Caring

Pe-di-at-rics NOUN: a branch of medicine dealing with the development, care and diseases of infants, children and adolescents. “How could you do Pediatric Emerg?? It must be so sad!” All those sick kids!!!” My first love has always been Pediatrics. I chose nursing because of it, …

One of my more recent patients was a 103 yr old German lady. She was unable to communicate very well, was really agitated whenever any one went near her and lay almost curled in the fetal position for most of the day and night. Turning …

There are small snippets of time in a nurse’s work day that can both rock us to the core and warm it to glowing. Depends on the snippet.  Recovering from those instances when we feel our insides shattering, to smiling warmly at the next patient at …

Per-spec-tive NOUN– a particular attitude toward or way of regarding something; a point of view. Everyone has their own perspective on what constitutes an Emergency. Yesterday, while cleansing a hand laceration post suturing, my phone rang in my pocket. Thankfully, our ER had been filled with …

Triage is one of the most challenging of jobs in an ED. I remember being told by a senior nurse years ago, “Always remember, this is the absolute worst day of each patient’s life. Be confident and take charge quietly.” I’ve never forgotten those words …

You can’t escape the dark cloak of death when you work in Emergency. It evokes a multitude of emotions in most nurses. We are masters of hiding our feelings and relish in sharing our past experiences to help others come to grips with this difficult …

The effects of Emergency “work” on its front line staff has been studied, papered, investigated, and discussed by scientists, the media and those of us living/working it. In very short summary, we are a group of compassion-fatigued, uber-caring, sleep-deprived, adrenaline junkies that rely on the …

I  happened to look around at the three nurses that stood at stretcher side helping a patient swallow her nasogastric tube in order that we could decompress her solidly blocked digestive system. It got me thinking about each of us….and what stage we were each …

Hopefully “Kakenurse” is a catchy enough name  for you to remember when you need a special recipe you’ve either heard about or tasted from my kitchen. Reflections and recollections from my years of working as a nurse will provide some insight into this ever-changing and …