1/9 med surg 6 journal

This week I was on the Med-surg 6 unit. I followed around an RN who was not a part of the regular staff at the hospital, but someone who just worked where needed. She had to adjust one patients IV because it irritated her and she continually bent her elbow causing the needle to dig into her. She didn't really use any technology except for the heart monitor on one patient and the blinking lights that were on each room after they hit their call buttons.

The nurse was very compassionate. She didn't enjoy her job as much as she enjoyed helping and developing a trust factor with the patients. She communicated with the dietitian effectively and followed most safety procedures... I wasn't allowed to go into the droplet precaution room, but I did stick my head in at first and was greeted by one of the worst smells ever! One therapeutic procedure was using aloe spray to help comfort a patient with congestive heart failure. A diagnostic procedure she used was putting a splint on a patient so she wouldn't bend her arm and the IV machine would stop beeping.

I learned that that the ratio on med surg floors are much higher at 5:1 patients to nurse care. There was a negative pressure that was especially designed for patient with TB. One patient we visited had pharyngitis and had to take dat good shizz (hydrocodone) because her throat almost was swollen shut, but her doctor didn't want to admit her. I guess he thought it wasn't that severe even though she almost died.

Overall this was a fun week as I actually got to see some cool things. The best part of the rotation was being able to meet and talk with the nurse who was awesome! Really the only bad part was not being allowed in the droplet precaution room. I think I got a good professional value out of it because I now know i want to get my doctorate degree.