Another year goes by

I turned another year older on Friday.  I'm 39...eeekkk.  Even I can't believe it.  It also marks one year since I had to put Jagger to sleep...sad, sad memories.  This year was much better. 

Work has been ok.  I've been working the usual 3 days per week.  Lately it's been every Sat, Sun & Monday nights.  Not sure if I like that schedule or not.  I do but I don't.  I guess there are pros & cons to everything.  The patients that I've seen in the hospital for the last month or two have been very, very sick.  They came up with this new thing that anyone with chest pain that is picked up by an ambulance - has to go to a different hospital - even if ours is the closest hospital in the area.  We don't specialize in cardiac procedures.  As a result, we are seeing less & less of the easy to care for chest painers and more of the respiratory & gastrointestinal issues.  I have had patients that have been at our hospital for weeks & months...and they aren't improving.  I'm not used to that.  Usually after 2 or 3 days in the hospital, the patients would be discharged.  Now they seem to stay a long time. 

There was one night that I came in and we had 23 patients waiting in the ER for a hospital bed.  They had been admitted, but we had no rooms/beds available.  That's the busiest I've ever seen it & it was only a Monday night.  It doesn't seem to be slowing down anytime soon.  I imagine it's like that all over the country.

I'm tired - heading to bed.  Hope everyone is having an enjoyable weekend.  Oh...congratulations to Amanda who had twins last week!!!  A boy & a girl.

Oh...one more thing...for Carlene.  PCT's are patient care techs...it is pretty equivalent to what one would call a CNA.  I'm sure they have their slight differences, although I don't know what they are.  They cannot give shots or medications.  They are mostly responsible for vital signs, helping patients, cleaning patients up, feeding patients, transportingpatients, etc.  It's a tough job!