Ok, But Seriously

Here's the deal...being late to your doctor's appointment is very rude and inconsiderate to the office staff. We try our hardest not to show annoyance, but it's difficult. See, we go by a schedule. When a patient is late it throws everyone off, and at times it's difficult to make that time up. Now, there are always exceptions to this. It's not irritating when one calls ahead and lets the office know. That way we can prepare. There is an art to The Doctor Schedule. It's a fine line that we all have to balance on. Mostly it's just unfair to the other patients who do show up on time.

Yesterday we had several patients who were like 10-15-20 minutes late. That's a big deal. That's a whole appointment time. It threw our schedule so off. Then out of those patients, half of them added on things for us to see them for. You know, since they are here and all. Golly.  Obviously we are here for the patients, but it can be so annoying. 

Rant over.

Sorry if that offends anyone, but it's the truth. Like I said, there are always exceptions. It just seems to be a new trend around these parts lately. More so than normal. 

So! Been a long while since I wrote. It's been an interesting couple of months. In February, I did a month of no spending or Target going. It wasn't nearly as difficult as I thought it would be. I saved a lot of money, and learned a ton about my spending habits, and what I need to/want to do financially. I think I'm going to do a month of no spending every other month, or maybe every two months. It's really eye opening how much one spends on miscellaneous items. REALLY eye opening. It was probably the most personally beneficial thing I have done so far this year. 

Sad thing is that I have been neglecting my Pins of Interest. The beginning of the year is so busy for my family. More than half of the members of my family and most of my close friends have birthdays in the first 3 months of the year. It's crazy. Fun, but crazy. Seems we are always celebrating birthdays. It's such a good time, but it leaves little time to do much else.

So! Goal for the next coming weeks is to spit out some new posts, new Pins of Interests, and another month of no spending. Anyone wanna join me? It's fun, I swear! It's like a little game with your finances and self discipline. 

Laters!

I Am a Nurse

To say I would rather pass out than accidentally inhale the fumes emitting from that small cup, is a gross understatement. I'd much rather undergo a lobotomy wide awake, than handle what I was about to. That may be a slight exaggeration. Regardless. I held my breath for about 45 seconds, a  few shades short of turning blue, and went for it. Previously, I made the mistake of breathing normal, thinking it couldn't really be that bad. I was wrong. And spent the next 6 minutes gagging and trying not to throw up, making up for that mistake.

See, as a nurse, you do a lot of really gross things. I could probably write a book about it all, but I'm not sure everyone's stomach is made of steel. I mean, when I was going through nursing school, I never once thought the words, "It's an anal swab, it's aerobic. It didn't go in the butt. Don't they know the difference?" would EVER come out of my mouth. Or even cross my mind, for that matter.

I never once thought that I would see fruit flies come pouring out of an open (and dripping) ulcer that was covered up in an ACE wrap. Never. Neither could I have ever imagined the smell that would emit from said ulcer.

Never in 5000 years could I imagine being in a room with a patient who had an infected amputated leg, and every time he moved the leg, or coughed, or laughed, blood would squirt about three feet out of the wound.

Did I ever think that I would have the following conversation with a parent?
     Parent: How much Tylenol should I give little Jimmy?
     Me: Do you have the bottle in front of you?
     Parent: Yes.
     Me: What does the bottle say?
     Parent: 2 tsp
     Me: Well, how much do you think you should give little Jimmy?
     Parent: 3 tsp?
Seriously? No.

This isn't even scraping the surface of a day in the life of a nurse. Nurses work hard. They put up with a lot of crap, both from doctors and patients (or patient's parents as it were). But, nursing can be rewarding too. When you get a patient who is deathly afraid of getting his blood taken, and says he always passes out, to give blood by distraction and with out passing out...that's rewarding. Seeing the gratitude on his face, and to see absolute awe in the face of a grown man, proud of himself and realizing that he could actually get his blood taken withOUT passing out...that's awesome.

When you give a kid a shot and he screams in happiness that he is the bravest boy he knows because he didn't cry once...that's awesome.

When you get the undying love of a patient because you talked said indecisive and stubborn patient into going to the ER because they were in excruciating pain and could have thrown a clot...that's awesome. So are the hugs and smiles that come EVERY SINGLE TIME that patient sees you.

It's awesome and rewarding to be a part of a patient's care. It's tough work. There are a ton of things I'd rather not do, or discuss, but that just goes with the territory. Nurses are under-appreciated, and over-worked, but they come back day after day to take care of you all.

So! Next time you see a nurse, give them a hug and say thanks. Trust me, it'll make their day.

That's all I have for now Chickens! Later!!