tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4224359592844165794.post3828700223775997304..comments2023-11-01T19:23:11.050-07:00Comments on Adventure Nickel: The ER kicked my butt.Adventure Nickel Farmhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10737377513854805072noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4224359592844165794.post-53118982096845348042015-02-12T21:59:41.823-08:002015-02-12T21:59:41.823-08:00Every ER nurse has a memory of times like this. T...Every ER nurse has a memory of times like this. Times when it was too much and you were just overwhelmed. Some stories, like this one, have happy endings. Some don't.Adventure Nickel Farmhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10737377513854805072noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4224359592844165794.post-72967014212347697572015-02-12T20:03:09.355-08:002015-02-12T20:03:09.355-08:00Reading this post gave me mixed emotions. I wanted...Reading this post gave me mixed emotions. I wanted to jump in there and help with your patients, but it also made me really, really grateful for my non-clinical job. :) Kellihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09889745046138804619noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4224359592844165794.post-75250504736756885352015-02-11T12:11:19.552-08:002015-02-11T12:11:19.552-08:00I've considered going back to ICU, where you o...I've considered going back to ICU, where you only have 2 patients, but I'm just not into it anymore. The entire reason for me travelling was to pay my house off so I could QUIT healthcare. I've come to terms with it a bit lately, and maybe more accepting, but no doubt I'm very tired of it.Fritzripshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01831914226926383888noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4224359592844165794.post-6652406946999342622015-02-11T12:10:16.312-08:002015-02-11T12:10:16.312-08:00I've always wished a hospital CEO would be my ...I've always wished a hospital CEO would be my patient when I'm getting slaughtered like that. You know, nice and septic, maybe covered in his own feces, etc. Then he/she could see how bad it is when we don't have ancillary help (techs, float nurses, etc), and how bad the care can get. It's so frustrating. All it takes is a tech around that can start an IV, assist a patient to the bathroom, draw some blood cultures, whatever. Just one less task and usually you can keep up, but apparently a $15/hr tech job just breaks the CEO's proverbial back...........and who suffers? The burned out ER Nurse and more importantly, the patient.Fritzripshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01831914226926383888noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4224359592844165794.post-75767997087854629552015-02-11T11:46:12.812-08:002015-02-11T11:46:12.812-08:00Yeah. I try not to talk about the really bad days...Yeah. I try not to talk about the really bad days unless I am talking to someone who can understand what you mean there. Some days you do the best you can and that just isn't enough. This is one of the big reasons I am looking to try something new for a while. I could continue as an ER nurse, but the pain/gain scale is too often tilted in the wrong direction. Adventure Nickel Farmhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10737377513854805072noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4224359592844165794.post-52569767675238263102015-02-11T05:58:16.687-08:002015-02-11T05:58:16.687-08:00Yup, that's why I'm extending my contract ...Yup, that's why I'm extending my contract in AZ where I have usually only have 3 patients and help, if needed. Even with that ratio though, I've had plenty of days just like you described, for the past 17 years............I just tell myself I'm doing the best I can, and it's not my fault if a patient has a bad outcome. Brutal, but true. If I tell the charge RN things are ridiculous, ask for help, and none arrives, then I've done the best I can. That said, it doesn't change the desperate feeling you have at the time.Fritzripshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01831914226926383888noreply@blogger.com