Best wishes!
I wish my fellow nursing graduates good luck for writing the CRNE tomorrow! We’re all cheering for you :)
Beth Israel Deaconess trauma nurses treated bombing suspect like any other patient
The 29-year-old trauma nurse was on-call at home, unwinding in front of a âFriendsââ television marathon on a Friday night. She had been ministering to patients horribly injured in the Boston Marathon bombings and craved a distraction. But she couldnât resist flipping to the news, and as she did, police surrounded Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, cowering and bloody inside a parked pleasure boat. Her smartphone rang. A nursing supervisor told the young woman to hurry into work. She didnât know it yet, but within several hours, she would be one of Tsarnaevâs bedside nurses, soothing the accused terroristâs pain and healing his wounds — just as she had done for his victims. For nine Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center trauma nurses, an extraordinarily draining six days were just beginning.
The professionalism of these nurses were astounding. I commend some of the nurses for doing their best to stay as neutral as possible to care for this individual. It’s definitely hard to care for someone who has harmed so many others. I can only imagine the weight of the ethical dilemma on the nurses’ shoulders at that time.
What do you think you would do if you were that nurse?
David’s Tea Nurses Week Tea
It’s confirmed! Free tea for nurses/nursing students on may 12th in honour of Nurses Week. Be sure to show your hospital badge to confirm!
Nursing Tip #6: Patients are NOT just ‘patients’
During my placement at the hospice this year, I learned something that I think will stay with me for the rest of my nursing practice. During my first day there, I was told that they don’t use the word patient, but instead use the word individual to describe people who access the services there. The word patient so much connected to the hospital and curative/medical methods where as the word individual is completely neutral and allows the space to acknowledge them as a person or being who is living/experiencing at that moment in time. It was something so small but was totally appropriate and made a huge difference. I thought it was a good way to remind ourselves that there are other factors in other’s lives, that we may not know about or consider to take into account, to have an influence on our health (think about Social Determinants of Health). It was refreshing and inspiring to see the whole staff carry vision in mind through their practice, especially when I sat in on rounds and never heard the word “patient” or “client” once throughout the semester (no exaggeration). It definitely is a place I see myself working in years from now *hint hint*. :)
It is important to understand that the individuals under our care are going through more than what we see them go through. They have lives, they have everyday problems that we all have and this video does an excellent job showing this. Warning: it is pretty heart wrenching.
I normally don’t steal pictures but this was circulating around fb (I apologize to the original owner, I couldn’t find the original source).
I thought it would be good to share because it sends a powerful message about mental health and the stigma of living with one.
Let’s be more open. I’m here to willing to be that person to talk to. Are you?
Happy National Nursing Students Week!
You deserve a pat on the back :)
What is your school doing to commemorate NNSW?
Nursing Tip #5: Always find time to educate patients.
Every patient has the right to know what is going on with their body and the right to choose what to do with it. This includes things such as knowing about alternative options for treatment, the risks attached with treatments and the proper way to use medical devices. Don’t let your patients end up like the one in the gifs. Need I say more.
(Source: nenyc)
Nursing Tip #4: Let live and let love
Everyday events at the hospital are dynamic. One second your patient is okay, the next you are calling a code blue. An appointment with the ultrasound clinic may be arranged for patient in the morning, however that may be cancelled and changed due to another patient emergency on another unit. It’s always changing.
Sometimes your plans for the day, never end up going the way they are suppose to. So if that happens, don’t freak. Just stop, breath and figure out a plan B.
Learn to accept mistakes and changes.
Defeat Denial.
These CAMH (Center for Addiction and Mental Health) ads are everywhere right now in Toronto.
Just a couple of weeks ago, CAMH released their defeat denial campaign.
I have to say, I’m glad they’ve released this campaign. The ads resonated with me when I first saw them on a subway ride to school. It never really hit me how people tend to take mental illness issues so lightly until I really thought about it.
It brought me back to a moment about a girl in my high school class that became diagnosed with depression after her aunt died. When she came back the next year, she was different. No longer the bright, cheery 14 year old self we used to know. My friends and I didn’t know her very well nor did we know the details of the situation. ‘She’s so weird.’, ‘Why can’t she just get over it?’ and ‘It’s a shame she’s so messed up.’ were the common phrases I heard from friends who spoke about her.
I didn’t know her personally, so I just sat there and nodded my head in agreement in silence because that’s all I thought I could do. It never occurred to my 15 year old self that what she was going through was WAY beyond what I could ever understand.
I was also extremely touched by this particular post I stumbled upon while researching more about this campaign. http://www.katlangdon.com/2012/06/28/stop-feeling-sorry-for-yourself/
Anyways, I really hope this ad will get people thinking about their personal outlook on mental illness.
Take 30 minutes out of your day to reflect and learn more about this campaign at http://www.camh.ca/en/hospital/about_camh/newsroom/socialmedia/defeat_denial_campaign/Pages/about_campaign.aspx
Defeat denial. Help defeat mental illness. -CAMH
How to Survive Your Clinical Placement
1. SLEEP - Get at least 5 to 7 hours of sleep. Not only are you putting your patient in danger, clinicals with little to no sleep is not fun at all. Trust me, it’s just not a good idea.
2. Prepare the night before - Even for 30 minutes or an hour. Before you go to bed, review your skills briefly. Watching youtube videos help too! This way, you’ll be prepared when an opportunity pops up. The more experience you get NOW, the better. This also includes setting up your stuff for the morning. That way you can hop out of bed, shower, eat and head out the door without the shuffle of getting all your stuff ready for the day.
3. Put your name on everything - In the midst of trying to get everything done, it’s easy to lose things. Put your name in your drug reference book, your report sheet and keep your pens/pencils with you at all times.
4. It’s okay to NOT know everything - Asking for help is the best thing you can do. Just think of it this way, it’s better you make mistakes while in school rather than working while balancing 3 other patients. So go ahead, ask those questions!
5. Take advantage of every opportunity you are given - You don’t always get the chance to experience the things you learn in lab. So when the opportunity comes along, be prepared to do it.
6. Build a relationship with the hospital staff - Including doctors, your preceptor, other nurses on the unit, etc… Not only will it make your day more enjoyable, building connections can lead to a multitude of things such as unique opportunities or even a potential job in the long run.
7. Be compassionate - Along with building that therapeutic relationship with our patients, showing compassion is key to keeping that rapport.
8. Take care of yourself - Make sure you get exercise and eat well. I can guarantee you 100% you will feel more energized throughout the day. Feeling more energized will help you get through the day more easily.
9. Vent out those frustrations! - Sometimes, you might get a shift that can be extremely stressful. Whether it be through friends or even a blog, get those feelings out. It’ll clear your head.
10. Most importantly……SMILE! - Don’t be a Debbie Downer. Nobody likes those people.
Heart’s pounding, knees are shaking, palms are getting clammy…
I’ll check my mark after CPR. I can’t do this right now :(
