Q&A Link Up

Time to join in the fun! My friends at The Days When I'm Not a Nurse and This Won't Hurt a Bit asked us a few questions in this months link up head on over to the linky and see what other nurses and nursing students said.
1. Where do you see yourself and your nursing practice in 10 years?
  My hope is that in 10 years I will have my Nurse Practitioner license and be practicing as a certified Wound Care nurse. I'm not sure why but I have always loved working with wounds and my dream is to contract out as a mobile wound care service to nursing homes and clinics that don't have an in house wound care staff.

2. What was your first doctor confrontation like? (or most memorable, if you can't remember the first)
  Will never forget this encounter, not my first but pretty close. I was working in LTC as an LPN and discovered that the pharmacy had sent the wrong dose of Klonopin for one of my patients and worse that I had given it. I also figured this out around 1am and then had to call the on call physician. 
  I got a very sleepy Doc on the phone who listened patiently then asked if the patient was displaying any odd behavior, which they were not, then chuckled at me and thanked me for my honesty in reporting the med error.  
  Apparently the dose she was on was half the normal dose for an adult patient and the dose the pharmacy sent was only what a normal dose for an adult would have been. I was just relieved that the Doc didn't scream at me for waking him up at 1am.

3. Which would you rather: heavy GI bleed patient, trach patient with copious secretions, a projectile vomitter, or a patient with a colostomy bag that will NOT stay on? 
  Having had everyone of these patients at one time or another, I can say with all certainty that I would MUCH rather have the trach patient secretions and all. That being said I will say that trachs and vents are my comfort zone since I worked around them my entire LPN and RN career. Like the RT's say, "Your sputum is my bread and butter!"
  I cannot stand the smell of a GI Bleeder when they have a bowel movement, not sure what it is about that smell but it really makes my stomach do a flip flop.
  Projectile vomiting? I like going home in the scrubs I came in, thank you very much. Been puked on once and I swear I could smell it on me for days, even after multiple showers.
  As for the colostomy bag sliding around, I have rigged belts out of kerlix and tape to keep one of these suckers on. It's not the grossness factor on this one that makes me want to avoid it, but the time suck it can be when that damn bag won't stay on!

4. If you could warn your patients to avoid one thing from the hospital menu, what would it be?
  The french fries, which breaks my heart because french fries are my favorite food. I'm not sure how you can screw up deep fried potato's, but our kitchen can in a big way.

5. Do you have a nurse idol? If so, who and why?
  I idolize one of the nurses I work with. She's been in nursing for over 30 years and still has a deep love and compassion for her patients. If you walking into the ICU you can always pick out her patients because they are immaculately clean, the room is neat and nothing beeps in that room. On top of great patient care she seems to know everything, she's an amazing resource to me and is always happy to pass it on. When she tells me I did good, it's the best compliment ever.

6. If you could push one piece of medical equipment out the window, which one would it be?
  The IV pumps! Sure they make our jobs a little easier but I swear that the only thing they do well is beep and drive nurses insane. I'd be much happier adjusting drips by hand some night with the way those things go off for the tiniest occlusion!

7. What do look forward to MOST when you go to work? 
  The people I work with. We have a very close unit, probably because it is very small, it means you get to develop some special relationships with the people you work with and I love all mine!

8. What body system intimidates you most?
  Cardio is my least comfortable system, mainly because I don't have a ton of experience with patients that have major cardiac issues. I can work with an arterial line and understand basic hemodynamic monitoring but get me into Swan Guazes and Balloon pumps and I'm done! 

9. What advice would you give to someone who is considering the nursing profession?
  Take the time to be sure this is what you want to do. The school may only be two years for an Associates, but the amount of time and effort that is put into getting your RN is a lot more. If you really want to be sure if this is right for you take the time to do a CNA class, if you like what they do you will be OK. If you find yourself saying "I can't wait until I'm a nurse so I don't have to do this." than nursing is not for you. 

10. If you hadn't become a nurse, what would you have done?
  Before I was a nurse I worked in an optical both as a store front person who sold the glasses and in the back as a lab technician who ground the lenses. I guess if no one had kicked me in the butt to do more with myself I would still be there. Thank heavens I'm not!