Musings of a Nurse (my work life)
-
- Savior (resurrected state)
- Posts: 977
- Joined: Thu Oct 29, 2020 11:35 pm
New Pneumonia Vaccine Guidelines
I'm still trying to wrap my head around this one as to where I fit in to the new guidelines as a patient, but here is a link:
https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vpd/pneumo ... timing.pdf
for what it's worth, get your prostate checked and screenings for colorectal cancer. Not fun getting old.
Get your shingles vaccines (series of two doses), if clinically indicated-- ask your doctor
That is my public service announcement, not to be confused with PSA
https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vpd/pneumo ... timing.pdf
for what it's worth, get your prostate checked and screenings for colorectal cancer. Not fun getting old.
Get your shingles vaccines (series of two doses), if clinically indicated-- ask your doctor
That is my public service announcement, not to be confused with PSA
"Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy” Jude 1:24
“the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.” 1 John 1:7 ESV
“the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.” 1 John 1:7 ESV
-
- Savior (resurrected state)
- Posts: 977
- Joined: Thu Oct 29, 2020 11:35 pm
Re: Musings of a Nurse (my work life)
While I'm on here, I have a funny story. My FIL was in a small assisted living facility. He was always quite a character. We got a call one day that he was consuming salt and the salt shakers had to be taken away. What they didn't realize was that most of the time I knew him, he had occasionally poured a little salt into his hand and then into his mouth. He said this relieved his heartburn. So, they asked us to take him to the doctor to be checked for Syndrome of Inappropriate Anti-diuretic Hormone Secretion (SIADH), so we got him checked and testing was negative.
We get another call that during Bible study in the common area that he made pig noises. Again, something that sounds just like my FIL, especially if a female may have giggled at his actions. Anyway, his dementia that had never really been a problem was beginning to get worse. So, we are in a meeting with the LPN facility owner and her husband to have the talk about his condition is worsening and he needs to go to a higher level of care which isn't offered at the assisted living facility. There we were to discuss his "Oinking" incident, when in the midst of a serious conversation, from my husband's pocket comes the sound of sheep bleating, "Baah, baah, baah!" I blurted out, "It is a game on his phone!" Then, I burst out laughing. Hubby had the game app Hay Day on his phone where you tend the farm and if you fail to tend the farm, the farm animals let you know about it. I don't think the owner and her husband even smiled when that happened.
We get another call that during Bible study in the common area that he made pig noises. Again, something that sounds just like my FIL, especially if a female may have giggled at his actions. Anyway, his dementia that had never really been a problem was beginning to get worse. So, we are in a meeting with the LPN facility owner and her husband to have the talk about his condition is worsening and he needs to go to a higher level of care which isn't offered at the assisted living facility. There we were to discuss his "Oinking" incident, when in the midst of a serious conversation, from my husband's pocket comes the sound of sheep bleating, "Baah, baah, baah!" I blurted out, "It is a game on his phone!" Then, I burst out laughing. Hubby had the game app Hay Day on his phone where you tend the farm and if you fail to tend the farm, the farm animals let you know about it. I don't think the owner and her husband even smiled when that happened.
"Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy” Jude 1:24
“the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.” 1 John 1:7 ESV
“the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.” 1 John 1:7 ESV
-
- Savior (resurrected state)
- Posts: 977
- Joined: Thu Oct 29, 2020 11:35 pm
Medication errors
It is always good to be sure you are prescribed medication correctly, or the right medication for your condition.
As you know, I had a kidney stone recently. I was prescribed, by mistake, potassium chloride 20 mEq twice daily for kidney stones (elevated uric acid in the urine), rather than potassium citrate (the correct medication). I asked what led to this mistake by the doctor's office and was told that potassium citrate didn't have a option for a 20mEq when prescribing electronically, and potassium chloride was chosen instead because it did have a 20mEq option. Scary thing is that this could have caused issues with the heart. Also, potassium chloride would not have treated the condition. Imagine getting the next 24-hour urine and the uric acid level still being high in the urine. Would there have been a chance to have been prescribed an even higher dose of the WRONG medication? Makes me wonder how many of their patients are taking the wrong drug to help prevent kidney stones.
The average person would not have noticed this. The pharmacy didn't catch it because, there was no indication in the prescription for what the drug was being used to treat.
This make me want to jump on my soapbox about MDs using medical assistants rather than real licensed nurses, yet calling them "nurse." I'll spare you my diatribe about that.
As you know, I had a kidney stone recently. I was prescribed, by mistake, potassium chloride 20 mEq twice daily for kidney stones (elevated uric acid in the urine), rather than potassium citrate (the correct medication). I asked what led to this mistake by the doctor's office and was told that potassium citrate didn't have a option for a 20mEq when prescribing electronically, and potassium chloride was chosen instead because it did have a 20mEq option. Scary thing is that this could have caused issues with the heart. Also, potassium chloride would not have treated the condition. Imagine getting the next 24-hour urine and the uric acid level still being high in the urine. Would there have been a chance to have been prescribed an even higher dose of the WRONG medication? Makes me wonder how many of their patients are taking the wrong drug to help prevent kidney stones.
The average person would not have noticed this. The pharmacy didn't catch it because, there was no indication in the prescription for what the drug was being used to treat.
This make me want to jump on my soapbox about MDs using medical assistants rather than real licensed nurses, yet calling them "nurse." I'll spare you my diatribe about that.
"Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy” Jude 1:24
“the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.” 1 John 1:7 ESV
“the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.” 1 John 1:7 ESV
-
- Savior (resurrected state)
- Posts: 977
- Joined: Thu Oct 29, 2020 11:35 pm
Re: Musings of a Nurse (my work life)
Patient of sound mind thinks he is swallowing a cup of pills, but mistakenly swallows 10-20 glucose testing strips instead.
"Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy” Jude 1:24
“the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.” 1 John 1:7 ESV
“the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.” 1 John 1:7 ESV
- Dr. Shades
- Founder and Visionary
- Posts: 2323
- Joined: Mon Oct 26, 2020 2:48 pm
- Contact:
Re: Musings of a Nurse (my work life)
What was the patient's blood sugar?
-
- Savior (resurrected state)
- Posts: 977
- Joined: Thu Oct 29, 2020 11:35 pm
Re: Musings of a Nurse (my work life)
No idea about the blood sugar. I’m not sure if they checked it in the ER. I can check though.
Turns out he had been placing his medications in one of the test strip canisters, but also had the one containing the test strips next to it.
"Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy” Jude 1:24
“the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.” 1 John 1:7 ESV
“the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.” 1 John 1:7 ESV
- Dr. Shades
- Founder and Visionary
- Posts: 2323
- Joined: Mon Oct 26, 2020 2:48 pm
- Contact:
Re: Musings of a Nurse (my work life)
I’m sorry, msnobody, but my “What was his blood sugar?” question was a joke.
-
- Savior (resurrected state)
- Posts: 977
- Joined: Thu Oct 29, 2020 11:35 pm
Re: Musings of a Nurse (my work life)
I figured it was a joke, but then the nursing process kicked in and I'm thinking Shades may be thinking diabetic encephalopathy resulted in the patient not being able to differentiate between pills and test strips.Dr. Shades wrote: ↑Fri Nov 25, 2022 1:22 pmI’m sorry, msnobody, but my “What was his blood sugar?” question was a joke.
136mg/dL
Good news is they have cleared. (TMI, right?)
"Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy” Jude 1:24
“the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.” 1 John 1:7 ESV
“the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.” 1 John 1:7 ESV
-
- CTR B
- Posts: 154
- Joined: Tue Nov 22, 2022 1:56 am
- Location: Woodshed
- Contact:
Re: Musings of a Nurse (my work life)
LOL “selfsame.”Dr. Shades wrote: ↑Sat Mar 05, 2022 3:48 amContext, please? Was he directing his original expletives at the selfsame nurse who administered the shot, or at someone else?
-
- Savior (resurrected state)
- Posts: 977
- Joined: Thu Oct 29, 2020 11:35 pm
Re: Musings of a Nurse (my work life)
I have a very soft spot in my heart for some of our patients that I’ve gotten to know over the years. The ones who tend to land in that soft spot in my heart are the ones who don’t watch out after their health like they should, the ones that tend to be a little aggravating, our cocaine abusers, patients who struggle with suicidal ideation, and persons with schizophrenia. Why those? I don’t know. Sometimes many of those are rolled up into one patient, as was today.
One of those patients, I had to send out to the ER today. I’m not going to get into specifics, but he was clearly in distress. It was so hard watching him leave on the stretcher and realizing that I will probably not see him again (in this life anyway). It was easy to let him go because he needed emergent treatment, but hard to let him go because I got the feeling I’d never see him again. Sometimes, I wish I didn’t know some of the things I know as a nurse. The body fights so hard to live.
I was observing on my drive home from work that the world just goes on about its business, while others are going through difficult times in their lives. My patient is over there in the hospital about to get some really bad news that I think he knows is coming, and there isn’t a damn thing I can do about it.
One of those patients, I had to send out to the ER today. I’m not going to get into specifics, but he was clearly in distress. It was so hard watching him leave on the stretcher and realizing that I will probably not see him again (in this life anyway). It was easy to let him go because he needed emergent treatment, but hard to let him go because I got the feeling I’d never see him again. Sometimes, I wish I didn’t know some of the things I know as a nurse. The body fights so hard to live.
I was observing on my drive home from work that the world just goes on about its business, while others are going through difficult times in their lives. My patient is over there in the hospital about to get some really bad news that I think he knows is coming, and there isn’t a damn thing I can do about it.
"Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy” Jude 1:24
“the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.” 1 John 1:7 ESV
“the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.” 1 John 1:7 ESV