Today at work was crazy. Not in that it was super busy but in the type of patients I had. My first patient was this nice little old Spanish lady who is on peritoneal dialysis, she is the sweetest thing. She came to the ICU because her blood pressures had dropped dangerously low not too mention that she has had this powerful cough for three weeks. So powerful in fact, that she managed to break two ribs just from the coughing. This lady was a treat to take care of, pleasant, few medications, and respectful of the call light. At the beginning of the shift I was told I was getting an admission…sigh…”ok so what am I getting?” I asked. ER patient, 21year old female overdosed on Advil and Motrin after drinking about 10 beers and a bottle of wine because she got into a fight with her lesbian partner about who should get their haircut first. So obviously a nutter and on suicide precautions. Well to add to the challenge, my other patient is a 50 year old drunk who is going through the DT’s who came to the ER because his roommate kicked him out and because of that, wanted to kill himself….argh….another suicide precaution patient. Ok, so I’m whining a bit, however, the suicide precaution patients where four rooms apart. It was nuts trying to keep an eye on these two rooms. Thank God for “Captian Ativan” and his sidekick “Vitamin H” as we inappropriately call them in the nursing trade.
All in all it wasn’t a bad day, but it got busy because of how much help I had to give Karina, Betsy and Kim. They had bad patients. Betsy and Karina’s patient had a strangulated hernia repair and was in the poor me, oh god take me now mood. and Kim’s patient is also another detox who fell out the bed and then crapped all over the floor….sigh….why did I become a nurse again.
So although the day wasn’t too busy task wise, the patients were demanding and frustrating and presented a significant challenge in keeping them safe today.
oh well more later….and fyi tomarrow is my BIRTHDAY!!!! Yippee
TTFN