excuse me nurse, can I talk to you outside?

Not for anything, but I do believe that as a nurse, I should not be subjected to patients hitting, pinching or spitting at me. Actually, I would rather take that then have to deal with the crazy families that seem to think that all we nurses do is sit around and eat bon bons. Yes, I said bon bons. There is nothing worse than taking great care of your nearest and dearest to have you decide to visit and become a hell raiser. I mean seriously. For all of you who are not in healthcare, I especially think you should tune in...

Yesterday, I received a sweet old lady from the emergency room who had trouble breathing. She was on a non-rebreather mask because she required a good amount of oxygen. Over the next six hours, I was in her room somewhere between twelve to fifteen times. I know this thanks to the lojack tied to my back that we have to wear.

I weaned this lady from her non-rebreather mask to a nasal cannula with 3 liters of oxygen. I changed/cleaned her three times because somewhere from her house to the hospital she lost the ability to control her bodily functions. I assisted her with two of her meals and even sneaked her in a small packet of salt. I moved her from the bed to the chair, chair to bed, bed to chair and back to bed again. I made sure she was clean, fresh and had her hair looking good because she was upset she spent 17 dollars the day before getting her hair done and had to waste it sitting in the hospital. Lets not mention the IV I had to replace and all the meds she was prescribed. Oh, and my favorite part of the day was having to call the doc because she was having severe leg cramps and ask for potassium since he ordered 100mg of IV lasix in the e.r. and never replaced her already low potassium...awesome, isn't it??

Then you stroll in on your wonderful New Years Day and visit with mommy for less than 20 minutes. Thank you for pulling me outside of her room and telling me that I have to check on your mom every once in a while because she won't use the call light. I appreciate that, because without your reminders, I may have forgotten all about her. OH, and thanks again for reminding me that extra time before I left the room.