Stories of a Student Nurse

Hello, moto!

2005-08-10T21:37:00.000-07:00

Hello world! Can you believe I'm still out here? Sorry for the HUGE
delay... looks like nursing school got the better of me, eh? Well, I'm
back! And although I'll do my best to try and update this rag more often
this year, I'm not making any solid promises.

Had a GREAT first year of nursing school. Learned alots. Had no idea what
any of it meant, but it's all starting to come together a little bit at a
time. Like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. Spent the summer doing an
externship in the ICU. LOVED it. Think I'd like to work ICU after
graduation - maybe even PICU, though not sure how I'd handle that
emotionally. Plus, I'm not the greatest at hands-on type skills (drawing
blood, etc).... what an awful weakness to have in the nursing world! I'm
hoping that more experience during clinicals and preceptorship this last
year will ease that.

I'm just terrified to think, that in a year, I'll be out on my own - a real
RN! Wow!

More to come later. Tired now, and boys are in bed watching Kangaroo Jack.
Think I'll join 'em! :)

Asses mint

2004-08-23T17:59:00.000-07:00

Ding! Ding! Ding! Let the stress begin!

Our classes this fall are CPR, Assessment, Med Surg and Clinical and Pharmacology.

We were assigned 7 chapters to read tonight. Tomorrow all day we'll be talking about assessment and a little bit of nutrition review. I'm worried my kids are going to see more of the front of a textbook than they are my face for the next 2 years.

You know I said I thrive on stress? Let me take that back. All I wanna do right about now is go crawl in a whole somewhere. I am so overwhelmed.

We complete Med Surg this semester, next semester we have some Peds, Psych, Maternal-Child/L&D/OB-gyn.

Clinicals for us will begin mid-September with bed baths/oral hygiene/etc. I may need to brush up on my technique - I'm not sure I can remember how to fold the washcloth correctly. And another thing that gets is is hospital/mitered corners. I've always said that academics I usually have little problems with, but the technical/mechanical stuff gets me everytime. So during the summer term, after asking my partners to show me several times how to do the mitered corners and still not "getting it," I gave up to save myself further embarrassment (temporarily)! Help!

Problem - I haven't ordered my uniforms OR my shoes yet. Financial aid refunds haven't come in yet. Anybody else see the problem here? I'm just hoping that once I do get my aid money, the uniform shop will have my size in stock!

The hospital I'll be doing my clinical at this semester is about 60 miles from my home. I'm not going to complain about that, since some clinical sites would be as far as 120 miles from my home (we'll rotate through all sites by the time I graduate though, so that's something I'll have to look forward to?).

I don't know when I'm going to get any studying or housework done this week. I have a weekend leadership conference I have to attend for a scholarship I received Friday night and all day/into the evening Saturday. I'm a little nervous about it, since it's at a woodsy retreat-type place, and I have a feeling we'll be doing those "climb the wall/ropes course" type of exercises they make you do at summer camp to learn teamwork. I'm not really excited about it, since I'm socially awkward and unbelievably shy. I even told the scholarship committee as such (listed it as my weakness), but for some reason they still deemed me suitable to receive a leadership scholarship.

Ordinarily students who receive the above mentioned leadership scholarship have to enroll in a leadership course. Our nursing schedule is pretty much 8-5, Monday-Friday, so it obviously conflicts with that. In place of the course, I then have to read two leadership related books and complete essays on them. Additional scholarship requirements are keeping up the GPA, being involved in 2 leadership sponsored events on campus each semester, being active in 2 campus clubs, and donating time to 2 community service organizations. I'm beginning to wonder if all this work is really worth $500/semester! I'll take what I can get.

Mastery exams - We have a Med Terminology exam next week that we MUST pass with 85% or we're out of the program. I've noticed since we've returned to class that I'm not the only one who's a procrastinator. Hardly anyone has studied for it. We also have a pharmacology calculation exam toward the end of the semester that we MUST pass with 95% or we're out of the program. The lowest possible grade you can make and continue in the program at all is a 75%. Another note is that points are not rounded up AT ALL - if you make a 74.9, you've still failed. Of course, I'm not aiming for C's, but still - oh the pressure! Maybe I'm a little too grade conscious/gunner.

First day, all morning we had a convocation that included junior and senior levels students in the program. It was held in a VERY nice auditorium in the brand spanking new Math & Science building on campus. We all watched some poorly dubbed videos regarding hospital policies - HIPAA, JCAHO, etc. I think most of us had a hard time staying awake! I guess I wasn't the only one who enjoyed sleeping late during break! ;)

Speaking of those videos, who knew trash could be so complicated? Green bags, red bags, blue bags, white bags, brown bags. What's next, polka-dot bags? Then add to that codes - code green, code blue, code red, code yellow, code adam, code true, code secure. And let's not forget the armbands - blue armbands, royal blue armbands, green armbands, black armbands, hot pink with "confetti" armbands. Am I ever going to be able to keep all this straight?

Is nursing (school) really just about making something that seems so simple incredibly, unbelievably complicated? I guess not, just all this information seems so alien to me right now. So much information is being thrown out at us, that I'm overwhelmed to say the least. Can I even do this?

They're renovating a building on campus for the nursing department. They've gutted the entire inside, so it will be totally new when completed. I'm excited to say that the scheduled date for completion of that project is next summer, so if all goes as planned our senior year will be spent in the nice, new facilities.

I'm finally becoming more comfortable around my classmates, and will fully admit to being a little judgmental of them in the beginning. The other older gal and I have decided that we still don't quite "fit" (while other students are standing in the hall talking during breaks, we kind of stay to ourselves), but I'm okay with that. The age thing doesn't seem like such of a barrier anymore when we're working together. Out of 60 classmates, I'd say I know about 30 people's names, but I'm working on learning them all!

The instructor's have joked that we're a very punctual and mature class (especially to be so young, on average), and it's kind of amusing that after 3 weeks off, we returned and sat in exactly the same seats we occupied during summer term. I guess we're really creatures of habit. :)

Parent orientation at my son's school is tonight. He'll be beginning first grade on Wednesday, his teacher is a cousin of mine and she actually taught me first grade years ago. She's known for her strictness, let's say. I'm pretty concerned about this, since my son made all C's in Conduct his kindergarten year. They also have a VERY small class - only 9 students (I think her reputation preceded her, there were 21 students in his Kindy class last year).

My son (6) keeps stealing the remote and hiding it in the windowsill. I'm not sure what he's hoping to accomplish, unless it's to keep me from turning the cartoons off. I'm sure he'll be glad to know that Mama ain't gonna have any time to watch TV anytime soon!

My other son (2 1/2) goes for a repeat X-ray of his broken left clavicle on Wednesday.

The expenses in nursing school just don't ever end. After going through our class syllabi this afternoon, we realize there are 3 more LARGE (read: expensive) textbooks that were omitted from our required book list but ARE required. I have to find another $124 by the end of the week (nevermind that financial aid refunds aren't available until September 10th).

$59 of that is for the MEDS program. It really is a neat program and provides us with computerized (internet-based) tests for most all of our nursing subject content areas. Our nursing instructors have also agreed to give us up to 2 points on our final course grades if we pass certain MEDS tests with a certain percentage. After paying $59 x 4 (semesters), at the end of our senior year they will provide us with a 4-day board review. When you think about it that way, that's really a bargain compared to Kaplan or some of the similar programs out there. Those things are pricey!

The other $65 is for a skills/clinical pack. That includes things like an IV kit, syringes, gloves, and a cath kit. These are the things we use in our skills labs and check-offs.

I missed my appointment at the health department last week to get my final Hepatitis shot. I guess I'll try to find time to do that at the student health center on campus (it's located in the nursing building), I just hope it isn't too expensive!

And people wonder why nursing students are stressed out!

I guess I'm pretty silly, but instead of writing my journal out daily and then typing it into the computer, I've started recording my thoughts on the commute home into my little tape deck and then transcribing them into text. That probably explains the additional length of this (and possibly future) posting(s).

I want to have a whole separate category in my budget just for coffee. Oh, I'm so addicted. My current weakness is a Tall Skinny Iced Hazelnut Latte. I'd like to have one every morning, but for now I settle for a couple days a week! Funny thing is, I have an espresso machine, I'm just too lazy to learn how to use it (or get up early enough to make my own)! My philosophy is, why bother to make it myself when I can pay someone else to do it for me? (I wish I was rich enough to transfer this to some other areas of my life - mainly housework!)

Did I mention I almost flipped my truck the other day? I have a Jeep Liberty, and you know what they say about Jeeps and rollover risk. Some redneck hillbilly truck pulled out in front of me and I had to swerve QUICKLY (two wheels came off the ground) to keep from rear-ending him and his toothless friends riding in the bed. My husband and two kids were in the car and it scared us all silly. Reminds me of another of my pet peeves: people driving tractors or ATVs on paved roads (isn't that illegal?).

I'm such a control freak. I think that's why I have issues about driving on the highway/freeway. Or maybe I'm just paranoid instead. Another problem with my driving may be that I'm nearly blind in one eye (poorly treated lazy eye when I was a kid), which happens to be my left eye. I suppose you can understand why decreased peripheral vision would be a problem when it comes to merging, etc.

Sorry this wasn't too clever or too quick, but I'm glad to have you reading! You guys are what keeps me posting.

I'm not sayin' I'm a saint, I just don't wanna live that way

2004-08-22T10:48:00.000-07:00

Just got off the phone with from a brief talk with my husband. In case anyone doesn't know, because of his job he lives in a town two hours away. He supports us financially, but isn't able to be here very often. The kids and I decided to stay here since I'd already been accepted to the nursing program, and get lots of support/help from my parents/grandparents who live nearby. My husband works an odd schedule and it would probably make nursing school difficult with the odd hours/having to get kids to daycare or school. In addition, the nursing program near his city is a 3-year program, and the one I'm currently enrolled in is a 2-year program. If I finish here, I'll graduate in May 2006.

We're probably both being unreasonable. He wants me to quit school (give up my scholarships), re-apply to the college over there, and move right away. I want to stay here and finish. We still see each other on weekends and holidays, and I'm willing to make the sacrifice to finish up here as quickly as possible. I'm ready to have my degree NOW, and this is the first time in our 6-year marriage that I've really been able to concentrate on what I want (an education).

Needless to say, this is causing a huge rift between us. He's even threatened that if I don't move over there ASAP, I might as well call a divorce lawyer. That's not what I call unconditional love, but does anyone think I'm being unreasonable? Any input or advice would be appreciated. Maybe I and the people I've been asking for advice are just not objective enough.

As if this day weren't bad enough, the two-year old decided to do his egg-throwing trick again. This time it was only a half-dozen, but still - what a mess! Yuck!

The weather today seems to match my mood. Dreary and gray... nothing much to do today except clean out my truck and backpack since school starts back tomorrow (say a little prayer that I won't sleep through my alarm), get some clothes washed, and go up to my Mom's to print out all my syllabi/etc since my printer seems to be on the fritz.

Rawhide

2004-08-21T18:25:00.000-07:00

School days are approaching again far too quickly. In a way, I long for the routine and drama of school. Although I'm at once both a perfectionist and a procrastinator, I find I'm much more productive when I'm pressed for time. I've always told my friends/family/coworkers that I thrive on stress....

So we start back Monday. I went and bought all 21 of my nursing textbooks last week for a total of $707.34. That price actually wasn't as bad as I'd feared. I have yet to order my uniforms or shoes, and since clinicals begin in September I suppose I'd better do that very soon. I already have the rest of my supplies on hand (steth, BP cuff, etc) since we used those during summer term.

I wrote up some flashcards to help me with my last minute cramming for the med terminology mastery exam we have to take on September 2nd. I already have over 400 cards and I'm not done making them yet. Guess I should have started studying sooner. :)

Never trust a toddler

2004-08-20T19:42:00.000-07:00

I made myself cheese toast at 11:30 pm last night. Killer for the diet, but oh so tasty.

The unseasonably nice weather earlier this week I could handle, the thunderstorms not so much so. It was coming a gusher outside last night making me tense. If I was in bed, I'd probably be snoozing like a baby since I love to sleep when I hear the rain on the roof. But sitting in my living room, alone, with the rain pelting hard on the windows, I get kind of frightened. Ridiculous? Maybe. A very vivid fear? Absolutely.

What is it with men? Er, make that boys - apparently they're just miniature men. Not only did Dusty (6yo) put an empty container of orange juice back into the fridge (hello, what do you think the garbage is for?).... he also snuck into the kitchen, removed the tub of chocolate chunk cookie dough from the fridge, and took it to his room to help himself with both hands (the incriminating evidence was found by me upon visiting his room to turn out the light). Ugh!

Remember I told you that my 2 year old, Micah, is a holy terror? Well, as if I needed further proof, he's tested my patience this morning. Dusty came and interrupted my shower to tell me Micah threw an egg on the (newly mopped) floor. I groan, cut my shower short, and head to the kitchen still in my towel, only to find that there are nearly a dozen eggs cracked and thrown across the whole kitchen. Ugh! I could just pull my hair out!

More from the Micah chronicles. Upon taking a bath this evening, I find he has taken every single item of clothes that was in the bathroom hamper and dunked them into the bathtub. Are all two year olds this bad, or is it just me?

Had a very nice night, though. Some church members and friends threw a party for a former classmate/friend who just recently got home after serving 15 months in Iraq (Army). He has some interesting stories to tell for sure. man

~*~Manna~*~
Mama to sweet boys Dusty (8-7-98) and Micah (1-28-02)
MUW BSN Class of 2006!!!!!!!

Whose line is it anyway?

2004-08-19T21:14:00.000-07:00

Where have I been? Enjoying myself and not even turning the computer on except to download my e-mail or occasionally listen to Dave (daveramsey.com)

Lots going on with us, though. This is just going to be a random mishmash of what's been going on with us the past two weeks.

The first week off I was entirely lazy and did absolutely nothing but have the satellite man reconnect our DirecTV and sit on my butt, eat bon-bons, and watch TV. Well, not literally... but close enough. I figure I deserved the break, right? :)

We made a trip to the big waterpark over at the casinos here. Silly me, put sunscreen on the boys, but didn't on myself. I blistered horribly, and nearly had a panic attack itching so darn bad. It was fun and wish we could go back, but they're closed after this weekend for the season. Maybe I can talk someone into getting us season passes for next summer.

I really need a date. With my husband, of course. I'd like to go out, have a couple of drinks, or some food, or something. I love my boys and am so happy to get to spend this time with them, but my husband and I see each other so little and I'd really like some time to just concentrate on him. Know any good babysitters? LOL

My Father in law had a wreck. He was drunk at "deer camp" and decided to drive. I have absolutely no tolerance for people who drink and drive - my mother's youngest and only sister was killed by a drunk driver when I was 3. I know my mother in law reads this and I apologize to her for this rant, but that's just how I feel. I've always espoused the motto that it's better to be honest than nice.

We're really pleased that my husband's twin brother has moved "home" to Mississippi from Tennessee and we're finally getting to see him and his 7-year-old daughter more often.

Dustin (my oldest son) had a birthday and turned 6 on August 7th. It was a great day with two little parties (just family) two cakes, and lots of nice presents. With two sets of grandparents and one set of great-grands, my kids are spoiled rotten. He starts 1st grade on August 25th (private school).

Micah (my youngest son) is 2 1/2, for those who don't know. We're working on the potty training thing, but it's not going so well. He is very, very stubborn - not at all like Dusty, who at 2 1/2 was docile and wouldn't jump when you said "how high." Did I mention he's also still nursing (at night)? I'm all for extended breastfeeding, but sometimes ya need some personal space! Yeesh. He's very attached though, so I just keep hoping he'll decide to give it up himself...

In other news, I broke Micah's collarbone last week after a nice trip to the mall and Chuck E Cheese. :( We were walking through the bookstore, I holding his hand, when he did that "I don't wanna go so I'm just going to be a limp noodle" thing that toddlers do. This left him hanging by me holding his arm for a split second. I heard something go "crunch" and I dropped him. He was screaming and wouldn't use that arm, so since he'd dislocated his elbow once before we figured it was that again. My wonderful, sweet brother who is an ER physician told my hubby over the phone how to try to put it back in place, so we tried that and couldn't get it in. Then we drove to my brother's house and they proceeded to push and pull on it even more to try to put it back in, but never felt it pop back in place. He said if he wasn't using it by the next morning to take him for an X-ray, and sure enough - broken left clavicle. Ouch. So he has this nifty little brace he hates wearing, and he goes back for a repeat X-ray Wednesday the 25th.

The big "Little Sturgis" (sturgismsbikerally.com) bike rally is this weekend. Gami (my mother) bought the grandkids rebel and American flags to wave at the bikers as they pass down the highway in front of her house tomorrow afternoon. I'd like to go, a first cousin of mine builds custom choppers (southernfriedchoppers.ms) and is going to have a booth, but hubby has to work so I don't guess I'll be going alone. LOL

Kevin (hubby) took a few days of vacation and was home with us while I've been off. It was SO nice to see him for all that time. Just having him around is great.. . he's pressuring me very hard to move/transfer schools over there to where he lives, but I'm putting up a lot of resistance. That's a subject for another post..

We cleaned out closets and ended up with 8+ bags of clothes and things to take to the Salvation Army. There is absolutely no way that I or my kids needed that many clothes. I feel so free! Decluttering rules! :)

Went and bought my books earlier this week. 20 books and $700 worth. Thank goodness for book vouchers. I won't be able to get my financial aid refund until September 10th (even though school starts August 23rd), but I have to have my uniforms for clinicals in September and I haven't ordered them yet. Considering I'm broke, this is a big problem. Oops.

We had a big family reunion last weekend, with unseasonably pleasant weather because of the hurricane on the coast. Sorry guys, but I'd take weather like that in August anytime! Got to see lots of relatives I haven't in ages, including my Uncle who drove down from Cincinnatti (sp?) for a visit. Dusty is incredibly like me and stood in the bathroom for the better part of the beginning of the reunion, too shy to go out and mingle with his other kid-cousins who he rarely sees. How can I prevent my child from being cursed with the same shyness and social phobias as his mother? Which leads on to another interesting note, that poor self esteem very much runs in families. Summer term nursing school factoid of the day. :)

My sweet Grandma decided to buy my boys bunk beds for an early Christmas present (plus I think she secretly wants them both to stop sleeping with me). We got them put up a day or two ago. They're black metal and look great, and better yet - the boys love them! Now if only I could get Dusty over his fear of the dark and Micah over his needing milk to go to sleep...

School starts back August 23rd. I'm both excited and terrified. Mommy!

Okay, that's all for now, I'm sure I'll have more later. Thanks for reading, comments are welcome... oh if you e-mail me through this site and would like a reply, please include your return e-mail address since they come through my box blind (not showing your return addy).

The winner is...

2004-08-04T21:06:00.000-07:00

Me. I'm proud of myself. No, I'm not bragging, I'm improving my self concept. See, I did learn something this session? LOL

I ended up with A+ in all three of my classes.

I guess I didn't mention our nursing informatics class much. That one was entirely online and included us doing a research critique from a nursing journal, searching out a useful website for nurses and writing a quick blurb about it (I chose allnurses.com of course), a nursing history paper (did mine on Margaret Sanger), and something else that I can't seem to remember at the moment.

The last two tests for my other two courses were more difficult than the first two. Like I said, apparently they're easing us into this nursing test thing. I'm worried about the fall, considering the average class score on the test on elimination/mobility was lower than an 80. Eek!

Oh well, I'm doing, and going to fully enjoy myself for the next 2 weeks until school starts back up. Who knows if I'll actually get anything done, although I have a big, huge, long to-do list laid out. This is the first time I've really ever actually been able to be a semi-SAHM to my boys (ages 6 and 2), so I'm looking forward so much to that quality time with them. :)

Free and Clear.... almost

2004-08-02T21:02:00.000-07:00

Just a few more exams to go and summer term is over! We get a nice 2-3 week break before fall starts back up with the hard stuff (pharm, assessment, fundamentals, CPR, clinical).

Teaching Learning paper was due bright and early this morning. I freaked last night when I couldn't get it to download out of my e-mail (typed it elsewhere but didn't have a disk so I emailed it to myself). Thanks goodness my trusty best friend came through and helped me out with that.

Teaching Learning presentations were this morning. Our group just winged it. We got up and spoke briefly about our presentation, our barriers to learning, our learning tools used, our outcomes (based on class participation and exit quiz), and so on. Some of the other groups went so far as doing powerpoint presentations for this, but we weren't quite that organized/ambitious. We still got the max number of points, so I'm pleased with that. All in all, we got a 96 on the entire teaching learning project. I'm pleased with that, and I hope the rest of my group members are as well (although I didn't ask them in so many words).

Early days - actually got to leave before lunchtime today, and will probably be done between 10-11 am on the next couple days as well. Can you say naptime? :)

When I burn the toast

2004-07-30T20:52:00.000-07:00

Did I mention I didn't want to get up this morning? Those three days of sleeping in and being lazy messed me up. I drove over to my husband's house and the boys and I stayed with him. Boy, I miss him when school is in session. Short term sacrifices for long term gain, I have to keep reminding myself.

So the teaching learning implementation was today. Our cohort group met at the school at 8:00 am and we all rode in my Jeep over to the daycare at 9:00. Our project was related to fire safety, and per my direction we each took a focus area and spoke on it for 3-4 minutes. One girl did an introduction and spoke about fire hazards in the home, I followed her with a discussion of smoke detectors and exit signs, the lone male in our group discussed steps to take in case of fire (including establish a meeting place and call 911), and finally the last gal discussed and did a demo of stop/drop/roll. We were fairly nervous about doing this, but the kids were amazing. There were about 16 of them from ages 6-12. They were very attentive and respectful, and passed the "exit quiz" we gave them at the end of the presentation with flying colors. We made sure throughout the program to really encourage their participation by asking lots of questions and letting them speak, so I think that helped. Oh, and on the title today - I asked the kids if any of them had smoke detectors in their home, and one mentioned "yeah, ours goes off when I burn the toast." :)

Our instructor seemed VERY pleased and said as much, so we were all relieved. Following our presentation, we met to hash out the final copy of the required paper. I asked who wanted to write it since I wrote the draft, and got no volunteers. They just kind of twiddled their thumbs and stared at the ceiling, so I grudgingly said I'd do it myself. I just hope they don't complain about the grade, darnit.

Although there were 4 people in our cohort group, we checked off in groups of 2. I was so nervous about check-offs, mainly because our slacker cohort group hadn't practiced in the lab very much at all. The only faculty check-offs we had were vitals, (mock) enema, and ostomy selection. I had no problem with vitals, except that the plastic sleeve for my thermometer kept busting everytime I'd slip it on. Ostomy selection went fairly smoothly as well, we used a dummy but I heard some other groups just drew a circle and had to measure/choose the right size appliance. On the mock enema, of all the stupid things, I forgot to put on my gloves. I caught it myself, so my instructor passed me anyway. As she and I agreed, when in the hospital and performing an actual enema on a strange patient, I'm sure I won't forget the gloves! LOL

So I passed all my check-offs! What a relief!

I really, really enjoyed my cohort faculty leader this summer. She is an older lady who went back to nursing school as an adult with children as well. She's a difficult instructor and her test questions are pretty hard, but you can tell she really cares about her students and always takes the time to listen. Some of our instructor's are a little cold, but maybe it's just because I haven't interacted with them very much. I'd be pleased as punch to have her again, but I've been assigned someone different for fall (an instructor I haven't actually met yet, since she doesn't teach during the summer term).

Teach your children well

2004-07-26T20:47:00.000-07:00

Our teaching learning project (fire safety) draft was due today. Of course, I wrote the whole thing. I guess I can't blame my group members too much, I assumed responsibility for leadership and they certainly didn't seem to want the job. I don't think it's that they're lazy, but they just don't seem very ... outgoing. No, that's not quite the word I'm looking for, but I'm not sure what is at this moment. Brain lag.

Another lecture I enjoyed today - Ethics. Much class discussion included in this one, all sorts of topics included some covered previously. Abortion, assisted suicide, living wills/advance directives, etc. We learned how to help with ethical decision making. It's a little scary issue since there is no cut-and-dried right-and-wrong. I'm very much a right-or-wrong person, that's why I've always said I like math (because in most cases, there's only one right answer). This lecture really brings home how one must keep their own personal values and belief system from conflicting with what's in a patient's best interest. Personal emotions and self-disclosure have no place in a therapeutic relationship, but I can see how that would be very difficult to put into practice.

Tuesday through Thursday of this week we'll be off from school. We have our teaching learning implementation at the daycare on Friday, then check-offs following. Don't expect me to check in, I think I'm going to stay in bed the whole time! LOL :)

Let's talk about sex, baby

2004-07-23T20:41:00.000-07:00

There I go with the songs again. It's like an obsession.

One of my cousin's said he'd like to sit in on our lecture for today: Spirituality/Sexuality. The lecture evolved basically as you'd expect. Although I'm a religious person myself, I was pleased that the instructor's took care to point out that spirituality and religion are not always congruent. Someone can be spiritual without being religious, without a doubt. We covered spiritual/religious beliefs at various age ranges/development periods, the impact of illness upon spiritual/religious beliefs, and how to help patients promote their own spiritual health. Moving on the sexuality, the sexual response cycle was covered, along with alternate sexual roles (including norms like homosexuality and deviants like pedophilia), sexuality throughout the lifespan, and nursing responsibilities related to sexual health and behavior. Easy to see how this can be a touchy/embarrassing subject, but our mature (although very young) class handled it well - even the instructor's commented on our professional demeanor.

We were to have mobility lab work this afternoon, but we did a quick bed/wheelchair transfer and then cut out early. Elimination journals were due today - now that was an interesting one to write....

Values Schmalues

2004-07-22T20:35:00.000-07:00

Whew, big paper due today on professional values. We had to list the five nursing values we were given and describe an example of each that we've experienced personally. Following that, we had to choose at least 3 of the 5 that we believed were integral to nursing practice and explain why. We as a class have decided that so much of what they have us doing in class is just "busywork," but I guess we might as well get used to it. I'm sure it won't change much over the next 2 years.

First lecture of the day was on Levels of Prevention. We broke up into small groups and did a worksheet on determining which types of care/situations fall into which level of prevention. Since there are apparently no clear cut lines when it comes to defining these levels, this led to some interesting discussion. I'm actually beginning to enjoy spending time in these small group projects, surprisingly enough. Well, at least when everyone tries to contribute meaningfully and not shift the workload...

We had a mobility quiz, and today was the day we had our mobility field trip as well. We went to one of the local hospitals (I'm not ashamed to say our class looked pretty spiffy all decked out in our lab coats) and had a guest lecture by a local PT and PTA. We then got to play around with transferring classmates from bed/stretcher/wheelchair, using crutches/walkers, and putting classmates in a CPM machine (continuous passive motion). Pretty fun for a change of pace, but I hate being put on the spot. I'll admit that while I don't usually have any problem with "book learning," my mechanical aptitude is not the greatest. As I've stated before, I've always been worried that I'll have more difficulty in skills lab/clinical than I will with lecture/exams. Oh well, so far I've discovered with practice/familiarity comes confidence, so I'm just going to try to maintain that positive mental attitude (why does that sound familiar? Oh, Jonah - a Veggie Tales movie, that's it).

If I can just get through this week, the rest of the summer term should be smooth sailing. :)

Legal Eagle

2004-07-21T19:24:00.000-07:00

Topic numero uno of the day - Legal issues. The beginning of this lecture mainly consisted of stark definitions of things like public/private policy, statutory/criminal law, etc. Once it progressed past that, I actually found it quite interesting. We briefly discussed things like unions, collective bargaining, what does/does not require a physicians' order and questioning MD orders. We also went through the state nursing practice act to get a general idea of the scope of practice of LPN/RNs and things that can be delegated to assistive personnel. We also talked about legality as related to death/dying (assisted suicide, living wills, power of attorney), as well as malpractice. Fascinating stuff, especially with all the news of tort reform going on in the state lately.

Health care policy was the next topic, dealing with items like who should receive care, or who should receive priority in receiving care, health care systems and the delivery of care, and reimbursement (medicare, medicaid, private payers, insurance, PPO/HMOs). Another interesting lecture in my mind. Some classmates had very strong opinions on this matter, including one brave soul who spoke up and said that he believed prisoners and illegal immigrants should be LAST on the list when it comes to receiving care (particularly organ transplants). That led to quite a lively discussion.

Following that, we had our elimination quiz and lab work, but as usual our cohort group cut out early. Hope this doesn't come back to bit us on the butt in check-offs. :)

I get around..

2004-07-20T19:15:00.000-07:00

Not really. I was thinking more along the lines of that Beach Boys song, so get your mind out of the gutter. :)

ROM/Ambulation was first on the slate for today. Lovely lecture about joints, mobility, moving big fat immobile folks. Oops, did that sound insensitive? I didn't mean for it to, I'm just tired and rambling. Or maybe I'm becoming callous already. Surely not. :)

We'll have a mobility field trip to meet a physical therapist and get some practice with their equipment and moving people around later in the week.

And yes, to answer my own question, we did cover body mechanics and other safety issues to remember to protect our own bodies and backs. I'm still a little worried about how well having to ask for help to transfer a 300-lb patient or lift a man who's fallen up from the floor will translate into actual practice. Like all the nurses say, there's the way they teach you in school, and the way it works in real practice. Hmm...

We also had a lecture on teaching learning today. All about different learning strategies for different age groups, cultures, etc. How to formulate a teaching plan. We have a big project due at the end of the month. We choose a topic (ours is fire safety), write a paper, implement the teaching plan at a local daycare, evaluate the process, and then present the paper and our project to our classmates and instructors. It's worth 25% of our grade. So far, I've done the majority of the work. And not to sound bitter, but it's not like my other group members have any more responsibilities than I do (they're all single and most live closer to campus than I do). I guess I DID volunteer to be the group leader, so therefore sometimes the leader ends up doing more by default. I'm okay with it, really.

Our hygiene and vital signs journals were due today. Did I mention we had to do those? We have to write these journals from our practice in lab. We answer a series of questions (What did I see, what did I feel, what did I learn, etc) based on our experience as the student nurse and as the patient.

Is this bedpan on the test?

2004-07-19T19:09:00.000-07:00

So we had another test today. No rest for the weary. This one was on vital signs, hygiene, and universal precautions. Not so bad, ended up with an A again. They're starting us off slow, easing us into the nursing type questions. I have no doubt that things will begin to get more difficult very soon. Again, a Co-op test. We have those with everything except the big finals. Luckily during the summer - no comprehensive finals.

All the rest of the day and afternoon was Elimination lecture and lab. Bedpans, catheters and enemas, oh my! We got to see our dear psych instructor get a mock enema, be placed on the bedpan, etc. Only thing is, in our awkwardly shaped classroom, some of us have to stand on chairs and tables to be able to view the demonstrations. After observing, we got to split up into our groups and practice. Can you guess what our group did? Of course. One member didn't even show up for the lab, and the other three of us just watched the group that shared a room with us do their practice and left early, yet again. Oh, they also handed us out all our own little enema kits to use for check-offs. We got a very stern warning to not practice enemas on anyone at home, frightening enough, a former student had taken hers home to practice for check-offs and gave her little brother an enema! Poor kid! :)

We won't be doing anything with catheters except for emptying foley bags until later in the fall. Oh and I nearly forgot to mention our nice little talk about ostomies. We'll have to check off choosing an appliance for a stoma on a dummy.

This all doesn't seem quite as yuck as I'd feared it would be (I'm not good with the gross-out factor), but then we haven't actually encountered any real humans (other than classmates) or body materials. :o

Can I have a drum roll please?

2004-07-16T19:03:00.000-07:00

Our first big nursing exam today. Am I still shaking? No, it wasn't so bad. In fact, I made a 102. Thankfully, our nursing department is very up-to-date and posts test results on the web within a few hours of taking an exam.

It wasn't so bad, I actually ended up with a 102. It was mostly regurgitation, though. All this psych, self concept, role theory type stuff. We also do this interesting group testing thing. First, we take them exam on our own. Then, after everyone is finished, the instructors split us up into groups of 4 and we take the exam as a group. If the group makes an A on their shared exam, we get 2 points added to our personal score. If the group makes a B, we get 1 point added. Definately a nice perk, and even nicer than that, it gives us a chance to discuss the question with our peers, see different ways of viewing and analyzing the problem. Oh, now that I look it up these are officially called "Co-op Tests."

After the exams, we had lecture - of course. Leadership and Quality Improvement was first. More of the same things covered in our professional image lectures. The public's image of nurses, how we as student nurses and eventually RNs should contribute to that, image, networking, etc. Quality improvement led us into topics like JHACO, risk management, and again - nursing responsibilities.

After that lecture, we had an open lab on hygiene. Time to practice hand-washing, etc. They had 3 hours slotted for it, but really - how many hours can you spend making beds, washing hands, brushing teeth, etc (on classmates)? Another day of leaving early. I could get used to this. :)

Guess I'll go eat worms..

2004-07-15T18:56:00.000-07:00

I guess I'm feeling kind of blue today. Odd since our lectures today were on psych/self concept, including self esteem. Listening to those kind of lectures if sort of cathartic, makes me feel rather introspective. You'd think that I'd be feeling a bit MORE self confident, since we covered all the ways one can reduce stress, nurture one's self, and the related ideas and problems that can arise related to poor self concept. Alas, I'm just feeling pity-party-ish anyway. :)

An interesting topic covered in said class today, body image related to self concept. All this led to a discussion regarding pressure in the media to conform to a certain, often unrealistic standard. And all this time I thought I was the only one who realized that? LOL

You know, for my speech class I wrote this piece revolving around the line from some pop song, "Underneath your clothes, there's an endless story." I didn't particularly like the song, but I was moved by that one line (perhaps taken out of context). The story went on to praise all women, all mothers, regardless of their race, creed, size, etc. Not that I think I'm a great writer by any means, I just state what I believe, and I was moved while writing and again when reading it. I'll try to dig it out of my dusty closet and post it sometime if anyone would like to read it (it's short, I promise).

Also today, more vital signs lab. Again, our cohort group flaked out and we all got to leave early. But hey, I'm not complaining! :)

Listen to your heart (there's nothing else you can do)

2004-07-14T18:42:00.000-07:00

And the musical theme continues...

I just typed this big huge long post about today, and it disappears. I hate you, internet. No, not really. Okay, never again will I try to publish a post without first cut/paste/saving it. So very, very frustrating.

Lectures today:

Personal values clarification: What are your values? How do they affect your actions? What happens when your value system conflicts with someone you are in contact with? How does this relate to nursing practice? How do we acquire our values? Quite interesting stuff, and definately food for thought. Some of my classmates are irritated and on antsy to continue on to what they consider more meat-and-potatoes learning, things such as pharm, disease process, pathophys.... but how much of nursing is actual hard science and how much is philosophical psychobabble? I think there's some pretty broad opinions on that subject. Any thoughts?

Vital signs lab. My slacker cohort group didn't practice pulse, respirations or temps at all. Guess that's not so difficult, I can always practice on my kids, right? :)
So we had to take 20 student and 5 faculty blood pressures. Practice makes perfect I suppose, and being required to do that definately helped our confidence. The most nerve wracking was one instructor who had a dual steth, listening along as we took her BP. While waiting in line to do hers, we were all sweating bullets, but once it was done I think we were grateful and felt much more secure in our own abilities, realizing that those actually were the Korotkoff sounds we were hearing. Whew.

Afternoon lecture, health continuum wellness. Yes, that is the exact lecture title. Mostly dealt with things like WHO (World Health Organization) definition of health, Healthy People 2010 (document that outlines health related goals for the nation as a whole), wellness promoting behaviors, nursing roles and responsibilities related to screening tests, and socioeconomic and cultural influences on wellness. There's not too many of these questions on the test, so I'm not too concerned. Frankly, I didn't find it all that interesting.

All in all not too bad of a day, I like when the day is broken up with several difference instructors and lectures, makes it not seem quite so long and tedious.

I'm off now, sounds like the kids are flooding my bathroom... oh the joys of parenthood. :)

Sweatin' to the Oldies

2004-07-13T16:49:00.000-07:00

It's so unbearably hot and humid here outside. I hate Mississippi summers. Bear in mind that I mentioned our nursing class of 60 meets in an old dormitory building with air conditioning that works sporadically, if at all. Makes for a miserably long day.

I think I have very poor size perception. I don't know that I view myself as big as I am, or view others as small as they are, or something to that affect. Did that make any sense? All these skinny minnies in class are doing nothing but increasing my self-loathing. Yes, these are my own issues. Yes, it's not their fault. I'll just blame society. At least I'm putting these nursing school lessons to good use... using my defense mechanisms already. Ha!

There's a girl in our class who was nearly Miss Mississippi one year. Now all she can talk about is her engagement and upcoming marriage. She's way too bubbly for 8am.

Another girl in class is recovering from major abdominal surgery and sits in those blasted chairs all day. Bless her bones!

Our instructors were fully espousing the "C=RN" mantra today. "C is average." "C gets a bad rap." "You can be average and also be competent." I'm not sure I buy into this philosophy just yet, but my standards may have to withhold some lowering as we progress into more difficult classes/projects.

Here's a neat link we read at article from in class today:
http://survivenursingschool-snurse-l.org
Hope it's still active, check it out.

We didn't actually get to bed bathe each other today. Instead, we viewed a demonstration of one of our instructors bathing another one. They also changed the sheets while she was in bed (occupied), brushed her teeth, and gave her a back massage. The recipient is well liked by most of us so far. She's a clever, witty little Jewish lady who uses words like "kibbitzing." (did I spell that correctly?)

That particular prof's lecture today was on stress: symptoms, illnesses, management, coping techniques, defense mechanisms, anxiety, psychotic tendencies. When it came to the subject of worry, she included a very short but fascinating blurb on shiva. If any folks out there care to enlighten me on this subject, I'd be delighted.

Besides the lovely bed bath/etc demo, we viewed some of those PBS-type instructional videos that must have been made in the dark ages. Very informative though - more of bed baths, changing sheets (more complicated than it sounds!), oral care (both teeth and dentures), back rubs, hair care, and that sort of thing.

One thing I was confused about and never got an answer to. How do you do an occupied linen change when a client/patient cannot be rolled on their side? A classmate broached the question to our prof and she said, "Just extra help. It has to be done." Not the most effective of an answer...

This same classmate has already begun questioning authority. He seems to have a tone of superiority in his voice and constantly wonders of the instructors, "wouldn't it be better this way?" These ladies have more nursing experience combined than he is aged in years, but perhaps he hasn't heard the often rumored cardinal rule of nursing school is to shut up and take what you're given. Grin and bear it, anyone?

In addition, several classmates have mentioned being tired of this hygiene/universal precautions silliness and being ready to move on to loftier topics such as pharmacology (we don't have that until fall). I actually wonder what expectations some of these people had of the field of nursing before they began class with us last week...

I'm wondering if/when we're going to have a section on body mechanics and how we protect ourselves from those injuries nurses seem so prone to. Maybe when we get around to the mobility/positioning lectures and labs we'll cover that subject.

I've got to get a lab coat. Today we received a little bit of information on our upcoming teaching/learning project. We have to prepare a presentation for a group of 3-12 year olds on a subject like stranger awareness, oral hygiene, healthy snacks, etc. So tonight our group of 4 decided we'd brainstorm on topics and reconvene to make a decision tomorrow. We'll be speaking to those kids at a church daycare, so no taboo subjects allowed. What would you want to speak to a 3 year old about that might be offensive anyway? We'll also end up presenting our information to our classmates as well.

So far the instructors seem to have assumed we automatically know how to do things like put up bed rails, etc. I'm looking forward to getting some hands on experience during skills lab the next few days. I'm ashamedly mechanically incompetent. :)

Of course, nursing school seems focused on very independent learning, as well it probably should be. We're expected to seek out a great deal of information on our own. I think many of the community/junior colleges are doing their students an incredible disservice by some of the "hand holding" that I've seen exhibited in their courses.

Shaving a man, not sure where we'll get to try that. Wonder if my hubby would let me use him for practice?

We signed up and paid our SNA dues today. Got our equipment orders - pen lights, clipboards, scissors, hemostats, steths, BP cuffs everywhere. We won't know our "big nurse-little nurse" assignments until they host a picnic right after fall term begins.

My kids seem to be adapting fairly well to Mom being gone just a little more than usual and having a different pick-up/drop-off person. My parents spoil them, but not to excess. I wonder how long a two-year-old can survive a diet of only pancakes?

Tomorrow? Values clarification and Vital Signs (lecture and lab). First BIG exam is Friday, fortunate enough to make a 100 on my hygiene quiz today. Woohoo! Wish me luck!

I don't care if Monday's blue...

2004-07-12T16:58:00.000-07:00

Door prize to the first person who can identify what song my title quotes from today. :)

All morning - group theory. Types of groups, communication in groups, benefits of groups, group stages, group roles, group process. I'm already beginning to see what someone meant (on a discussion board I frequent) when they talked about their frustration at the amount of psychology, etc (less "hard science," for lack of a better term) in nursing courses. I'm sure that subject matter I find more appealing will come along, we're just laying the foundation for now.

We also have a big section on teaching/learning this morning. In our cohort/small groups, we'll be doing a presentation on something such as stranger danger, oral hygiene, handwashing, etc to a group of preschoolers, then a more formal presentation to our class. Not sure what age group or specific topic we'll have yet, but should find out in the next few days. Our cohort group hasn't really clicked yet and we all seem to be pretty quiet/shy/nervous about this whole thing. The meetings of these small groups are out of classtime, so we have to organize those ourselves. Again my commute/family obligations present play a part in the group dynamic among a class of 19-20 year-olds.

News broadcast today: we don't do injections until fall, but thank goodness we don't get to practice on each other. Big fun on the board for tomorrow in hygiene lab: giving each other baths, brushing each others teeth. Luckily we can just wear shorts and a tank top and we'll just be bathing extremities. We have to bring a basin, soap, washcloths, toothbrush, toothpaste, etc to class tomorrow. Also the big hygiene quiz. Hygiene lecture was today, covering baths in all their varieties, perineal care, shaving, oral care (dentures, brushing teeth), eye care (contacts, prosthetics), hot and cold applications, back rubs, TED hose, and I'm sure a number of other things I'm forgetting.

We had a special guest speaker today - a massage therapist from a local day spa. All I can say is, now I really want to go have a massage done. Sounds like a really interesting job as well as training, something I could see myself doing if this nursing school thing hadn't panned out.

Felt even further isolated today. I always try to reach out to those who are different, been doing that since high school. I hate to see someone else snubbed or ridiculed, myself included. Today at lunch was a stinger. Another quiet, less "trendy" girl and I sat together at lunch. In the cafeteria, a couple of classmates came over and asked the table next to us if they'd like to come sit with the rest of the nursing students. Not one word was mentioned to either myself or the girl sitting with me. I'm hoping she didn't intentionally leave us out, but it's obvious that we're all in the same class... Bummer.

On tomorrow's docket, in addition to the hygiene lab/quiz and nursing paper due, we'll have a stress and professionalism lecture. At lunch, the Student Nurse Association reps will come to deliver our supplies (steths, cuffs, penlights, scissors, etc) and take our applications. We'll also receive some info about the "Big Nurse-Little Nurse" program where the senior nursing students mentor us lowly juniors. Ought to be interesting to hear more about that...

I guess I'm going to have to break down and see my plasma or something in order to buy MS Office Suite LOL. I can't seem to get anything done without it - downloading PowerPoints, marking up docs in Office.... just what I need, more expenses in an already strapped budget.

Prayer request>That I'll be more disciplined with my own spending/bill-keeping practices and that somehow my money can keep up with my months... Eek! :)

I have so much more respect for nurses out there in practice now, after only 4 days of school. The amount of material to learn is staggering. Who'd have known there was 42 steps in making an occupied bed? Or that giving someone a bath could be so complicated? Or that inumerable number of types a day you'd have to wash your hands. I don't see how floor nurses manage to give tihs kind of care and get anything done with the patient loads that I hear rumored... So, at the end of this blue Monday, as I sit down to cram in my APA before my 8:30 am paper tomorrow, my hats off to all you nurses - whether LPN, ADN/BSN/diploma RN, MSN, or any of the other number of titles/degrees you hold. You guys definately don't get the credit you deserve. :)

Weekend Wrap-up

2004-07-11T19:55:00.000-07:00

Nothing exciting. Spent the whole time at the in-laws. Nieces were there, so my boys played with them both indoors and out. Spent lots of time in the (above ground) pool. Did manage to get to the university library and couldn't locate any of the books I wanted - found a few that might do the trick for my paper.

Finally got home Sunday evening around 5:00. Stopped by Grandma's house and she fed us dinner and watched the boys while I worked on my paper a little while. Have I mentioned yet how blessed I am to have such a supportive family? I appreciate them so much.

Been sleeping late all weekend, so Monday morning at 5am is going to come way too early for my tastes...

TGIF

2004-07-09T15:41:00.000-07:00

The title says it all.

Last night was rough. Boys up late, didn't want to sleep. I have GOT to get them on a regular bedtime routine. Didn't get much studying done.

Universal precautions quiz wasn't so bad. I missed a question that I should have known the answer to (about the prodromal stage of infection) - ended up with a 95. Lots of classmates seemed to feel that they over-studied. That's something I like so far about our grading/school setting. They post exam grades in our computer system (accessible from the web) on the same day they're taken. Papers, on the other hand, are a different beast...

Our universal precautions lab turned out to be nothing more than a sterile technique demonstration on the part of our instructor, and the viewing of a CDC-produced video. Actually got to leave a little early for a change, around 3:30!

We have a nursing history paper due no later than 8:30 on Tuesday morning. If it comes in at even 8:31, our grade will be docked no less than 10%. My topic? Margaret Sanger, the birth control movement, her history/education/experiences and her contribution to nursing today. I don't think this paper will be graded too harshly, as we've been advised by the prof that this is to help us introduce some basic elements of APA style. Unfortunately, none of my earlier classes have used APA and I wasn't wise enough to learn it on my own. Looks like we'll get an in-depth education into it these next two years, though.

Picked up a student loan refund check before leaving campus. Nice to carry around that pseudo-cash for a while, pity it's all going to pay daycare.

Today's lectures were all about communication, listening, that sort of thing. From assertive communication to interpreters, dealing with patients in distress/crying to responding to sarcasm. Interesting stuff, and I could definately use to learn to be more assertive myself.

Goals for the weekend: Get my paper written, and my furiously scribbled notes transcribed into a more neat typed format. Thank goodness there's no prep (reading) assigned for our Monday group theory lecture.

Now it's off to have dinner with my parents, brother/SIL/their kids. I don't turn down free food, especially when it's steak!
After that, I think the boys and I will head out to the next town over (25 miles) to spend the night with my in-laws. My husband should be coming over there from his house sometime tomorrow...

Hope y'all have a great weekend.

2 down...

2004-07-08T17:44:00.000-07:00

I've got to get up away from this computer, study, and lay out our clothes and things for in the morning. There's something to be said for organization. But first, today's journal entry:

Had to stop for a double shot espresso first thing this morning. I was nearly snoozing the whole drive there. Going to be a long year.

The espresso ended up giving me a tummyache (not to mention I have a nervous tummy anyway), but I guess it was either be in pain or fall asleep in class. I'm sure you know which of those two options seems more rational... :)

Prayer request>That I don't sleep through my alarm (or turn it off in my sleep, which I've been known to do)!

First lecture this morning (4 hours worth) - communication, roles, Maslow, basic human needs, all that good stuff. Dumb me went and bought a mini-tape recorder last night, but then walked off and left it at home today. Back to the organization being key, again. Get organized beforehand, there's a useful tip.

Our lecturer around lunch hour must have been competing for the Guiness World Records fastest speaker award. We were all relieved to see she gave us handouts with a variety of terms on them. Nevermind that none of them were used in her lecture, and just forget about trying to write down anything off her Powerpoint slides. I hope she publishes them on the web later because the whole class was frustrated with that one.

I'll admit that I don't have a lot of sympathy for my classmates so far. Am I bitter? Maybe. Jealous? Maybe. I'm not ruling out any possibilites. Most of the conversations I heard this morning went as follows, "did you do the assigned reading?" The answers were mostly, "well my boyfriend called..." or "I went to Hunt club and didn't get in..." (local bar), etc etc etc.

Social cliques are already forming. This is the South after all, and Southern culture still reigns. Brand names everywhere. I didn't know that big hair was still big.

So far on day two I'm still keeping to myself. I guess I'm a loner. I really did want to join my classmates when they were all laughing in the lounge during break, but I feel awkward. I don't have much in common with these people yet. Our conversations end at, "so where are you from?" and other such superficial statements. Very frustrating for me. I'm very shy, very self-conscious.

Distance and family obligations are going to prove a barrier for me in that area as well. While other students can meet at the bar or in the library for a late night study group, I'm driving home, changing diapers, washing clothes, up with sick kids...

This afternoon we had a huge professionalism lecture. We also went over things like writing goal/missin statements, facility and school philosophies, objectives, goals, etc.

In addition to that, we were divided up into our Cohort groups. There are 4 per group, and this is who we'll work with for the rest of the semester on group projects. We also practice skills and do labs with this group, as well as peer check-offs. I think the only faculty check-offs we'll do will be vitals and enema/ostomy.

I've gone through at least 100 sheets of college rule paper already. My handwriting is getting progressively worse. Callouses are forming on my index finger. My advice after 2 days: buy stock in paper, black waterproof pens (not gel), highlighters....

It storms every afternoon here around 1:30. Lightning, thunder, the works. You'd think we were in the tropics. Maybe it's an omen. Regardless, a nice rainstorm always makes me want a nap...

A few questions.

What's the deal with the two terms patient and client? Is one preferred as a general rule? Our instructors seem to use both interchangeably.

Is there a secret to keeping sandwiches in a cooler from getting both mysteriously soggy and stale at the same time? I had a nice soggy/stale ham and cheese sandwich for lunch, with some baby carrots, water, and a peppermint. Now if only I could keep my diet so sensible in the evenings...

Anyone know a good program (PC based) for making and/or printing calendars? I've got way too many things to keep track of, and each of our classes has individual calendars. I'd like to streamline them all into one.

First quiz is tomorrow, first paper due Monday. Need to get studying. Got to go get Scantrons at the bookstore first thing in the morning before class. We also have our first lab tomorrow: Universal Precautions.

Good night all, "see" you again this weekend.

First day..

2004-07-07T21:04:00.000-07:00

Today in one word: overwhelming.

I really thought I was ready. My overconfidence is staggering. :)

Started out bright and early: up at 5:00 a.m., didn't even dress the boys - just rolled them out of bed in their PJ's and dropped them off at my mother's (my Dad takes them to daycare on his wya to work). Thank heavens for my parents, otherwise I don't know how I'd manage. Hats off to single parents without any kind of support system or network within their personal relationships.

Arrived to school early, around 7:45. It's an hour commute each way, maybe 1 1/2 hours when the traffic's bad. Lots of classmates were already there at that hour, though. We all staked out good seats (in the front!) pretty early. It's a very awkward shaped classroom we have. They're remodeling a building on campus to serve as a brand new nursing department, but until its completion (next year) the building used in the meantime was once a dorm. You can imagine, with all the walls knocked out, that the large support beams running through the middle of the now immense square rooms obstruct the view of the instructor and overhead quite a bit.

All morning, we had a sort of orientation. Covering basic university and departmental policies, sexual harassment, grievance procedure, introduction of the 5 summer instructors, dress codes, etc. We also had a library and computer resource lab tour. Our schedule included a History of Nursing lecture, but we never got around to that.

After lunch (which I had in the cafeteria), we spent 4 hours non-stop listening to lecture and writing furiously, taking notes on universal/standard precautions, choosing, donning and removing PPE and infection control (basically a microbiology review). Class let out at 4:30 and I think we all beat each other down getting out of there. All of our lectures take place in the same room, so we stay put - only the instructors change.

There are 60 other students in my class. Of those, maybe 3 including myself are married or have children. There is one girl who is pregnant, due in September, right around the time we begin clinicals. I told her she was a braver woman than I for undertaking that! The only other "adult" student besides myself has grandchildren my children's age, an older Cajun lady from south Louisiana. Maybe I should have tried the ASN program instead... seems to be more non-trad students there?

Prayer request>That I find someone in my class to bond with. Only one day in and I feel out of place, old, even alienated. Lots of my classmates seem to know each other from pre-reqs or even high school (most early 20-somethings). I'm hoping that I'll feel like I fit in more with time, it could just be my stranger-shyness peeking through.

So it was a very exciting day at school, I was thrilled to be there.. on the way home and once picking the kids up, I sort of had a meltdown. Out of the classroom, my exhaustion and responsibilities are much more visceral.

On a nicer note, when I called my husband on his cell phone to see how work was going, he told me he was at my house. I got there and he was washing dishes and taking out my trash - a very sweet surprise to get to see him and just kind of let things go, knowing he was in control.

I'm not sure if I can do this. The 2-3 hours a day commuting, the 8 hours a day of class, the 2 little kids, the bills, the housework... Even my grandmother asked, "Are you sure you haven't bitten off more than you can chew?" I guess there's no turning back now.

That's all for now.

You'll have to forgive my atrocious grammar, I call myself a stream of consciousness type writer, and I just let the words flow as they come out - not giving much thought to my spelling and punctuation. I'll be glad to accept any constructive criticism, though.

Introduction

2004-07-05T16:42:00.000-07:00

Glad to have you here reading my blog. Hope you enjoy seeing a little bit about what nursing school is like, or just catching up with me if you're someone I know or perhaps knew personally.

I'm going to make an effort to journal every day of my nursing school experience, but we'll see how big of an effort that becomes as time progresses. Feel free to check back regularly for new postings!

A little background information on me, just in case...

27 years old. Lived in MS all my life. Small town, but I don't think I fit the associated stereotypes. I have tattoos and live in a trailer though, so is that enough to be considered white trash? LOL :)

Shotgun marriage, going on 6 years. My husband and I don't live together, but that's by necessity - not choice. His job took him to a place I didn't care to move (the MS Delta - he's a service specialist for a commercial pest control company).

Two kids, both boys, ages 6 and 2 1/2. Little one is still nursing and driving me crazy most of the time - typical toddler and a bully to boot. Big one will be starting 1st grade in a few weeks.

Quit my full-time job last week. Been working there as an engineering clerk for the past 6 years and doing school at night/online/part-time for the past 5.

Persistence pays off. I was fortuante enough to get a nice scholarship package and will be starting the B.S.N. program at a local university this week.

Wish me luck.. and if you have any questions about me/school/my family/etc, just ask... I'm pretty much an open book, and I'm always glad to help.