What if??......

I know that sometimes there is nothing you can do about a patient outcome. I know that what happens is determined by a higher power than you or I have. Then there are those times when you KNOW something could have gone better. Report could have been better, you could have asked more questions, you could have prioritzed your first round differently, you could have glanced at the tele monitor sooner, you could have clarified who was doing what with who first, housecharge could have answered the dang phone (found out later she was busy elsewhere but still was frustrated at the time), the PA system could have cooperated. So many things could have contributed to a smoother process. The important thing is that the patient went to ICU and was fine later that night. However, it is hard sometimes not to play the what if game. After the episode was over, and an hour or two had passed, I was very nauseated. The only reason for that being the stress from my first couple hours. I hate these nights, they usually just build and build until by the end of the shift you are ready for an entirely new career. Luckily this night was different. I only started with four pts. Then was transferred to a different unit (purely a result of the staffing grid we play with) and had a fairly decent night there. I know better than to play the what if game for too long but I pray that everything turned out ok despite the way it all went down.

This all leads to another thought that I will post on soon. Shift report!