Happy Thanksgiving!

Yes, it's been a crazy week. I am however so thankful for so many things.

I have so many things: I have a nice home, a car for each driver, and a good job to pay for it all.

I was able to take a couple of vacations with my family this summer. I also got to travel for work and for a group I belong to. I was able to afford it (or my employer paid my way).

I got a raise. It seemed like it took forever (almost three years), but when I read an article recently about a man who worked in a fast food restaurant (and two other jobs) who had not gotten ANY raise in three years, I count myself fortunate to have been given a substantial raise.

I have my health (even if I have a pesky cold right now). I have good health insurance (that came with my job) so I could afford preventative care.

I followed preventative care guidelines and hopefully (will know soon) will avoid losing one very important sense. I can't say I'm thankful enough for that. I hope to be a voice to advocate to others, to not skip on this important means of detecting life-changing conditions.

When I watch the news, we see so many terrible things. Riots, looting, destruction of small businesses, and death. I am thankful that as a caring member of my community in RehabLand (and as a citizen of the world), I can make a difference. I can donate to the food pantries, homeless shelters, and even to the small business owners of Ferguson, MO.

I am immensely thankful. Thank you for reading this and sharing my blog with others. I appreciate it.

Happy Thanksgiving to all wherever you are. Real nurses celebrate Thanksgiving every day, because they work every day. Thank you police, fire and EMS folks, who are also there with us. We couldn't do it without you.

More to come..

Can fat really kill you?

I had a patient ask me that very question in the hallway the other day. Yes, indeed, Mr. XYZ, it can.

You could get any of the following diseases:

1. Fatty liver disease is becoming a growing cause of liver transplants.

2. Yes, cholesterol can get you too.

3.  And let's not forget diabetes, either.

Being fat and or predisposed to keeping fat on your body (some of this can be genetic, as noted in the article in #1) is dangerous.

And I made sure I documented my education note as soon as I got back to my desk.

There is never enough nursing education.

TGIF!

Sure seemed like Monday

Except it was Tuesday. Surprise! Ah, the fun you can have at work when you forget what day it is because you were sick the day before.

At least I didn't need the seasickness pills.

The relative with the oddball unknown disease called today. Turns out it may be an even more oddball family thing. They will find out soon and let me know. (What a plus to being a nurse...knowing about every medically related thing). I get asked about just about everything: bowels, bladder, forgetfulness.

Sometimes I think I'm back at work!

Nevertheless, I am so happy I don't have to tell EVERYONE about this at the Christmas party this year. Hallmark just doesn't make a good card for it.

More later...

You know you're back in nursing school if...

1. You need to provide your immunization record to take one online course. No exceptions.

Hope I don't give anyone a communicable disease.

I was exempted from the meningitis shot, though, since I don't live on campus.

That is all...more to come.

Back to reading!

Back to work and...

"She never gives out/She never gives in/She just changes her mind.
 She's always a woman to me."
 Billy Joel, She's Always a Woman to Me (The Stranger, 1977)

Q. is a character. A short, thin, sassy, color-coordinated one. So much so, that she put those color extensions in her hair to cheer up the patients. She put red and green in for Christmas. She put football team colors in during football season. Other colors for baseball. And there was always purple, because it is her favorite color.

Q's laugh, high-pitched and resounding, could be heard all over the unit. One regular patient told me, "I know Q's here whenever I come, because I hear her." She'd fly into a room and give patients she knew a big hug and tell them, "C'mon Mr./Ms. So-and-So, you need to get up and see those therapists. They're waiting for you."

She would also clean them up and get them ready for relatives, trips to x-ray, or only to roll out in their wheelchair or stretcher on the unit. She had her favorite patients, and she'd tell you who they were. She was known to negotiate to get the ones no one else wanted. And when she was done with them, they wanted her as their nurse every day.

One day, Q. told me in the hallway, when I was done with one of her patients appointments, "RehabRN, I really have a pain in my side." I told her, "Q, you'd better check that out. Don't hurt yourself."

In a couple of days, Q. was at work and she told one of the staff she was having chest pain. Since she didn't fit the profile of a heart attack victim, staff still worried about her because she didn't like to complain. R., the staff member she told, took her to the ED down the road, so she wouldn't have to go alone.

Q. got the workup and she didn't have a heart attack. She had terrible labs, though. By the time the weekend came, Q. got the news: she had cancer. She started treatment immediately. She went through a short rehab to get her well enough to go home, but she went downhill quickly. She was sent to World Renown for better treatments, but she didn't make it.

Today we found out Q. lost her battle. Her infectious laugh will never be heard again, nor will we see those crazy colors for the patients.

The Hotel Rehab will be pulling out the black bunting again.

Memories for me, too

Grumpy had a post recently called Memories that made me think about this disease. We had a family friend die of this horrible disease.

Hopefully, one day, there will be a cure.