September 8th, 2011 by MotherJonesRN in Interviews, Opinion
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Mark Lamers from Online Nursing Degrees.org contacted me for an interview. Mark, I’m flattered. People tell me that I give good interviews because I’m very opinionated. Mark asked some thought provoking questions and one of them really stood out. He asked me about something that I wrote on my blog a long time ago. The post read, “I was also taught that anyone willing to work long, hard hours could obtain the American Dream. I’m a nurse for life, which means I’m not going to retire. In other words, I’m going to die with my Nurse Mates on.” Mark asked, “At this point in your career, it is safe to say you’ve worked long hard hours as a compassionate caregiver. In retrospect, is that American Dream now your story? What would provide the happy ending? What were the necessary steps to get there?
Answer: Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Nurse Ratched's Place*
August 12th, 2011 by Emergiblog in Opinion
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You want to be a registered nurse?
Let’s cut through the B.S. and get real about it.
Put a hold on all this soft-focus “I live to care!” or “It gives my life meaning…”
Here’s the reality.
***
You will study your butt off.
Nursing science is based on biology, chemistry, microbiology, anatomy, physiology, psychology, sociology and philosophy. Yeah, every single one of them. You will incorporate those into every decision you make in your practice. It’s called critical thinking. You master it and become a professional, or you don’t and you become a robotic technician.
Bottom line.
Your choice.
Oh, and the studying doesn’t stop after you graduate. Nursing school is just the warm-up.
***
The work is physically exhausting and emotionally demanding. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Emergiblog*
July 21st, 2011 by iMedicalApps in News
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The recognition and management of cardiac arrhythmias is a must-have clinical skill for residents and physicians, and one that is often not well-taught at some institutions.
For example, deciding whether a patient is in a shockable rhythm, realizing what medications should or should not be given in a particular situation, or assessing the degree of atrioventricular block, can all be important considerations in patient care.
The Arrhythmias app, designed by Abe Balsamo, recently cracked the Top 10 list of most-downloaded medical apps in the app store. This app represents Mr. Balsamo’s first foray into the app world, though he has several other apps in development, according to his website AppsByAbe.com. The app’s growing popularity has been driven by its point-of-care abilities that appeal to healthcare professionals, especially emergency medical personnel.
Read below the jump to see how the Arrhythmias app can assist healthcare professionals with the recognition of different arrhythmias. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at iMedicalApps*
July 12th, 2011 by Emergiblog in Opinion, True Stories
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Ah, the benefits of sand therapy!
Time for little Bettina’s daily afternoon face plant!
Not only does it appear my colleague is about to lose her grip on her patient, I’m concerned about her choice of body mechanics.
I predict a lumbar strain in 3…2…1……
(This photo is from the Library of Congress collection.)
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I love my pediatric patients. While it is hard to see children feeling sick, they can be bright spots in occasionally hellacious shifts.
I’ve blogged before on my observation that the kids seem to be the adults in the some families.
- They don’t want to undress for an exam, so they fight the parents who are helpless in the face of taking a shirt off a three-year-old.
- They have to be restrained so they don’t run rampant in the ER, and they slap their parent across the face. The parent doesn’t respond.
- They are told they need to cooperate with a procedure and they answer their parent with a loud, clear, “F*** YOU!” At the age of five. The parent retreats. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Emergiblog*
July 2nd, 2011 by Happy Hospitalist in Health Policy, Opinion
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Over the last few years, you may have heard a lot about the value of checklists in ICU medicine and their ability to reduce mortality, reduce cost and reduce length of stay. But a recent study took the concept one step further and suggested that checklists by themselves may not be effective unless physicians are prompted to act on the checklist.
As reported in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Journal, a single site cohort study performed at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine’s medical intensive care unit compared two rounding groups of physicians. One group was prompted to use the checklist. The other group of physicians had access to the checklist but were not prompted to use it.
What they found was shocking. Both groups had access to the checklist. However, patients followed by physicians who were prompted to use the checklist had Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at The Happy Hospitalist*
