Related: Fear, Feelings, New Nurse, Perfect Nurse, Second Career Nursing

I am a new graduate Dec 2009, 51 yr old RN. I am working on a tele floor and to be perfectly honest feel like I don't know crap. My preceptor is awesome and a great teacher but with 6 and 7 patients I feel like I am doing but not understanding why I am doing. I am looking at lab results and don't understand [...]

Related: Career, Failure, Mistake, Perfect Nurse

I started off as a new grad in a very very busy surgical floor with a huge learning curve ahead of me...I made some mistakes (or as I am approaching them now learning experiences) and unfortunately had conditions placed on my license as a result. I have worked closely with the registration body and am good to go in thier eyes-with the conditions mind you- [...]

Related: Attitude, Caregivers, Doctor-Nurse Relationships, Perfect Nurse, Respect, Stereotypes

Nurse Jackie.

Love her or hate her, she certainly has generated some strong comments from our readers.  The general consensus was that the TV show, which depicts the life of a nurse, is unrealistic.  Some find it offensive, some find it funny.

We could argue the rights and wrongs of this particular show for days, but here's what I would like to know.  How would a good [...]

Related: Addiction, Confidence, Delegation, Drug Addiction, Failure, Fear, Goals, Mistake, NCLEX, Nurse Relationships, Orientee, Perfect Nurse, Stress

As we come to the end of 2008, I thought it would be good for us to do a little RealityRN review.  You know, think about the good, the bad, and the ugly of a year almost gone.

I spent some time reviewing what the "hot topics" have been.  We certainly have covered a lot of ground--that's for sure.  We've talked about drug addiction, the NCLEX [...]

Related: Caring, Conflict, Critical Care Nursing, Patients, Perfect Nurse

After being off for a few days, I went back to work at my cover-all ICU. I had the typical two, vented patients, who were very much fluff and turns.

Around 9 pm on my first night back, a twenty-something-year-old male from the ER arrives. The ER nurse gave our nurse report, stating the patient was breathing a little fast. We are all thinking 25-30 breaths [...]

Related: Attitude, Confidence, Expectations, Perfect Nurse

All the patients love her.

She has beautiful handwriting. Her charting is always current. She is never behind on her own work and even helps out her coworkers. She easily communicates with the doctors. Her scrubs are starched and pressed. She never makes an error in judgment. Her clinical technique is flawless. She's liked by everyone--patients [...]

Related: Anxiety, Confidence, Fear, Mistake, Perfect Nurse, Stress, Support

Have you ever gone home after a shift and been haunted by what you may have forgotten: Did I remember all the meds? Did I chart it all? When I passed on my report did I remember everything? Did I assess everything correctly?

I often wake up—as if in a nightmare—cataloging what I may have forgotten. It has created an immense amount of anxiety. I’m plagued [...]

Related: Balance, Perfect Nurse, Professionalism

I have a theory about nurses. Actually, I have several, but this is one of my favorites.

I believe there are two types of nurses. The first group of nurses are the "professionals". These are the men and women with lots of letters after their name, a wallet full of membership cards, and a mailbox overflowing with professional journals. They are on numerous committees and are [...]

Related: Abuse, Addiction, Anger, Caregivers, Compassion Fatigue, Drug Addiction, DUI, Education, Emotions, Failure, Felony, Management, Mistake, Nurse Support, Perfect Nurse, Stereotypes, Stress, Success, Support, Weaknesses

Addiction: it’s a moral issue, right? Whoever starts abusing a drug is a bad person, making a bad choice, and should be punished. At the very least, they should be able to quit on the spot.

But it’s not that simple. According to Dr. Linda Barile, APRN, and advocate for nurses who are addicts, we need to stop blaming them and instead support them through recovery.

Here [...]