I Did It!

Last week was wild. We had our first exam in Managing the Care of Adults I, had out Medical Math Exam and started clinicals! My partner and I were assigned to a orthopedic post operative/medical-surgical floor. I was a bit unsure of what to expect - okay, very sure of what to expect. We made nice with the charge nurse and unit assistant, our nurses, and the CNAs right away. That, and God's blessings, really helped us to have an awesome three shifts! WE WERE RUNNING! We both selected patients who were fairly stable. There was a lot going on with them, but they had devoted spouses by their sides, so needed us less than many of the other patients who did not have family with them. My partner and I helped care for about 12 patients each over the course of our three evenings. I love working PMs.
I was able to help cheer a near-centurian who was very lonely and very depressed. The charge nurse commented on how surprised she was at the patient's response to me...apparently the poor dear had earned the title of "crotchety" and perhaps rightly so. One of the beauties of being a student nurse is that you get to provide the extra attention the nurses don't always have time to give...the smile, the pillow fluff, the ever-filled cup of water, the fresh gown and sheets, the tucking in and wishes of sweet dreams at night. So many of us are simply lonely and need a little TLC. It really goes a long way. I was truely honored to care for these dear ones. I loved it. I helped toilet, turn, adjust, dress, scoot, etc. a lot of people. I was not surprised at bottoms or other private areas, but was discretely checking them for edema and redness. I was not appalled at swollen and gnarled legs, ankles, feet and toes, but was providing comfort and freedom from tangled tubes - ensuring that indentations went away. I did not pass out when my nurse changed a dear one's abdominal dressing, but watched with interest and awe and prayed the dear one could endure the pain...the dear one did. I faced my fear of hurting someone by assisting a nurse in lifting the leg of a dear one who just had radical surgery as the leg was placed in a CPM (a device which moves the leg in a painful bicycle motion to prevent freezing up of the joint)...the dear one groaned in pain and I lifted higher (eliciting further groaning) to enable healing. I was concerned and praying, but lifting all the while. I practiced patient teaching to yet another dear one who was embaressed by this "young girl" explaining the procedure and use of a handheld urinal. I earned the respect and affection of my nurses, the charge nurse, and the assistant manager on my floor.
So, so, so much more happened, but that is enough for tonight. Coronary revascularization awaits me and I must tend to much more reading if I am to get a good grade on this exam.