I get it... I'm crazy :)

5:50 PM Edit This 0 Comments »
So, let's see.... just a month or so after my last post, I am now swaying back to NICU. So, I have decided to make a list (ahhh, lists. I love them so).

L&D: (1) Adults are easier to 'read', so to speak. (2) It is what I wanted to go into early in my nursing career... maybe there is a reason why (3) Fast-paced (4) Changes day-to-day (Get to do Emergency, L&D, Surgery) (5) It seems as though there are days that are pretty easy and some ability to get called off, which is a nice option

NICU: (1) Was going back and forth between L&D and ICU when I graduated. This unit gives me a little of both (2) I have learned a lot about babies while in mother/baby, and this will give me a chance to use that knowledge (3) Get to use my brain and challenge myself in that way (pathophysiology) (4) Really like getting to know details and being involved in a small number of cases (5) Do not use my back to lift/roll patients (6) Became a lactation educator and feel this skill is better used in this department

AHHHHHH! Decisions, decisions. In the meantime, an L&D position opened up (F/T nights). Generally I would jump at this, but I am holding off a bit.

Closing in on a YEAR of employment!

10:51 PM Edit This 0 Comments »
So, here I am.... one year from my date of hire as an RN. Do I feel like a one year nurse? Well, yes and no. I definitely feel better about handling the 'unexpected', yet I am still wanting to move units, which makes me remember how little I know the more I try to read about the other unit.
What is taht unit, you say? L&D. After putting some thought into it, i decided that i really do enjoy adults. NICU appealed to me for a number of reasons, but at the end of the day, I want to enjoy the type of clientelle that I see everyday, and it would be difficult to deal with babies everyday.... who knows, maybe I will come to that at a later day.

I am still learning everyday, but I have made Toni aware that L&D is where I want to go. I am just waiting, now, for a position. I have become a lactation educator since writing last and i only have one semester until i complete my BSN which is very exciting.

I've come a long way, baby! But there is so much further to Go!

11:29 AM Edit This 0 Comments »
So, I have been on the mother/baby unit of Dameron Hospital for about... hmmmm, 4 months now. I am 'in my groove', so to say. I am feeling competent and confident in any patient that I encounter. I do have some brainfarts now and again, and I still wonder how well I will be able to realize complications if and when they arise. I am feeling more confident in caring for Magnesium patients, and I don't mind circumcisions as much as I used to (mainly, it's the paperwork!).

Mamas - Having been a newly delivered mom before, I feel good about my ability to tell the new moms and dads what to expect and educate them on how to care for themselves and for baby. I feel very strong in my assessment, although sometimes that fundus hides! I feel much better about explaining breastfeeding, although I still find it difficult to know if supplementation should be suggested for a baby prone to jaundice or not feeding well or eating enough or pooping/peeing enough.

Babies - I have grown to like the babies more than I thought. It is very different caring for babies than moms. They can't push their call button, they don't tell you, "I am a 9 out of 10 pain", they don't know how to cough, and they don't stop crying just because you ask them to when it is time for assessment.

I didn't want to put the cart before the horse with the NP thing, but I have just recently begun thinking about it again. I am glad that I started out in mother/baby for one big reason, I am now starting to wonder if NICU is the place for me. I seem to be bigger on details and learning and procedures. I am very interested in learning to speak with parents about their babies.

I have thought about getting in touch with one of the NICU nurses and asking what she thinks I should know about babies to increase my level of knowledge.

Well, with that being said, I am making great money and really enjoying how much I am learning everyday.
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