Clinical Update

Well I'm officially half way through clinicals! Hell freaken yeah!

I went to the hospital Wednesday and picked up my patient assignment. Ok. She's on literally about 40 drugs. For each of those drugs I have to go home and research them and compile the data on a med sheet. So I'm thinking "Shit. And I have to be up at 4:00 am? I should just practice for MD residency now while I'm ahead. No sleep for at least 3 weeks eh?" Not to mention the pre-clinical paperwork I have to complete, including research on her condition and medical tests.

Bright and early Thursday morning... like 6:00 am. I check my patients chart to see how she did overnight. SHE GOT DISCHARGED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Son of a...

I have a new patient. I spend the next hour researching HIS condition and meds. Ok, it's pneumonia no biggie. I've learned alot about pneumonia. God blessed me cause this dude was awesome. He took care of himself, was very independent, and had to have a million diagnostic tests done. Thursday I accompanied him for a Persantine-Thallium Stress Test. Took 4 hours, but it allowed me to complete 10 pages of paperwork on him.

So last night my sleep deprived bootie goes home and researches all of HIS meds. I go to bed around 11:00 pm. BACK UP at 4:00 am I feel like I'm catching a cold. It's pitch black outside. And raining. And Atlanta peeps don't do rain. I'm heading up 285 and it's not even 6:00 am and I'm TIRED! And night blind. And sleep deprived. Ok.

I get there and my patient is going to the Cardiac Cath Lab. How cool? I go with him and watch his test and the guy ahead of him. That was the coolest thing watching the doctor shove a wire in his groin area up to his heart. And I got to watch the tube go into his heart and shoot dye into it and watch it pump away.

Next I figure, I'll go ahead and get my 17 page, once a semester detailed evaluation done with him. He's a very pleasant patient. An hour before quitting time I go in his room and he's starving, but still flat on his back from the cath. It's time to allow him to sit up but first we have to get a blood glucose on him. The techs stole all the freaken Accu-Cheks! So the nurse and I have to go hunt down an Accu-Chek before this dude grabs ahold of his food and starts chowing down.
Finally we get it done and he just wants to be alone with his food. I give him his privacy and get a head start on my other 10 pages of paperwork I have to do. With half an hour to go before post-conference I go back to his room. They FREAKEN TOOK HIM DOWN FOR A PULMONARY TEST! Fuggin A man.

So what's my impression of clinicals this week?

!!!AWESOME AS HELL!!!
!!!GIMME MORE I LOVE IT!!!
!!!!!!!AHHHHH HAAAA!!!!!!!

School Update

Well this has been quite the eventful week. Guess what? I survived front loading!!! WOOHOO! It all gets easier from here. My next two check offs? Oral meds and Subcutaneous Injections. I'm excited about subq's because I give myself 2 of them every day!!!

Monday: I went for my vital signs check off and passed it perfectly. All of my findings were well within the narrow range that they allow us (2-4 pts) and the lady doing my check off, Ms. Orlean, is beyond awesome. She's a midwife and I really look up to her. She's quiet but she's got a fantastic personality. I think she's my favorite out of all of them. I feel so at ease with her. During my check off I was a little nervous, but I had a thrill for a second. I felt like a nurse and it felt so natural. I hope I get that feeling more often. When I checked my email later that night I had an email from the coordinator about our clinical group. Our instructor never showed up and quit. So we didn't have a clinical instructor. But Mrs. Read was taking volunteers to do clinicals at Rockdale (the hospital 5 miles from my home and RIGHT next door to my sons daycare). I didn't sleep that night. I was so excited.

Tuesday: I spoke with Mrs. Read and she said she just had a few details to get settled but most likely I'll be at Rockdale. I'm really cautious and try not to think about it but for once I'm happy to be at school. After class I have a mandatory meeting with my Nursing Advisor. She reviews all my stuff (test grades, teacher notes, etc) and says that she's rather impressed. I'm glad she feels that way but I feel like I'm losing my everlasting mind! She explained that Nursing School is unlike any school you have ever experienced and it's VERY demanding and VERY stressful. There's alot riding on your success and they are very difficult on us (Remember! Didn't I tell you it's like bootcamp?!) But she said everything I'm feeling is very normal and actually I'm coping really well with school and it's demands. The only thing I need to work on is stress control. Stress has bad effects on my diabetes, HBP, and ulcer. She wants to see all that get under control. She's a fantastic woman and I'm glad she's my advisor.

Wednesday: I receive word that Rockdale isn't accepting anymore students. BIG let down. I'm back at DeKalb with an instructor from Lawrenceville. See? This has happened so much in school that I KNEW not to get my hopes up. I'm disappointed, but not suprised. Glad I didn't get too excited.

Thursday: I receive emails from my new clinical instructor. She has a reputation as being really cool and funny. That gives me alot of relief. She starts giving us the info everyone else has known about their group this whole time but our group was in the dark on. I'm scared of the unknown and not knowing ANYTHING has made the upcoming clinical experience even scarier. Finally I'm receiving "info" on my fear. I also find out I'm in group 1, which starts next Thursday. I was kinda hoping for group 2 so I wouldn't start so soon. Two of the guys I'm good friends with went to group 2. That sucks. But I found out that one of the girls in my group lives real close to me and her and I will carpool. That'll help so much. I'm not too familiar with that part of Atlanta. The good thing about being in group 1 though is I can face my fear of clinical and find out sooner that it's ok. Nothing to be afraid of. Plus I get it done and over with. We're also done with clinicals 2 weeks sooner (before Thanksgiving).

Friday: I attend clinical orientation. I still haven't met Mrs. Buchholz, my clinical instructor, but I'll meet her on the first day. We didn't actually go to the hospital, we sat in the auditorium at school and received lots of cool info about DeKalb Medical. We're going to be in the Cardiac Telemetry Unit. That sounds like it'll be ALOT of fun (ie interesting).

This Weekend: I'm going out to buy the supplies that I need for clinical (clipboard, pocket notebook, poclet nurses guide, etc) I feel like a kid starting school for the first time and having the honor of buying supplies. I also have to study for another Exam on Tuesday morning. Once again, Nursing tests aren't over what you know, it's "can you pick the best trick answer". Real frustrating. But my last 2 exam grades are 76 & 80... I have to score at least a 75 on all my test to pass Nursing school. So far so good. (I found out that they threw out one of the questions, one I just happened to get wrong, so my grade went from a 78 to an 80.)

Lord thank you for blessing me with the opportunity to become a nurse and help me to remember that this is a BLESSING and to stop whining because it can all be taken away in the blink of an eye. Amen.