work | Nursing Student Chronicles

HUC: aka Health Unit Coordinators. Sometimes pronounced ‘huck’. Often referred to as the unit secretary.

For the record- we do more than just answer phones. We’re security. We’re your calendar. your Roledex. 411- Information. Guides. Pickup and delivery. Counselor with a shoulder to lean on for the families. Play pal for the patient. We know where everything is in the unit. We know where everyone is in the unit. And while some of you have between 1 and 6 patients, we have between 16-32. Because they are all our patients.

Basically, what I’m trying to say is- don’t take advantage of your HUC. Because we can choose to put you at the bottom of our list of things to do. For every request you ask of us, you can be sure another 3 nurses have beaten you to the punch.

I understand your need to delegate. I am in nursing school after all.
Do not delegate things to me when you are sitting and looking up blogs and/or Googling.
Do not send me to go get your blood when you are talking/Googling before I leave and after I return.
Do not sit at my desk and then complain that I asked you to hit the button and open the doors.
Do not sit at my desk, move my things, begin to chart, and then ask me if I needed my desk when I only stepped away to put your orders away.
When the newer nurses ask me how to do something in the CPOE system for themselves, don’t laugh about how it’s just easier to delegate when you’re standing right in front of me…because, well, it makes me want to find an excuse to ignore any and all of your requests.

It’s a very simple list. We love to help! So, don’t be rude. Okay? Thanks.

Love,
Laney

Screw You.

Today was a rough day. Third day out of three means, the last stretch of 36 hours since Friday.
Which means, I probably wouldn’t have been in a good mood anyways.

But then.
I keep getting bugged at work because I never bake/cook anything to bring it in. Usually because I never know about since I’m an HUC and we don’t necessarily get all the memos for potlucks like the nurses do.
So, last night [after work, mind you] I stayed up and made a batch of cupcakes. Ishaq’s favorite. I took the extra to work. Close to twenty to be exact.
One of the nurses, ate one and didn’t like it. Which is fine, not everyone likes everything. No big deal. But she made such a big deal about it that no one else wanted to try any.
She didn’t know I was the one who had made them. And I don’t think she knows I heard.
And I shouldn’t care.

But, some part of me was devastated.

Later tonight, at the in-laws house, Ishaq was trying to make me feel better. He asked his mum about the cupcakes from the wedding. He asked if she had liked them and she made an embarrassed face and turned beet red.
Which makes me mad. Not because she didn’t like them. But because, why didn’t anyone tell me they were bad?!??!
I served these at my wedding, for Christsake. I took these into work.
I wouldn’t have been offended if they were bad. I even did a test run and everyone said they were great.

It’s so embarrassing. Humiliating. Devastatingly so.

I told Ishaq I may never bake again. That’s how poorly I feel.
And if I do, it won’t be from scratch.
I feel that all the joy and love that I used to feel from baking has been sucked out of me.

At least for now.

And to the nurse, the one so kind enough to be a complete and utter bitch as to not care who the baker was, and to be completely insensitive [even if it weren't me- she had no clue who it was. it could have been anyone standing around], I say: Screw You. Oh, and the big red splotch on your mouth you were worried about all day really does look like Herpes no matter what you say.

[excuse the cattiness. it's late, i'm bitter, i'm sleep deprived]

On another note: 3 weeks of break is over, and school starts tomorrow. I plan to write more regularly again.

Update in a Huge Nutshell.

This update is for the Dutchman. I have to admit I have been pretty awful at updating lately. I went on Fall Break starting not last Friday but the one before. I worked that weekend and then lolligagged all last week playing Rock Band and watching movies. I worked yesterday, today, and then will tomorrow as well.
I’ve got to get some reading done because I didn’t do squat the whole week before break which means I’ve got a couple hundred pages of reading to catch up on.
The plan for the rest of fall break:
-Homework at some point
-Finish ‘evaluation’ paragraph for Case Study project (which I plan to get done today)
-Wedding dress shopping on Monday with/for my friend A.Clark
-Spending the night in Charlotte on Tuesday and seeing Blink-182 in concert
-Hanging out with my sister at my house
-Going to Pilot Mountain for an overnight camping trip
-Spending time with my family
-Working a bunch

This semester has FLOWN by. And not because time flies when you’re having fun. It’s just been so busy. And nursing school is not necessarily what I would call fun.
After I get back from break (Oct. 19th), there will only be a month and a half left. How awesome is that?
And then I’ll be a senior.
Can’t wait.
I’ve just got to do well on my tests. I’m riding the edge right now in the testing category. It’s so weird. When we pow-wow in clinical and they ask me the questions from the testing book, I get them right. It’s just the structure of sitting down at a timed test that everyone gets ridiculously anxious over where I test poorly. Out of the four answers I eliminate two and always choose badly on the last 50-50 chance. Arhghsdopjfdsf.
I will not fail this semester. I cannot afford to repeat because I am not rich by any means.
I have to keep reminding myself that- it helps me keep my focus.

Oh and my midterm clinical evaluations were stellar. “Your potential is limitless” said my Oncology instructor who happens to be a NP (nurse practitioner). I was also told that if I keep up this pace, I could probably have two patients by the end of the semester. Which would be super.

I had to schedule myself at work all the way out to Feb. 6, 2010. What shit is that?? [pardon my french.]
But that’s all the way deep into next semester. How do I know what days I’m open.
If I went to a normal 4 year university I wouldn’t even know my school schedule.
What ridiculous-ness.

Interesting Things (to me) At the Moment:
[which may be uninteresting to you, so I won't be offended if you stop reading. I bolded the main points though]
There’s this TV series you should watch. You have to start from the beginning. But Ishaq and I were totally hooked. It’s called Jericho. It’s only about 35 episodes long so it’s like a really looong movie, but it’s amazing. It’s about nuclear bombs going off in the United States and what happens in the aftermath.
Another one, if you like British humor, is The IT Crowd. It’s the computer department made up of two nerdy guys and their female boss who knows nothing about computers. It’s absolutely hilarious. If you like British humor.
The new Paramore CD rocks my socks. I love them.
I’ve also been listening to A LOT of Smashing Pumpkins lately. I got re-addicted to them when I was making a mix CD(or playlist rather) for Ishaq. It had all this alternative rock music which is his favorite.
Two TV shows that are new this season: FlashForward and Glee. Check them out. They’re two totally different shows.
The first one is where everyone in the world has a blackout and are unconscious for 2 minutes and 17 seconds. However, we know that 2 people, and only 2 people, in the whole world were actually awake. So this group that is part of the FBI are tryng to figure what caused the blackouts and why. Also, during the blackouts, everyone had a “flashforward” and saw what they were doing on April 29th which is 6 months in the future. It is v. cool.
The second show is a comedy about glee club in high school. It’s a musical kind-of, but the singing is AMAZING. Forreal forreal. And Jane Lynch is the antagonist and she is hilarious. She’s been in loads of stuff including two and a half men and role models.
Apparently, the new trend for fall is plaid. I’ve always loved plaid, so I’m pretty excited at how easy it has been to find clothes I adore.
I also cut all my hair off. I was needing short hair. It was down to near my belly button and it is now shoulder-blade length. I had actually cut it to my shoulders a couple of weeks ago, but it’s already grown about 5 inches.
Oh, I finally caved and splurged on some North Face jackets for Ishaq and I. We have never had jackets where we’ve actually been really warm. And yesterday was cold. Really cold. I had to use the heater in the car on the way to work. And it’s only the beginning of October. Usually it doesn’t get remotely chilly until way later. Which makes me think it is going to be a cold winter. Hence, the splurging. But I got them at a great deal and saved about 30 dollars on each jacket AND got free shipping which made the savings about $70. HOORAH!
Last, but not least, Rock Band is awesome. I kick butt on the drums. Just so you know.

I think that’s all for now.
I’m sorry that was horribly long. In my defense I hadn’t posted in two weeks.

No, [I,You,We] Can't.

It’s a Saturday which means I’m in the PICU. Today is somewhat busy, but not in the sense of admissions. More in the sense of crazy family members.
Being in an ICU, we get the normal, worried, upset parents, etc. But being in the ICU, we also get the crazy ones. So here’s who I’m dealing with today.

Family 1: Likes to call and get updates on latest vitals from anywhere between the last 4-16 hours. Likes to know EXACT times on everything and jot them down in personal book.
ex: “Can I just get the exact time that NG tube came out yesterday on night shift nevermind the fact that its now day shift and you didn’t physically pull it out yourself? Also, can I get the last 6 hours of vital signs” (not exact words, but you get the idea)
To that we say: “No, you can’t” and then kindly let them know they can actually come in themselves and have a look-see. But 20 minutes on the phone reading past vitals is not a good use of time.

Family 2: More concerned about getting breakfast tray than coming in.
Ex: “Here to see patient Y.”
I reply they’re doing a procedure in the room and it’ll be a half hour or so.
“Oh, well did they take my breakfast tray?”
::looks at clock reading 11:30am:: Yep, its gone.
“Well if they bring my lunch tray you can come get me from the waiting room or hallway. Wherever I’m at.” CLICK as she hangs up.
No I cant, that’s not my job. I don’t look eagerly for trays and then call people to the dinner table.
(Sorry if I sound a little bit rude, but come on!!)

Family 3: This happens often. From multiple families. Wanting food passes and parking. Which I get it, its expensive in the hospital. But, have you seen the economy? We don’t have those funds to give out. We try to get you free housing as it is and are usually successful. And they have meals there.
Ex: “I drive [insert mileage] and was wondering about free passes and food cards. Do you have those?”
Politely explain hospital policy, offer to refer them to Social Worker, reiterate if needed, and so on and so forth.
“Yeah, but its not fair that you don’t make accomodations for family and I’m sure there’s something you could do about it if you wanted to”
No, I cant.
Really, I don’t just hoard food tickets and parking passes from family members for kicks. I mean, really.

I also have about 10 different family members coming in for 2 patients (siblings) and refuse to listen to the two-at-a-time policy.

BLAWDsjodadjad.
Some days, the families are just too much.

"See you next week"

In the PICU this weekend for another round.
Just heard a mother say ‘bye’ to her child in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit. She followed it up with a “see you next week!” She then told me bye and that she would see me next week as well.

Later on, he turned on the TV blasting Black Eyed Peas and then Kanye West. He also said “ass” and “bitch”.

He’s four.

But he is really adorable. SO adorable. I could just put him in my pocket and take him home. He’s waiting for a new heart. I hope he gets one soon. I think he’s starting to lose some of that fighting willpower.

It might be better if he had some family to stay with him for more than a couple of hours every now and then for a little moral support.

I dunno, that’s just me.

Group of Five

They say when a death occurs, it always comes in groups of three or five.
Whoever said that got it right on the money. I’ve always seen this to be true…at least when working in the PICU.

We’ve lost 4 in the last 15 hours. Two were expected and the families withdrew. Two were unexpected. One was a staple in the unit and we were all hoping for her to leave. This onehad been here for the full 3 months of their life and just needed one more month to get big enough for her operation. One had an operation and was supposed to walk away from it.

Another passed a couple of days ago from heart defects.

That makes a total of 5.

In this last week, I’ve seen more and done more than before. I acted as NA on the overnight shift a few days ago running between procedure carts, code carts, storage rooms, and the patient’s room itself.

Today, I recorded everything that happened during the code. Every med pushed in and every stop or start of compressions. Every shock given, every vital noted.
That went on for an hour. I was okay untill the family came in.
They screamed and screamed and screamed. And when I say screamed, I truly mean hands raised yelling at all of us from one while the other was yelling at God and beating his fists on the floor.
That’s the second family they’ve lost in 8 months.

So many children. God. We can go for months without losing one and then when death finally hits, it hits oh-so-hard.

Today, I am overwhelmed.
Today was hard.

And the number of the day is….

Summer means back to working night shifts. Alas. I have to say though, Friday went by quite well.
Saturday night? Not so much.
My CRNA-friend-in-training is one of my favorite RNs to work with (when he’s not an asshole, jayplay) and I will call him Al since the other name has gotten to be quite long and I don’t feel like typing it that much for this post.

Anyways, I was counting on him to make the night go by quickly and just the opposite happened. TIME STOPPED.

Not literally, but that’s really what it felt like. Unfortunately. So how did we pass time? Teasing people of course!
And before you get all in a huff, you have to realize that joking around is what gets you through the shift in what could be a potentially depressing and upsetting environment. Cause, sick babies are not cool. And without humor, half of the family members would make you an angry alcoholic.

I digress.

So half my job is crowd control. And I often have to repeat myself till my voice goes hoarse b/c some family members either (1.) really do not get it or (2.) think they are above the system.
Usually the latter.

Family came in and I see them on the monitor with over 4 adults and over 4 children. The phone rings to be let in and I explain the unit’s policy for no children under 12 at this time and 2 adults may enter at one time ONLY.
They say okay, doors swing open. In walk 3 adults and 3 children.
Let’s try this from the top.
2 adults, no children.

Hours later, the phone rings again (around 2 in the morning). I say that TWO adults may switch out the the TWO that are in the room.
“Uh-huh”, says the phone.
In walk 3.

Al says: “2-2+3….that does not equal two.” My sentiments exactly!
Before I can go to the other side to talk to the family, the phone rings again. Seriously, not even 30 seconds later. I explain that I need to let them know to switch out.
“But I’m Grandma”

Picture a really angry person yelling loudly with no teeth. That’s how she sounded a little while later.

I also had a father from another room comparing the unit to a prison (have you been??) and playing rap and RnB music in the public hallway bathrooms at around 4:15AM.

Oh the life of the PICU…overnight!

Parting advice for today:

And the number of the day is.....

I wrestled a crackhead!

“How was your day?” I asked my husband after answering his phone call during my overnight shift at work.

“Great!”, he replied, “I wrestled a crackhead!”

I worry for him sometimes, but I have to laugh. His enthusiasm for his job cracks me up. And, well, it is what got him 3 promotions in exactly a year.

Criminal justice is his calling.

9AM

So I am sitting at my desk in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit. Today is going to be a busy day I can tell with at least 3 kids transferring out and four coming in. And my co-worker is not in the best of spirits today. Whatever the reason, it caused her to be a half hour late today which means that she probably wont be in a good mood for awhile. Le blah.

Isaac had a really cool idea for a website. So hopefully we’ll be able to put that into effect sometime in the near future. I really dug it!

Alright, I’m off to sign orders, balance my checkbook, and squeeze in some homework.

On another note: Barack Obama is the definition of hope for this country. More later!