Long time...

Hey so it has been a couple of weeks since I last wrote... sorry about that.

Skills day:
So I participated in skills day on the 8 of October. I was hoping to get NG tube insertion, foley catheter insertion, something like that but not IV fluid stuff. Well guess which one I got. IV fluids. Now this skill isn't difficult at all, but I however, recived a not so great score because I forgot one thing... a right. In nursing we do this thing called the 5 rights: right patient, route, time, amout, and med. This 5 rights is supposed to be 3 times. I did the first two outside the room but I forgot to do the 3rd check, so I was docked big time (even though the patient wouldn't have gotten the wrong fluids). Ticks me off just a little bit!

So the whole skill goes like this: I walk into the room, introduce myself, check their name band, and wash my hands. Second I tell the patient that IV fluids are ordered, so I check the EMAR or MAR (medication administration record) against their wristband to make sure it matches, then I check the meds against it. If all are correct I can continue. Next thing I would do is to check the IV saline lock (which is just a fancy name for an IV line in the arm/hand that doesn't have fluids attached). I would flush the line to check for patency. I would then get my fluids and prime my tubing. (priming is filing the lines with the solution). If everything we well I would then attach the fluids to the IV in the hand/arm.

Now that skill doesn't seem difficult now does it, but let me tell you it gets a whole lot harder when a person in a white coat is watches, when you know you are being graded and when it is timed. I just got so flustered that I forgot one thing and it was killer on my grade. Grrr....

OR:
The OR is awesome!!!!I quite enjoy it.
I have had the opportunity to watch hernia repairs, cholecystectomys, appendix removal, hysterectomies with bilateral salipingoopherectomy(ovaries and tubes removed). Awesome! I also had the opportunity to scrub in and help with one the hysterectomies. The one down side to OR is that my back tends to hurt a lot.

Another thing that interests me is being a Nurse Anesthetist. I find that being anesthetist would be a good job. I wouldn't mind being that, however, it is a lot more schooling.

School:
School is going well, most of the classes aren't too hard. I am pulling decent grades. I may not receive all A's this semester. The one class has some of the most ridiculous tests I could go insane. I learn a lot in her class but her tests really don't have much to do with what we learned.

Still no man in my life... no like I time for one anyway.