You Know You're Working Too Much When... (Tales from the CCU)
added by geena on February 5, 2005 at 4:29 PM
As you may know, for over a year I had the position in my unit of "break nurse." By law, ICU nurses can only have 2 patients at any one time, and so a position was created to cover nurses for their breaks or other time away from the unit. The worst part was that it was 5 days a week. Most nurses work 4 days a week, some work three 12 hour shifts. And I know that the majority of adults who have jobs go to them 5 days a week. Personally, I was on a one-way road to burnout doing that schedule and have recently changed to the coveted three 12's.
Being there 5 days a week, I started noticing that I was doing funny things on my off-time from work. For instance, in the hospital, if the patient has an IV running, the RN keeps track of the patient's intake/outputs. (Show me an ICU patient that doesn't have some kind of IV going and I'll show you a patient that has transfer orders.) Everything that goes in the patient, from a can of soda to a cup of juice, needs to be documented on the flow sheet. Every time they go to the bathroom, that needs to be accounted for as well. It was getting to the point where I was automatically going to write down my "intake" every time I drank a glass of water.
When I worked night shift many years ago, we drew our AM labs at 4am. Now I think that that's a really stupid time to draw them, but that's what we did. I remember that on my nights off, when I was in my bed asleep at home, I would wake up almost every night at 4am, look at the clock and think, "Ack! Time to draw the labs!"
We recently started using Voceras at work. They're little phones that we wear around our necks. There's a little button on them to press every time you want to talk to someone or answer a call, a la Star Trek style. We use them to tell someone on the other side of the unit that they have a phone call, we call the transporters to pick up labs or help us transfer patients, and we use them to call other personnel in the hospital who don't usually frequent their desks: the clinical nurse specialist, our boss, the care coordinator, etc. It's kind of nice because we can use them anywhere - we don't have to be near a phone. My point is that I use it several times a day :-) One night I was at home in the living room thinking about going to bed, and my husband was somewhere else in the house. I wanted to find out if he was going to bed also; if not, I was going to leave the lights and TV on.
I actually pressed my chest, thinking that there would be a Vocera there. You know, to call him. Unbelievable.
All of the sinks at work are operated by foot pedal. It cuts down on spreading disease and all. Yes, I have walked up to my kitchen sink and have tried to turn my faucet on by stepping on a non-existent foot pedal.
Anyone else? :-)
Progress Notes
my wife freaked out when during residency in the middle of the night, i started calling out orders as if i was coding a patient. can you say: "night terror"?
added by enoch choi on February 5, 2005 11:16 PM
Before I got Guillain Barre and had to stop working I drove truck over the road. I found myself taking corners wide while driving my Geo-Metro. Obviously, in a truck you can't just whip around the corner like you can in the Geo. However, I was so used to taking corners like I would in the truck, I came home and continued doing it in my car.
added by Jim C on February 6, 2005 8:52 AM
My biggest problem is with the phone: I have to stop and think about how I'll answer the phone, or I'll say, "West 7, this is Jen." Had a migraine at school the other day, and called my boyfrien to come pick me up from a professor's office. He asked for a number to call me back at, and I gave him the number of my unit.
I'm having a really hard time giving ID shots in clinicals, and my instructor tells me it's because I draw blood at work, so I'm used to going into the vein, not staying in the dermal layer.
added by Jen on February 6, 2005 9:06 AM
ICU can give you a 'thing' about pushing buttons and getting results. My 13 hr nites in ICU were followed by a 90 minute drive home. How long was I standing on my porch pushing my T-bird's remote before I realized it would not unlock my front door???...
added by Mel J on February 6, 2005 9:46 PM
The phone, of course. I'll pick it up and answer [insert my last name], er., then -- does anyone else notice people's veins? When you're not at work? :)
added by Diana on February 7, 2005 5:55 AM
Definitely admire people's veins when not at work. And I have phone issues, too. Have picked up the phone at home to call someone and dialed *2, which is how you get an outside line at my hospital.
added by Kelly on February 7, 2005 6:20 AM
Definately the phone. After four years in the library at a hospital where you dial '9' to get out, I find it almost impossible to call anyone from home, since I keep putting that nine there. This isn't a problem with the cell phone, though if I had to use one of the hospital portables I'm sure it would be.
I have at least trained myself out of answering the home phone "Medical library, this is (name)." Probably because I don't get that many calls at either location. When I was a unit secretary on a Burn/Trauma unit, I invariable answered the home phone "BTU". This is actually a good way to screen out telemarketers. If it's someone you actually know, they know where you work, and just laugh.
added by LibraryGryffon on February 7, 2005 6:34 AM
Agreed about noticing people's veins outside of work... I once told a man that he would "make some nurse very happy someday."
:)
added by geena on February 8, 2005 9:12 AM
I've been out of the office workforce for too long to have retained any of those "work memories", but I remember I did have problems with answering my home phone.
But what I really wanted to say was, I want those foot-pedal operated sinks at home! I'm sure the plumbing is a lot more complicated and expensive, but I think it would be worth it.
added by Joan on February 9, 2005 12:19 PM
I admire people's veins too -- sometimes I notice the veins before the face, even...eek!
And I often find myself dialing 9 before the phone number since that is what we do here at work.
added by Jodie on February 14, 2005 2:45 PM
We recently started the voicera's, too. It is amazing what they can do. They can "find" you, or anyone else. Just say, "Find..(insert name)", and it will tell you where they are...
I also got frustrated one night, and said, "Call..someone who cares".. It came back with, "OK, calling EVeryone" I paniced and shu t it off, then laughed harder than I have in a while. I told the night supervisor, and he didn't believe me, so he tried it. WOrked for him, too.
added by DisappearingJohn on February 20, 2005 3:35 PM
Yes! I am glad I am not the only one dialing 9 to get an outside line at home and checking out weight lifters' great veins! *Jaden
added by jaden on February 28, 2005 11:15 AM
Oh, another one - When I'm at work and am calling a different department, I say, "Hi, this is Geena from CCU." I've found that I also do it at home. Calling the hair salon... "Hi, this is Geena from C.. Uh... Can I make an appointment?"
Ugh :)
added by geena on March 7, 2005 4:17 PM
Ack, we're all sick!
Yes, I've admired veins, I especially have admired good anticubitals as I put PICC lines in.
I've answered my home phone with the title of my employer.
And finally, as the director of nurisng of a small nursing home, when a problem arises at home I look at my family and ask them what their "plan of correction" is going to be.
added by Teresa on April 5, 2005 3:40 PM
I know I'm posting late to this, but I was a dispatcher for cabs and then transit buses for a long time before nursing school. You can tell who is a dispatcher - to this day I tell my family and anyone else 'standby' rather than 'hold on' or 'wait a sec'.
added by HypnoKitten on April 11, 2005 8:10 PM
I had to laugh when you were talking about the I's and O's. I constantly catch my self measuring exactly what my kids eat and drink so that I can chart it.
added by Nicki on July 24, 2006 6:25 PM
Anyone else freak out when someone comes over the intercom in a store and says "code blue"? It probably just means somebody dropped some eggs in aisle four, but I always end up looking for someone to do CPR on.
added by Sarah on August 31, 2007 10:16 PM
So, what brought you to the hospital today?