My Strong Medicine

The adventures of a male nurse navigating through life, staying fit, surviving the journey.

Archive for the ‘humor’ Category

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To iPad or not to iPad… THAT is the question

Posted by Sean on March 11, 2012

I’m quite the MAC fan these days. Ever since I jumped that horrible ship called Windows.. I’ve been enjoying my computer and all it has to offer.

I even made the bold leap to include a MacBook Air into my arsenal, which has served me well. I love using it for my on-campus needs and it compliments my iMAC so fluidly.

Now the question is do I want an iPad… or should I say do I NEED an iPad. Other than a bright new shiny toy, I cannot see a good rational reason to own one.

iPhone check. iMAC check. MacBook Air check.

Would the iPad offer me something I’m not already getting out of my other wonderful iOS devices?? The Nerdy Nurse has a few suggestion over on her blog:

Benefit of Tablets for Nurses?

imageThe benefits of tablet computers for nurses are plentiful. They are great from poking around and sharing cool apps and content with your friends, but there are very real and practical applications for the nursing workforce as well. And although I feel the ability to veg-out and play a challenging round of Angry Birds has great value, I also know that tablets can have a place in the nursing workforce, if we let them.

7 Reasons Why Nurses and Nursing Students Need a Tablet

1 Get rid of the clutter. Carry your drug guide, nursing school books, and your pleasure reads in one compact little outfit.

2 Entertain yourself during downtime. During your lunch hour you can catch up on your shows with Netflix or Amazon prime. You can also read books, listen to music, or play a game or two.

3 Easy access to information. With a tablet device, and internet access, the world is your oyster. If you need additional information, want to read a nursing journal, or check your email, it’s much easier to just pull out your tablet than get the PC involved.

4. It’s bigger than a smartphone. While your iPhone or Android will likely handle most of the demands you throw at it, let’s just be honest here: it’s small. That’s great for portability, but makes it less than ideal for long-term viewing of movies or any extended reading periods.

via 7 Reasons Why Nurses Need a Tablet: Amazon Kindle Fire, iPad2, or Nook Tablet | The Nerdy Nurse. (follow the link to read her entire post)

What do you think?

Posted in health, humor, opinion | Tagged: , , , | 4 Comments »

Dear Coworker…

Posted by Sean on February 19, 2012

Some things just get under your skin. Call them habits, quirks, idiosyncrasies, or just plain annoyances–we all have them. Better yet, our coworkers have them!

It doesn’t matter which floor or unit you work on, it doesn’t matter how many years of experience you have, and it doesn’t matter what shift you are working. There is at least one coworker we all have worked with or crossed paths with that possess some of these.

Nothing breaks down a team quicker than passive aggressive “quirks.” Here are some things your coworkers are dying to tell you:

via 3 things your nursing team is dying to tell you | Scrubs – The Leading Lifestyle Nursing Magazine Featuring Inspirational and Informational Nursing Articles.

Another post from over at Scrubs. Follow the link to read the whole post.

Posted in health, humor | Tagged: | Leave a Comment »

What I’ve been up to…

Posted by Sean on February 12, 2012

 

image source:exhausted

My internal medicine clinical rotations started this week.

Long hours.

And apparently my immune system didn’t like the lack of sleep. I have that ‘runny nose’ feelin’.

Only three more weeks of this. I can do it, I can do it.

Posted in humor, random | Leave a Comment »

I’m quite the visual learner

Posted by Sean on January 27, 2012

20120127-171327.jpg
12 lead EKG’s and axis deviations.
Gewwd times.

Posted in health, humor | 2 Comments »

Date Disarray

Posted by Sean on January 4, 2012

Who was the one who wrote today’s date as the year 2011?

Yep, that would be me.

via Date Disarray – Blynk.

Posted in humor | Tagged: , | Leave a Comment »

The holidays and nurses…

Posted by Sean on January 1, 2012

We nurses sometimes forget to separate our personal lives from our work ones.

For some reason, we tend to socialize with the very same people we work with (or used to work with), or we socialize with fellow healthcare professionals (Docs, EMTs, Medics, RTs, etc.).

It’s neither good nor bad–until we’re not around them but continue to act like we are.

Here are some tips to keep in mind this holiday season:

Refrain from talking about work at the dinner table

Yes, contrary to what you may believe, there actually are people out there who cannot talk about bodily fluids, blood, and drainage while shoving food in their mouths. Call me crazy, but slurping down cranberry sauce while discussing bloody wounds is not what most people call normal. Besides, you’d rather be enjoying your time off from work than resuscitating a family member who fainted.

Try actually tasting the food

Try not to eat your meal with the same “hot-rod racing style” that you do when you’re at work. Most of us don’t get a full-fledged traditional meal break, so we eat on the go, on the fly, or while we are still moving. Some of us inhale our food so fast, we forget what the heck we ate. I’ve uttered the phrase, “I’ll taste it later.” This is that rare occasion when you can eat at a normal pace, so give a try!

Cutlery improvisation

Whatever you do, I mean, whatever you do–if the supply of utensils is low, please do not break out the tongue blades, urimeters and other equipment to aid in your feast. Once again, it’s not normal to eat your food with a piece of equipment used to examine the back of the throat, or drink from something that normally collects a bodily fluid. Please refer back to family members fainting.

Native tongue

This goes right along with the bodily fluids topic. The minute you start speaking in medical mnemonics, you’re more than likely going to get that glazed over stare and be asked to explain yourself. Play it safe and avoid them altogether.

Maybe I’m the only one who has had to follow these tips? One thing’s for sure, the holidays are always entertaining when there’s a nurse around.

via What NOT to do this holiday season | Scrubs – The Leading Lifestyle Nursing Magazine Featuring Inspirational and Informational Nursing Articles.

A post from over at Scrubs taking a humorous look at nurses and the holidays.

Posted in health, humor | Tagged: , , | Leave a Comment »

Christmas Eve in the Hospital…

Posted by Sean on December 24, 2011

What is it like in a hospital on Christmas Eve? Find out in this very special Christmas holiday edition of Happy’s Xtranormal Theatre titled Twas the Night Before Christmas in the Hospital.

via Twas the Night Before Christmas in the Hospital (Xtranormal Education!).

A big thanks to Happy the Hospitalist for this one. Merry Christmas!

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Finals…..

Posted by Sean on December 12, 2011

So. What do you consider to be excessive?

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Tattoos & Pain…

Posted by Sean on October 27, 2011

 

Another nursing urban legend: tattoos and pain

So the other day I got my flu shot. Yep, I get it every year. Regardless of the folklore out there I’ll take every little bit of help I can get when it comes to fighting off any bout of the flu.

I was in line waiting my turn. I could hear the nurse give the ‘warning message’ each time she administered the injection, “A pinch and a burn…”. I honestly didn’t think anything of it.

My turn. I sit down, fill out the proper documentation and roll up my sleeve. Subconsciously I’m waiting to hear the warning message, but instead she pauses. She leans towards me and says, “Oh. I don’t have to warn you do I?”

Now I immediately thought she meant, oh you’re a nurse. So you know what I’m about to do.

No.

Instead she goes on to say with a sarcastic chuckle, “This shouldn’t hurt a bit with all the artwork there. Right?”

She was referring to my tattoo. I have one on each of my upper arms.

I politely responded, “No, I’ll be fine. Thanks though!”

I walked away chuckling.

You’re probably wondering why I was chuckling? I walked out of the room thinking of a very popular urban legend in the nursing world:

There is an inverse relationship between the number of tattoos a patient has and their tolerance for pain.

So, the more tattoos a person has, the less tolerant they are of pain. Any pain. Or, put it another way, the more tattoos the more they whine (sorry for being so blunt).

Like you, I used to scoff at the mere thought of this. But then I worked in the PACU. I took care of many patients post operatively. I then continued to take care of surgical post-op patients during my time in the ICU, something I still do to this day. Let’s just say I’ve taken care of my fair share of patients who have had surgical procedures. As time progressed I noticed there was a sliver of truth to this urban legend. Maybe even more than just sliver.

I’m not here to dispute the definition of pain. I know that a patient’s pain is what they say it is, where they say it, when the say it is. All I’m saying is when we nurses see tattoos, we can’t help but wonder.

What do you think?

Another one of my posts over at Scrubs. Any thoughts on this urban legend?

Another nursing urban legend: tattoos and pain | Scrubs – The Leading Lifestyle Nursing Magazine Featuring Inspirational and Informational Nursing Articles

Posted in health, humor | Tagged: , , | 3 Comments »

Telling it like it is

Posted by Sean on October 9, 2011

 

When nurses need to give a “straight” answer

How long am I going to be here? How long does the surgery take? How long do I have to take this medication? How long do I have to wear this thing?

I often get these type of questions asked quite a bit from patients and their families. I get questions asking for ‘time frame’ specifics regarding any and everything about their care. Unfortunately, there really is no recipe for success in health care is there?

If I can, I always answer these questions with a bit of humor. A quick witted, “whenever the doctor says so”, seems to bring a smile to most faces. Yes, it may very well be a sarcastic smile, but a smile nonetheless.

(Oh, c’mon you know you’ve used that one before)

Isn’t it ironic that we constantly require our patients to adhere to a time schedule, yet we never can give them a straight answer about ‘how long’.

After my quick rebuttal to most of these questions, I give the long drawn out speech about how there is no recipe for success in healthcare. A + B does not always equal C. While we always have the best intentions, time is not something we can ‘predict’. Not even in the most ideal conditions.

The ‘real’ answers:

A perfectly performed surgery without any complications can still have scheduling delays. There are always emergent cases that take priority in the echelon of care. You can’t preventing the unforeseen.

Being in the hospital can be as short as 1 day and as long as 3 months (or more). There are a myriad of factors that determine whether or not the issues that brought you into the hospital can be resolved. Most of which we have no control over.

Some medication can be a lifelong venture, some can be taken for a specific time frame, while others are taken until your supply runs out.

What you are required to ‘wear’ is serving a purpose to help aid in the healing process or to probably prevent further damage. So it will be worn until it is no longer needed.

Oh, and don’t think for one second that just because you have a friend or family member that was treated for the same thing means that you’ll get the same treatment in the same frame of time. Uh-uh. No-siree-bob.

I wish I could make up a recipe book, I really do. It might make our jobs a lil easier, and I’ll bet the patients would love it!

Am I the only nurse that does this??

When nurses need to give a “straight” answer | Scrubs – The Leading Lifestyle Nursing Magazine Featuring Inspirational and Informational Nursing Articles

Posted in health, humor | Tagged: , , , | Leave a Comment »

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