Wednesday, July 26, 2006

I wanted to be a nurse because WHY!

  All night tonight at work I will be humming to myself, it's my last night, my last night, my last night.  

 

   We had 8 patients each last night.  Yikes.  It is so difficult to take care of 8 patients properly.  If we didn't have to chart also it may work out OK, but the computer charting on top of it really is awful. 

   One older man never uses his call light, he just yells at the top of his lungs.  I told him other patients were trying to sleep and he couldn't be yelling like that.  He said, "I have just as much right to yell as the rest of them, I am just as sick as them so there!"  Then he asked his roommate, (X roommate now) to join him in yelling because it could then be heard twice as far.  Normally a giggle but I had a throbbing headache all night so not so funny.

   We recently lost 3 nurses to the day shift and they haven't been replaced yet.   Would have been nice to replace them first, but according to Union rules you can't refuse to let them go to the new hours if they have bid on it and won.

    In the old days before union you would have stayed put until your replacement was trained and I personally do not think there is anything wrong with that to a point.  As long as they were actively trying to replace you. To get a nurse on our floor, she or he, has to go through a month of orientation or longer.  They then have to take cardiac arrythmia class, ACLS, and learn telemetry.  It can take 2 months to get to the point where they can actually work on the floor.  I think it is going to be a long couple of months.  I am bone tired.  I think I shouldn't have done such a long ride before work.

   My diet was great yesterday.  I had everything on plan and clocked in at 1150 calories.  According to my bike I rode off 460 of them.  If I do that everyday it would work.  It is suppose to be a scorcher the rest of the week.  If I want to ride it will have to be early.  I should be hitting the gym again.  I pay for it but I don't want to ride for 3 hours and then work out for 2 hours everyday.  I must have a life.

   Well, have to help with supper and then get ready for my last night!  Did I mention it is my last night!  Yippy.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

hope you get the help you need soon:)

Deb

Anonymous said...

The one profession I admire the most is the nurse.  After all the hospital stays recently for my husband and my son too...I can say they work so hard...and I am sure you do the same.  Hope you get that extra help soon...got to be hard being short handed.  So happy your diet is going well...keep up the good work...hugs and love,
Joyce

Anonymous said...

Careful at so few Calories... hard to get adequate nutrition under 1200-- and usually you want more to exercise.
Obviously, dunno your situation, so just general advice!