What this weekend means to me.

This weekend we celebrate our independance. This is a day when we should remember our freedoms and how we got and keep those. Men and women have died so that we here at home can keep doing what we do. We need to all take time out of our day and remember the real reason for the big party we throw every year. We should give thanks to our God for providing this land and placing us here to enjoy the freedoms it provides us.

So this weekend sing the anthem, say the Pledge of Allegiance, and REMEMBER how we are able to do these things. Then fall to your knees and give thanks to God for the ability to celebrate this wonderful holiday.

Everyone have a safe and happy Independance Day!

Note to self:

When watching a scary movie DO NOT leave the fan on in the bedroom and the door ajar. The air from the fan can push the door a little causing the hinges to squeak. Effectively scaring the Crap out of you almost as much as the movie itself.

Speaking of movies, I watched A Haughting in Connecticut last night. By myself. Not my preferred way to view a scary film but I did it anyway. It was allright. And I admit there were a few places where I viewed the scene through the fingers covering my eyes.

But I ask you, was the creepy music really required? I know when to be scared. I know without you banging on a piano that seeing some dead person in the mirror only is a cue for the adrenaline to start. I know without the otherwordly  screams (the ones not from the actor himself) that when the hero presses his face against a glass window and suddenly sees a demon that I should jump from the unexpectedness of it.

I made it through though and watched The Blind Side after to help me forget the creepy feeling. I certainly recommend this one.

Debriefing....................

at Bob Evans after work always makes the night seem funnier, the patients more dramatic, the near homicidal thoughts more normal. I hope those at neighboring tables weren't paying attention or at the least couldn't see our name tags. No HIPPA rules were violated but it seems to make people nervous to know that nurses are only human and get frustrated with their patients, coworkers, and the system in general.

But whatever the ripple effect occurs, those breakfast "debriefings" are more important than some might imagine.

Like mother........

Like daughter.  My mother lives by the adage "if you are 15 min early you are in time. And if you are in time, you are late.

My Dr appt is at 900. Here I am in the parking lot at 830. I don't really like being early. I don't like being late either, but I think five or ten min ahead is sufficient. This thirty min thing is really too much.

But I guess there are worse things in life.

Hope everyone is having a great day.

Being in the middle

of a Ford sandwich when you drive a KIA Rio is NOT fun. I saw the Probe in front of me hit their brakes. I hit mine. Just as I thought "whew that was close" I felt someone hit me and I tapped the Probe. Again I was interrupted thinking "oh crap" by another tap from behind and I once again tapped the Probe. The Probe was not damaged at all. The trunk of my poor car is a little crunched and the truck will get a new front bumper. No one was injured and today (the day after) I am not even as sore as I thought I would be.

Everyone was civil and had a great attitude about it. Even the kids Mom was great (the truck was driven by an 18 year old high school kid). The worst part (besides the damage and tickets) was the crazy guy who happened to see it all. He was on the sidewalk waving his passport (yes his passport) around screaming at the kid about being on ectasy in a school zone. (It was a school zone but this kid did not look like the type to be on drugs, dude was just nuts.) The cop quickly dismissed him as he apparently has a history with the police dept and I don't think would have made a very credible witness anyway.

What continues to amaze me were the ones who just had to look. I understand this is human nature but we were ready to form a line and start doing the can-can just so there would be something to see. The thing that really gets me though is the people in convertibles that not only looked but also twisted around backwards in their seats to continue looking as they drove past. I was almost wishing that they would get in a wreck so I could laugh at them.

So two hours and two tickets later I was on my way. One ticket was for failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident which irritated me since I had avoided the accident till the kid hit me pushing me into her. The other I got because I failed to have my ins card with me. It was at home. I called and had my policy number and all but I didn't have the actual card. So I can produce proof of ins for the court and it should get dropped.

I am just glad that everyone is ok.  All vehicles are driveable and it is just gonna be a hassle but not a major drama event. Heavenly Father was certainly there watching over us all.

Mornings........

SUCK!!! It's a good thing that I don't work day shift. I would never be on time. Last week I had a staff meeting which meant I had to be at work at 0745. I woke up at 0710. I threw clothes on, sprayed some smell-good, jumped in the car, and didn't sit too close to anyone. Today I had a meeting at 0800. Was supposed to meet a friend for breakfast a little after seven. Instead I awoke at seven. I jumped into the shower, threw on clothes, grabbed a granola bar, and raced into town. Thank goodness that all the rest of the week I am working at night! You day shift people can have it!

RN, LPN, CNA..........

Well, I have been thinking lately on a simple truth I learned when I first started in this business more than seven years ago. A good CNA can make a bad night a little smoother. Some nurses seem to have this crazy idea that a CNA knows nothing. How untrue. I have worked with many an aid who has seen more than I have. They may or may not be able to explain the physiology of the problem but when they say something ain't right well something ain't right.


And I will NEVER forget Iris. Iris was the toughest aid we had when I first started. She had been there close to thirty years by this point and easily knew more than this girl. As green as I was even I knew that.


We had a patient on the floor one night who had diarrhea. And I mean the running off the bed to puddle on the floor kind. I don't remember now if I had asked her to help or if she had told me to come along but I remember seeing that mess and thanking the heavens above that we were in it together. I thought to myself that if I had been alone on that one I would have been clueless as to how to start this monumental clean up task. But Iris was here. She would take the lead and I would watch and learn.


Imagine the sheer PANIC that overtook me when this woman (who had been doing this since before my mother had graduated high school) put her hands on her hips, heaved a big sigh, looked at me and said "Well kid, where do we start?"  Under her direction though we finished the bath and I have never seen a worse mess since. A few have come close but nothing has topped that night. Of course a few years of my own experience may have helped that too.


And all the nurses on the floor knew that if Iris said to go look at the patient, well you had better go have a look.


Some people today think that help like that just isn't around anymore. I disagree. A while back I was working on the floor with two very good CNAs. I enjoyed working with both of them. My assignment that night was to split the floor with the two of them so that we could match with one RN and do team nursing. Just before I started to tally I&Os on my group one of the RNs became ill and had to leave the floor in a hurry.  There was no time for a full report so I had to take her notes and go with it. This was on a team that was entirely different from my own. But rarely does anything in nursing go as planned.  I asked one of the other aids (whom I affectionately call 6-7 in reference to his height of six feet seven inches- a full foot and six inches taller than myself) to do my I&Os which he readily agreed to do.  I of course promised him a beverage on me as soon as I could access vending.  I finished up her meds and turned them over to the next RN at eleven.  However one of our docs had come in at eleven to discharge a pt.  I was working on this discharge and had even told my RN that midnight vitals would be late.  She understood.  I underestimated the discharge paper work however and was getting a little frustrated with it.  6'7 saw this and graciously offered to do my vitals for me.  Earning him a bag of peanut M&Ms and my undying love and devotion. 

So just a reminder for you.  Don't piss off the most valuable members of your team.  Treat them well and you will forever be grateful.

Ok here's a new story for ya.......

Allright now that I have found a new blogging app that I like I am gonna try to do a post for ya.

So  one of my favorite patients lately was a confused little old lady that was a challenge to some.  She has a habit of becoming very confused at night.  By.morning she would usually revert to being a civilized lady who was slightly fuzzy around the edges.  all through the night however she was incapable of finding satisfaction with what we did for her.  My favorite phrase that she used often was  "You son-of-a-bit**ing ba****rds."  This was her favorite as well as she used it often.  You see for some reason getting cussed by the confused patients doesn't bother me.  It is the alert and oriented thirty year olds that I find bothersome when they are rude and nasty.  It is these patients that I want to remind just who it is that holds the keys to the narc cabinet.

Just a random thought for you all today.

Also, please excuse any typos for a while. I am posting from my phone so may not catch all the mistakes.