Let there be light...

So there are two weeks left of this semester. Officially I have two finals and two essay's to complete to be finished with my Clinical Healthcare Ethics and Human Pathophysiology classes. I have a GI essay to write but I need to do some research for that one and my Uro one is almost complete I just need to look up some information on priority assessment for a patient admitted to the hospital with nephrotic syndrome.

The Ethics final I actually will take on the 5th. Because it's just a reflection paper for the class but she needs to post it. I currently have a 98% in that class, which is great! but because during this whole mess with being sick and surgery I forgot to post a follow-up discussion post on time so I got docked 2 points. Oh well. It's not like my school designates between an A or A+ or anything.


In RN news Advanced Placement Orientation is in 8 days!! I scrounge up some money to waste on a drug test again I am sure, since last time at orientation they gave us a slip to have it done within 24 hours of the orientation day. Orientation is from 8am-12pm.

I have been reviewing my IV skills and med math calculations. As soon as these last papers and the finals are done for my current classes, which should be over no later than the 15th, I want to do some pre-reading for my upcoming classes, like rereading my books on the OB and Peds sections. I think I have been doing plenty of med-surg with the patho class.

I need to brush up on my ABG's and lab levels. I totally wish that lab values interpretation class I had wanted to take hadn't been cancelled do to low enrollment.



So anyway I am sitting here while Merry Maids cleans my bedrooom and bathrooms currently and am totally freaked out about this. They still have the kitchen and our living room and family room to do... I really like the concept, but having people in my house and it actually is messy/dirty on purpose.... well that is totally unnatural.

Pregnancy symptoms with no uterus

So nix the pregnancy idea, but I have a super over active sense of smell right now. I am so sensitive to smells and am having aversions to many right now.

I am also super nauseated and Zofran is not helping one bit.

I am tired, yet I can't really fall asleep and am generally light headed.


Why? Because Cipro sucks!

Nosocomial wound infection... or work related?

So it turns out my wound has one of the nasty bugs when it comes to wound infections. The kind that is tricky to treat and may or may not respond to oral antibiotics and may require IV antibiotics if it persists.

Not MRSA thank God but pseudomonas. One of the most common surgical wound infections actually. Humm.. now I know my client had this once upon a time in her wound. Which has long since healed, with the aide of IV therapy.

But yeah this sucks! I have to try Cipro and see if that works but I am still up in the air as to whether or not I should or can go back to work with an infection of this sort. I do have a neutropenic client. So right now I am waiting for 1. A call back from the doctor on whether I can go back yet, and 2 A call back from work to see if I can go back to work with this.

First I don't want to put anyone at risk and I don't want to keep getting nasty in this wound either. I actually think I probably got it from there. But ya never know.

So... let's see who calls back first!


*** update ***

No work for at least 2 weeks. 10 full days of antibiotics and then re-culture before being allowed back to work. There goes my two weeks vacation and I hope my short term disability kicks in after that!

I need a nurse

So I went to the doctors office today for a wound check. It is improving, which is the good news. Except she said that it will probably not heal for a month or more. Which sucks... can I swim with this open? Maybe with some Tegaderm for something? So anyway we are waiting on the cultures to come back before I can return to work.

She also suggested that it may be easier to have someone come over and clean it and do the dressing change for me. 1. Because it's at a weird angle. 2. Because people are pretty squeamish about their own wounds. Yeah I would say #2 is pretty true! LOL I think i will just train the hubby to be a wound care nurse.

I feel...

Weird. Not sure exactly what I really feel. Nervous, excited, scared, apathetic, tired, overwhelmed, hungry, bored, and accomplished.

I just wish these feelings didn't keep coming in odd waves. Hell I even started getting choked up over a tv show and I am never that emotional.

Medical Terminology... Med-Surg (Graphic)

de·his·cence (d-hsns)
n. A rupture or splitting open, as of a surgical wound, or of an organ or structure to discharge its contents.

Ethics Boards

So in Ethics class I had to write a discussion post about the ethical distribution of the limited resources of medical care that once the government puts their healthcare reform act into effect will be likely. Assuming that the insurance companies are already responsible for this action.

Of course this totally set me off on a rant. I hate to bring my political views into a class. I am of the school where politics and religion are just not things I discuss in general with people that I hardly know. Not in work or school environments especially. Unless I am taking a class that is specifically related to either topic. Which in the case of politics will never happen.

However, I think I went off on a rant about the scam that are insurance companies and the concept of national healthcare as a bad idea and the fact that the concept of limited resources and ethical distribution of healthcare was just so akin to a dystopian society I just don't want to be a part of.

I hate the idea of "death panels" and government control of who is more sick and is entitles to what care over someone else... can you say 1984, how about Hunger Games?


I mean come on this shit is just getting too real and I for one would like to live in Africa... its a really nice place called Denial!!!

A Lesson in Immunity 101

Ok class what happens when you take two series of the Hep B vaccine two years apart?


Anyone? Anyone? Bueller? Bueller?

Well if you are me... you still have no antibody surface markers... thus you still have no sero-conversion and must attempt the damn thing one more time.

Ok so what on earth is wrong with this picture?

So since my actual Hep B test was negative too... as in no I do not have the virus, I have to get a booster shot called HBIG, maybe two, and start the series 1 more time. If I don't sero-convert after that time, well then... I had just better be damn careful.

But at least I tried. I could be in the 5%-10% population that is just a non-responder to this vaccine. Although, I seemed to respond fine to the others I have had according to those titers.

Just in case...

You don't frequent http://nobodyherebutusadiposecells.blogspot.com/

Weigh in for today -20lbs overall.

Much ado about Ketosis...

Ok yes I know normally not a good thing to have... EXCEPT when you are trying to lose weight! Urinalysis shows +1 protein(normal for me without a diet) and +3 for Ketones. My body is officially burning FAT for energy! Not just water weight anymore kids!

Of course I will closely monitor this and make sure that all my other labs stay WNL... but for right now its a good thing. Besides, my protein intake is from lean meats and egg white, or whey... not an unhealthy Atkins saturated fat fest.

End of the Semester in Sight

One more quiz to finish in Patho, plus about 5 more discussion board essays, before the final. Only a few more discussion board posts for Ethics and 1 project, then the final!

Just want this semester to be over. Good news is Patho is actually all about the stuff I am pretty familiar with so at least I don't have to do too much reading.

On the RN school front I am almost finished with my medical stuff. Just have to get the stupid 2 step TB. Not like I haven't just had a TB test last month or anything. But whatever doesn't hurt to do it and just get it over with.

I had my physical today and just had a titre drawn for the HEP B, so maybe after the two times I have received it I have converted by now. Who knows. So orientation is on the 8th classes start on the 21st.

I am submitting my tuition reimbursement forms tomorrow, they reimburse 100% so here's hoping it goes through without issues.

4am and I want to sleep, my stomach hurts, and I am bored...

So I decided to revisit my old posts to see how things have turned out vs what I thought things would be like before. I found this post Where I decided to go the Advanced Placement route after all and how I want to be in the accelerated cohort so I could graduate early in fall instead of start in fall. Hummm... it's funny how things work out sometimes.

To do list...

So today I registered for classes, got my book list, sent out my background check information, and ordered my uniform for clinicals. I still need to do all of the medical stuff (repeat vaccination titers, another 2 step TB test, get another tetanus shot unless they will verify that my last one was in 2007, and get a physical) Now to start to start to hunt down the books for reasonable prices and pay tuition. Orientation is May 8th! So less than 1 month away now.

I GOT IN!!!

I open my email and this was awaiting me

"Hi Christine, We have room for you in our summer block 3 nursing program. This cohort will graduate in December 2012. I’ve included the schedule so you can see if you will be able to join us. When you commit to coming to GateWay, I will send you the available clinical rotations. Please let me know if you are interested in joining block 3 in May. We have limited spots and if you accept we need to begin the process of registration and obtaining background checks. Please don’t hesitate to call or email me with any questions. I look forward to hearing from you."

I am freaking out this is AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!

I wish...

I had something to report about Nursing or Nursing school but sadly I don't. I do not like this waiting! Anyway, yeah I have to play catch-up with my current classes due to surgery, but either way there is nothing to report there either. I am kinda burned out right now. I think I should have taken a semester off. I was going to take some classes over the summer session, but decided to work on my other projects instead.

If by chance I get into the Nursing program for Fall I will be happy either way that I waited.

On the weight front

-13.6 overall... 3.6 since surgery. Thought it would be more. But I think I am in starvation mode right now more than anything and the ol metabolism is shit!

Probably should have thought of this....

But surgery really f's with my ability to concentrate on Ethics Papers and Patho exams. I can't even lift the damn Patho book :-) Guess I am glad I didn't get into the RN program this semester for a reason right? Anyway I am Exhausted though. So every little thing I do requires a nap or I will actually fall asleep without noticing. I was talking to my husband and mid-sentence started snoring. Kinda weird. I also was trying to type an ethics post and started seeing double so I had to just hit submit. I hope I was not in midthought :-)