Hiatus

So I took a hiatus for a week. It was not planned though. My cable company was doing improvements to the lines in our area and I lost internet/phones for a week. lovely, huh? I also caught a nasty cold during this time, so i suppose it was good timing since i've spent most my days in class, come home, study, fall asleep with nyquil. yeah. Good week.

Anyway. I'm at a crossroads again. GU class final was yesterday but i won't know my grade until Wednesday probably. I have a test in cardiac Wednesday, then a final for that on Friday, I believe. Clinicals in between all this.

Starting Human Growth on Wednesday and Respiratory sometime next week. I think I'm just having that feeling of "I don't know if I'm coming or going". Maybe it's just the cold meds. hmm.

Anyway....that's all the update i can muster tonight. Ciao.

Stressed over tests

Clinicals were simply unamazing this week. My two patients spent the majority of time at one procedure or another. Meanwhile, I just floated between fellow classmates, helping where I could.

So now I'm bogged down in homework and tests for the remainder of this week. Cardiac class has me sweating...I'm not sure how I'll make it through it. keeping fingers crossed and praying.

Monday, I'll be officially a junior classman. The new class of student nurses comes in, the senior class just graduated last week, so that bumps us up. We're no longer the new kids on the block.

Burn

One of my biggest fears has always been my children or myself getting burned in a kitchen/grease fire. Well, today my patient was a 35yr old mother of three who has 3rd degree burns over the entire circumference of her left leg. Splatter burns on the right leg and on her back and lower abdomen. It's a miracle she did not have worse injuries.

She was cooking french fries for her 4 yr old, stepped out of the kitchen to check on him in the other room. The smoke alarm went off and she went back to the kitchen to see the pot on the stove in flames. In her panic, she pulled the pot off the stove and while stepping back with it, she tripped and fell. She told me that her 4 yr old was so traumatized, seeing his mommy "on fire", and that just broke my heart, because I have an almost 4 yr old, I'd never want him to see something like that.

This woman was so strong though, she puts her child in his car seat and drives herself to the emergency room. Passing out once she got through the doors. People, if something like this ever happens...call 911.., I suppose she was just reacting on pure adrenaline at this point.

She will recover ok, with lots of treatments over time. Right now she is just in so much pain and morphine drip is doing nothing for it. They are trying other pain meds for her, and she is going through all the side effects of that. She's had a rough day...it was quite busy for me. She was in such good spirits though and such a sweet patient to spend my day with.

All in all.....a decent, but tiring day. Back to campus tomorrow for my first tests in Cardio and GU.

Just another clinical day

So I lucked up today by the fact that Ms. Loopy pretty much stayed at one end of the floor I at the otehr. She did come around once or twice, but pretty much jsut stood there observing and not saying anything. I can deal with that! Some RN students from our school were there and they were in the midst of leadership training, so they got to be our charge nurses today, and again tomorrow. Kim was mine, and I must say, she did a fantastic job. She's going to make a great RN.

I had tow patients, one 62 male with liver failure, going on transplant list and the Doc and nurses are trying to convince him to have TIPS procedure done. He has many worries, but is considering it at least, better from the flat out refusal from earlier in the day. My other patient a 2o yr old F, incomplete abortion. I admit to having reservations before going to the floor, I sucked it up though and did my job. She is a wonderful girl, so young....so much life ahead of her, all I can do is wish her the best. She is dealing with a lot of pain right now, physical and emotional.

So, i'm back to the floor first thing in the am....I can't wait. I love this.

Back to classes

Today was first day back to the campus. It was so hard getting up this morning, and so hard to leave my kids after spending the past 10 days with them, sleeping in. Reality bites.

So I started cardiovascular with Mighty M as the instructor again. I had her previously at the start of my college courses, for anatomy. I adore her. She has a very sarcastic sense of humor, and treats us as equals. First day with her was already a blast. I look forward to a few other future courses with her as well.

Genito-urinary class was another story. A new instructor to me. Ms. Loopy. I swear she is. A few of us students have even gone so far as to wonder if she may be under the influence of something. Her teaching style is very s-l-o-w...and she is not exact at all as far as which of our books we are actually to study from. So we are using all three and taking lucky guesses. Her power points are the only thing she is fast at. She whips right through them and doesn't give us time to take the notes. Now as nursing students, you have to adapt to these types of things. Be fast, pay attention, retain what you heard, etc. I swear though, this teacher seriously does NOT give you the chance. We have all figured out that we are on our own if we plan to really learn anything from this course. What worries me more, is we have Ms. Loopy for our upcoming respiratory class, and....drumroll please.............she is my new clinical instructor.

Clinicals start on a new wing in the hospital tomorrow...God help me!