Post Partum

-The nurse i was following was in charge of two patients who had just come out of having C-sections. She went around checking their incision and vitals.
-I learned that instead of stitching up the incision from surgery they use this glue called dermabond so the moms don't have scarring.
-The best thing was having a nurse who was very experienced and really wanted to show me stuff and teach me.
-The worst thing was having to leave right before a mom got to hold her baby for the first time.
-This week was GOOD because i learned a ton of really interesting things.

The technology i observed was a folly in a patient who had a c-section. I also observed SCD pumps on their ankles and ted hoes that keep legs from forming blood clots.
There were really not any diagnostic procedures other than the nurse examining the fundus and checking the lochia. She also examined the incision to check if it was okay.
The therapeutic procedures i saw were the nurse emptying a folly bag. I also saw the nurse show a patient the incentive spirometer machine which helps surgical patients breath deeply.
The only disorders i found were high blood pressure, I also saw when a mom has a negative blood type and the baby has a positive they have to check the baby's rogam so the mom doesn't reject her next pregnancy.
The medical terminology i observed was fundus, lochia, and rurbia. I also heard apisiomtoly and dermaplast.

I. The environment is really quiet which i assume is for the recovering mommas who need to sleep because they just shoved a human out of their bodies. The nurses were all women in their late 50's and 60's, and i didn't see any men except new daddies. The equipment used was a vital signs machine and a folly. The technology was the electric charting and electric vital signs machine.

II. I observed the nurse feeling all around the fundus for any lumps or bumps. The nurse i followed was very knowledgeable which was very nice. All the nurses work together when deciding who gets which patient but after that its like your on your own which is weird to me. The nurses all communicated well together with their phones.

III. I learned about SCD pumps which go around the patients ankles to prevent vein thrombosis in immobile patients. I also saw ted tights which are used to prevent blood clots in their legs. The medical terminology was fundus which is what they call the uterus and lochia which is what they call the light bleeding after having a baby. I also learned about oxytocin which causes the uterus to contract to send out anything and shrink the uterus too.

IV. This is probably the most informational rotation I've been on. Other than ER this seemed like the only rotation where the nurse really wanted to teach me something! she actually looked at my task sheet to see what she should show me. I think this rotation is great for everyone who wants to learn about after birth and new surgical techniques.

Nursery/NICU

-The responsibility of the nursery nurses are to wash and monitor all newborns. They sometimes feed them if the moms don't breast feed or are too tired.
-I Learned how to give a newborn a bath and how to get rid of jaundice in preemies.
-The best thing that happened was a newborn grabbed my finger and cooed at me. It was heart meltingly, dunk you in my coffee, adorable.
-The worst thing was how i just stood around for a while because all the nurses were charting or changing diapers.
-this week was FAIR because i learned some cool stuff from the NICU nurse but it was kinda boring.

The technology i observed was a incubator for a preemie. I also saw a special blue light that got rid of jaundice that requires the baby to wear a little eye mask. I also saw a sound machine that played ocean sounds for the baby.

I did not see any diagnostic procedure. The doctors had not come in to do check ups yet for the baby.

The therapeutic procedure i saw were the blue light to remove jaundice. I also saw a baby have a feeding tube down her nose into her stomach because she couldn't drink formula by herself yet.

I saw jaundice as a disease/disorder. Jaundice is when a newborn has too much bilirubin in their blood and seeing that this baby was premature then she didn't spend enough time with the placenta which removes bilirubin.

I did not observe any medical abbreviations or terminology.

I. Its incredibly quiet in both the Nursery and NICU other than the occasional beep when the babies get cold. All the nurses seem very seasoned and well mannered. They all definitely knew what they were doing. The Nurses were feeding babies, giving them baths, and changing diapers. The technology was this little sticker they stuck on the newborns which monitored their temperature and beep when they got too hot or cold.

II. Everything was very secure from the electrically locked door to the babies ankle bracelets with tracking devices on it. All the nurses worked well together and communicated well. They all knew which babies were which and who had what baby. The therapeutic things were feeding and changing diapers. They also gave baths to get rid of the white gunk from birth.

III. I learned that preemie babies who are born at 32 weeks or under have to stay in the NICU for at least 2 weeks. I also learned that NICU babies have to be able to drink formula and poop before they can leave. The NICU nurse explained to me that in the NICU they make up the schedule depending on how many babies are in there at one time. She said that is they schedule too many people that they'll put people on call.

IV. Overall the Nursery/NICU wasn't that great. I mean the babies were but but they doctors didn't really do anything with them. It was also just way too quiet and calm in there. I need things to be happening and things be moving for me personally. Plus babies kinds freak me out because i'm scared im gonna do something wrong and they're just so fragile and small.

PACU

-The responsibility of the nurse i followed was staying right next to the patient the whole time after she wakes up from surgery.
-The new knowledge i learned was that pain medication lowers heart rate and respiration's so nurses have to be really careful when they give it to patients.
-The best thing that happened was being able to take vital signs and really get to talk to the patient i was with.
-The worst thing that happened was not getting a Popsicle along with the patient!
-This week was GOOD because i really enjoyed learning from the nurse I was following.

The Technology i observed was mostly electric charting. The nurse also did this cool thing where she could plug in all the patients records to the exact spot she was going to be placed in the PACU so the nurse didn't have to re-input all the info.

The diagnostic procedures were very minimal this week because in the PACU its very therapeutic. I did see the patient had been previously diagnosed with high blood pressure.

The Therapeutic procedures i observed was the nurse providing pain medication to a patient just out of surgery. She also gave her a nasal cannula because she was having trouble breathing, and propped up the foot that was bothering the patient.

I didn't observe any diseases or disorders other than high blood pressure.

The only medical terminology i heard was " 0,4, 4x4. Aces and EBL". I know the aces was ace bandages for her ankle but that's about it.

I. My assessment of the environment was that is was almost eerily quiet other than the faint sound of beeping coming from all around the room. The whole room was completely open with the nurse's station in the middle and they could see all that was going on. All the nurses were very sweet and obviously caring people with quite a demeanor. The all had their own "cows" or computers for electric charting with they are constantly typing on. They also used this pyxis machine which read their finger prints before they could take any medicines.
II.All the nurses seemed to know each other very well and get along great. They all kind of share equipment so its necessary for them to be friends or at least get along. There's a definite team atmosphere when caring for all their patients. The therapeutic things i saw were mostly just pain relieving procedures and Popsicle giving.
III. I learned a lot in the PACU! it was cool to see on the electric charting thing that all the nurses could see when their patients came into the ER and all the medications they were on so they knew what preexisting conditions they had! I witnessed a lot of soft skills because the nurses all had to be very gentle and slow with their patients seeing that they had just come off anesthesia. The nurse also told me that if patients don't wake up within the first 15 mins of getting out of surgery that they call the anesthesiologist.
IV. So overall i think i learned a lot! I definitely learned that i am nowhere near quiet or gentle enough to work in the PACU but commend the people who can! I had a great experience and the patient who i was watching was from Brenham so i learned a lot about bluebell ice cream and sherbet punches! she was so sweet and really easy to talk to! But if i'm being completely honest it kinda felt like the nurse i was with thought i was a 5 year old. She spoke to me like i had no idea what anything was or how to even tie my shoes. It worked out in the end because she kind of over explained everything even though it was disrespectful.