com is a custom clothing company that gives our users the opportunity to design and order personalized products, such as t-shirts, hoodies, and a variety of other clothing items.

In observance of the approaching 2010 Nurse's Week May 6th-12th, Fibers.com and MedicalSolutions.com have partnered to bring you Give it a Shot! Nurses Week T-Shirt Challenge, a contest where Nurses and Nurse-aficionados can create clever and compassionate t-shirt designs all for the appreciation of the Nursing profession.

Beginning April 12, users may submit designs using the simple yet powerful Fibers.com design tool. No design skills necessary! Fibers.com has everything you need to create your own contest entry with over 400 fonts and 10,000 images. The contest ends May 12, the birthday of the founder of modern nursing Florence Nightingale. Three winners will be chosen to win over $500 in prizes. Vote for your favorite design today!

Visit the following link to view, participate, and vote in the contest:

http://www.fibers.com/contests/nurses-week-2010

I am writing in hopes that you may also help us promote the contest by sharing it with your readers. The goal of the contest is to honor the nursing profession all whilst rewarding those with the best design or slogan. Proceeds from the winning designs will be donated to March of Dimes. All are encouraged to participate and vote! Please feel free to share on Twitter, Facebook, or any other social media.

Grab a banner for your site here:

http://www.fibers.com/contests/nurses-week-2010/rules

Best of luck and feel free to contact us with any partnership or promotion ideas!

Best,
Josh Lohr
Promotions Manager
Fibers.com
1931 H Street
Sacramento, CA 95811
1-888-542-0808 ext: 706