Archives: June 2006
Okay, when was the last time you backed up all of your vital information???
Yeah, last time I thought about it and didn’t immediately go purchase disks to do a MAJOR back-up, both my laptop _and_ my handheld died.
I’m backing up as I type this. iTunes, Photos……yeesh.
Oh, and my iPod croaked this week. I am hoping to breathe a bit more life into it.
*crosses fingers*
Never in my entire life have I had not only things go well for me, but for everyone around me as well.
Kevin found out he got into CRNA school…at UPenn no less.
David got offered a position at a company making a lot more than he was at his old company…and will be getting the BlackBerry, Laptop AND company car!
Found out that Mark will be getting promoted here SOON! The most deserved promotion ever. All I have to say: “it is about fuckin’ time.”
Even closer to home:
Patrick passed the next step to becoming a federal officer. This most recent step was the ever nerve wracking polygraph which I have had friends say is the worst thing they have ever gone through. I am so proud that he has stuck with this long drawn out process. All he has left is the background check and the wait to see if he gets a good offer.
Oh, and last but not least, I had my second interview for my flight nurse position on Friday, which went well…
…they offered me the job over the phone 15 minutes after I left the hanger!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Okay, so I just realized that the first time I posted about this job was in November…..geesh.
Now when people ask the question, “Are you the flight nurse?” they will actually be right.
Okay, short but very exciting post. Thanks everyone for your words of encouragement. it is good to know you all are there! Just wish like hell we could all share a celebratory cocktail.
I will give you all a bit more detail about the interview tomorrow. I am going to bed!
Nite.
You know, I almost didn’t add that gaudy list of credentials to the post about my issues with the Army Reserves. All of my professional accomplishments have been influenced by my Army experiences in a very positive way and I wanted to give credit where credit is due.
It is funny. When I was at UPenn, I used to laugh at the pretentiousness of the presenters when their title screen had all of their e-i-e-i-o behind their name. I am almost embarrassed about mine to the point that I rarely use it. I am very satisfied with using Emily, NP and leaving it at that.
For those of you who have considered taking a certification exam–please do. The tests are challenging, but there is a sense of pride that goes with obtaining them. It is outside validation that you do have expertise in your chosen field of nursing. Nursing is a profession, not a job. We should strive to always get better, learn more, and advance our specialties.
The good news is that I survived the interview. The bad news is that they gave me a written exam with a SHIT load of cardiology and pediatrics on it.
Have I expressed my deep and unmoving dislike of cardiology??? Kiddos? No problems. I suck at the pedi portion, but that is just lack of exposure. Cardiology I have a difficult time getting. Guess I will be getting over that fast if they offer the position to me.
Hey, is it a good sign when the Chief Nurse stops taking notes on those required HR questions to just sit and listen to you?
Is it good when she makes a point of taking you into the COO/Medical Directors office to make introductions and he shuts the door to do an impromptu interview?
The kicker? He asked why they hadn’t heard from me earlier.
Keep those fingers, eyes, and toes crossed Mark!
I finished NBC school on 5 May.
The school was 2 weeks long.
This is a significant hunk of cash.
I STILL HAVE NOT BEEN PAID.
*sigh*
The end of my day was nearing and I was putting the finishing touches on my last chart. As I looked at the clock, proud of myself for actually being done before the 13 hour mark, a lady came from the private room across the hall looking distressed.
“Can I help you with something?”
She gave me that look I hate to get from a family member. You all have seen it. It is the one that sets off those intuition bells that make you instantly forget how freekin’ tired you are and that your feet are killing you.
“I need help with my husband,” she said in mid-stride back to the room.
Fortunately for me he was still breathing, had a pulse and was actually talking. He was confused as hell, but talking. I down shifted about 3 gears.
My immediate assessment was post-operative, acute delirium.
Here was a strong man in his late 70′s-early 80′s by educated guess, attempting to strip off his hospital gown because he had somewhere to be.
A second look at his wife said weariness, frustration, worry and love, all rolled into one.
While calming him down, I began asking those questions only a nurse can work into a situation. “How long have you been married?” That is my usual starting point. It inevitably brings comments that I can feed off of. I am not only able to gain very valuable information about the physical and mental state of my patient without alarming the family member, but I also gain the rapport that is so important in caring for someone.
In very few minutes I was told that he had lived a very interesting life, most of it being in the Army. He retired a lieutenant colonel and had served in WWII, Korea and Vietnam. WWII was spent working under General Patton.
This insight changed my strategy completely.
I was very proud to instantly switch into being LT Emily.
“Colonel?” I said in my strong, confident Army voice.
His eyes lit up and he looked me square in the face.
“Sir, my name is LT Emily. I am in the Nurse Corps. We are gonna do everything we can to get you back on your feet in no time.”
He gave a nod and silently agreed that would be acceptable.
I went on to explain what was going on and how things were being taken care of.
During my constant reminders that pulling out the catheter would hurt like hell, and would cause him to sing soprano, I calmly explained to his wife that this should be a temporary state and that we were doing everything to keep him safe in the mean time.
It wasn’t long before the good Colonel started pulling his gown off again. When asked where he was going he said, “I have to go check on my men.”
I chuckled, grabbed his hand and told him I would take care of that for him.
I quickly asked, “Sir, do you have any other orders for me?”
“No, just make sure they are where they should be.”
“Don’t worry Colonel. You have taught me well.”
That seemed to satisfy him.
His wife made my day by simply thanking me for, “speaking his language.”
What she didn’t know is that it wasn’t all for him. That is, and always will be, my language too.
Happy 231st Birthday, US Army
(h/t Blackfive.net)
Got a chewing out from a great work friend of mine.
She (in her minister ways…yes, she is a minister) jumped up and down telling me that I needed to sort out my priorities and figure out what was going to make me happy professionally.
I applied for a flight nurse job 8 months ago…they didn’t interview me saying they were “interested, but shooting for the moon” and hoping for someone with both a nursing and a paramedic license.
The person they offered the position to didn’t end up having the paramedic license.
She turned the job down.
After my friend’s chewing out and hearing that news (my sister is friends with the person who turned it down), I sent the flight person an email yesterday.
She called me today.
I am not doing Nurse Practitioner stuff in my Nurse Practitioner job.
Everything I have done since leaving the Army was so I could fly again.
I may finally have my chance…keep your fingers crossed.
This is going to be a multi-post series addressing the issues facing the Nurse Corps shortage from the viewpoint of one living it. Me.
It is my intention, not to spend hours in the editing process, but to give a bit of background, and then document my struggles with the inter-workings of the US Army, both good and bad.
I am going to air some dirty laundry, and pull out a few skeletons. This has ruined the careers of soldiers in the past. I am quite frankly, too tired, and too frustrated to stay quiet any longer.
Once upon a time, I intended to stay in the US Army until they kicked my sorry ass out.
That has changed.
Background
I have been in and around the US Army since December 1996. That time was spent in varying capacities as active duty enlisted medic, Army wife, and now Reserve Nurse. I have been assigned (in attached status) to a combat arms unit, assigned to a MEDEVAC unit and am now part of a Reserve Component Combat Support Hospital.
When I left active duty, it was my intention to come back in one way, shape or form to the Army that gave me so much. I am very proud that the Army influenced my life in ways that nothing else could. I am a competent, confident professional who has leadership skills civilians have a difficult time obtaining. Not only did I learn things, experience things, and teach things when on active duty, I was given even more.
Friends I will have until the day I die.
The confidence to attempt anything.
My education, my education, my education.
I completed in Associate’s in Natural Science and Mathematics while on active duty.
I used my GI Bill to earn my Associate’s degree in Nursing.
I utilized the remainder of my GI Bill as well as the STRAP incentive to finish both my BSN and MSN from an Ivy League school.
I reached the end of this educational road with just over 35K in student loans. It would have been 25K if I had agreed to extend my contract for an additional year.
With my monthly stipends, tuition assistance and student loan repayment, I put the total at around $100,000.
$100,000 for one nurse.
That does not include the thousands of dollars the Army invested in my actual military training.
Basic Training
Advanced Individual Training
Flight Medic Training (on the job at how many dollars a flight hour?)
Officer Basic Course
NBC School
I was taught early in my career to be high speed with low drag by some of the best the Army has to offer.
EVERY SINGLE THING listed below was because the Army invested in a small town girl with a bit of potential.
Honor Graduate (top 10) Medical Specialist Course
Number One Graduate—Expert Field Medical Badge
Battalion Soldier of the Quarter
Battalion Soldier of the Year
Flight Medic Qualified as an E-3
Crewmember Badge
NREMT-B (Nationally Registered Emergency Medical Technician Basic)
MSN (Master’s of Science in Nursing)
CEN (Certified Emergency Nurse)
CFRN (Certified Flight Registered Nurse)
CCRN (Critical Care Certified Nurse)
ONC (Orthopaedic Nurse Certified)
APRN-BC with Orthopaedic Trauma Specialty (Nurse Practitioner)
They have invested so much. Why aren’t they doing anything and everything in their power to keep me?
…to be continued
Next: My recruiting nightmare
Would someone please tell me how to change the font for my Blogrolling side bar??? It is making me nuts and I have spent WAAAaaaayyyy too much time attempting to figure it out!
Thanks.
I would like to thank Dr. O for his reply regarding the Vocera Badge entry on medGadget (and my subsequent rant). Here it is in its entirety:
I think you are reading too much into it. The post was written by a private MD (me), and the complaint was not about the nurses, but rather about being waken up in the middle of the night. Such is the nature of the job: and I can complain about it all I want. I have no interest to denigrate any professionals, medical or otherwise, nor I have any intent to denigrate anyone or any group. Sorry for the misunderstanding.
I indeed may have been reading into it, but I also don’t get torqued about much. I also don’t stay irritated, or just straight pissed for very long (mildly irritated in this case).
This is also the point where I want to make sure you all understand that I believe the gulf still existing between the medical and nursing professions is ridiculous. We are all in this messed up healthcare system together.
Once again, Dr. O–I appreciate your taking the time to respond to this and appreciate the effort you have put forth on medGadget.
Not logged in 