Not So Bad

Well.............computer charting is not so bad.  The night started out a little rocky for the agency nurses as they were having a hard time signing on (I was the only staff nurse on that part of the floor out of 7 nurses), but I was in like flynn.  Much, much better than handwriting.  I'm not sure I'm documenting everything correctly, but I did my best. 

It seems like our hospital is back to having very few staff nurses & 75% travelers or agency nurses.  So many new faces & names, I can't keep track.

I managed to stay at 3 patients for the night.  We were told it would remain like that for 2 weeks...but not even 6 hours into the shift, some nurses were getting a 4th patient.  Supposedly next year, our new budget shows that we will only have 4 patients maximum.  I'll believe that when I see it.  Watch, we'll end up with 6.

Anyways...I had one patient that I really can't say much about.  It's a very sad case...a simple procedure that went very wrong.  The reason I'm not comfortable writing all that much about it on here is because I feel that a lawsuit will be brought forward & I wouldn't blame the family one bit if they make that choice.  Therefore, I'm not writing anything regarding specifics....just in case.

My second patient was an elderly man with a history of dementia.  He was a handful.  He was wonderful when he was sleeping, but so off the wall when he'd wake up.  He'd start yelling & telling very odd stories.  Like the first time, he kept trying to wake up the person he was sharing a room with - so much so - he'd throw his pillow at the guy.  He was demanding that they make a movie together.  It was like dealing with a 2 yr old.  Eventually he went back to sleep for a few hours - I went on break, only to have another nurse call me & say I need to get back, my patient is attempting to jump out of bed.  I get back & he's at the end of the bed saying he is an inspector & he needs to inspect the building immediately.  He was convinced it was about to fall apart at any moment.  There was no talking sense in to him. It wasn't too long before he fell asleep again.  Dementia is a sad disease - he truly believed everything he was saying. He was in with a UTI and sepsis, but seemed to be improving medically.

My third patient was an older lady with pulmonary embolisms.  She was very independent, didn't want to be bothered & would call me when she needed me.  I love those kind of patients. 

So yet another pretty easy night.  I have volleyball tonight & more than likely back to work tomorrow night.  I need to get some overtime in to rebuild my savings account so I can take some time off at Thanksgiving & Christmas.  Hope everyone has a happy Monday!