GA Board of nursing Licensure by Endorsement

Statement from the Georgia Board of Nursing
“Important Announcement Concerning Statutory Changes to RN Licensure by Endorsement in Georgia

During the 2008 session of the Georgia legislature, a bill was passed that requires all applicants for licensure by endorsement to have graduated from a nursing education program approved by the Georgia Board of Nursing or which meets criteria similar to, and not less stringent, than those established by the Board. This bill went into effect on July 1, 2008 and is codified in O.C.G.A. §43-26-7(c).

The Board takes seriously its duty to protect the public health, safety and welfare and the duty to ensure that nursing curricula should meet stringent, board-approved standards required by the recent changes in the law. Applicants for licensure by endorsement must graduate from schools whose curricula are no less stringent than those standards established by the Board. The Board is not unsympathetic to the plight of the students who have been adversely affected by this new law, but the Board has a duty to uphold the law and is currently doing so.

The Board has established rules that state the requirements for board-approval for nursing education programs. These rules can be found on the web here (See Chapter 410-3, Nursing Education Programs): http://rules.sos.state.ga.us/cgibin/page.cgi?g=GEORGIA_BOARD_OF_NURSING%2FNURSING_EDUCATION_PROGRAMS%2Findex.html&d=1 The Board may waive rules, but only when doing so will not contradict the law. If the Board waived a rule so that applicants whose education did not meet board criteria are issued a license, the Board would be breaking the law and endangering the public’s health, safety and welfare. The Board has a mandated duty to protect the public under O.C.G.A. § 43-26-2, which states, “The purpose of this article is to protect, promote, and preserve the public health, safety, and welfare through legislative regulation and control of registered professional nursing education and practice. This article ensures that any person practicing or offering to practice nursing or using the title registered professional nurse, as defined, within the State of Georgia, shall be licensed as provided in this article.”


As nontraditional student I am acutely aware of the need to have the flexibility in class scheduling. As a nurse I understand that there are a large number of nurses who will be retiring in the next 10 years increasing the nursing shortage. The number of new grads is considerably less that the number of current nurses leaving the profession. The safety of our patients needs to be addressed with either issue lack of nurses or lack of experience in the field. First of all we need to investigate innovative ways to recruit and retain high quality nurses. Second of all we need to protect our profession and the skills require in order to have a safe and effective practicing nurses.
This bill states that in order to apply for a nursing license by endorsement that you had to have graduated from a school with a comparable curriculum to those with in the state of Georgia. This means that schools who do not require clinical hours would have to change the set curriculum to include clinical hours. Currently there are schools that advertise No campus attendance, No waiting list, and Academic Success Guaranteed. I don’t know about you but I had to apply to nursing school, I waited and waited to find out if I got in, they only took so many students, there were qualifications that each student had to meet. Once we got in we were not guaranty academic success, we had to work for our grades, we had to pass test, and we actually had to know the information being taught we did not pay for our grades. As a nursing student I could fail if I did not know how to place a foley using sterile technique, give a medication correctly, or complete a sterile dressing change just to name a few. As a currently practicing RN I have no problem having students follow me, precepting a new grad, or assisting a coworker in a new procedure, but I understand that they have some basic knowledge and have practiced somewhere before they come to me. I am all for nontraditional schools, providing education to student nurses I just feel that there should be some standards for all nursing schools part of that being clinical hours.
Please leave comments on you opionin I want to here from students who have graduated from some of these nontraditional programs tell me why they are just as good as schools who require clinical time. Let me know if you think that student nurses need clinical time.

Travel nursing

As a labor and delivery nurse I was interested to see how many open positions are out there, I really wanted to know how many travel nurse positions there were. I am not looking for a different position at this time; I have read a number of posts about new grads wanting to start out in OB. I think that every new nurse needs to start out on a medical floor; although I did not start out there I started in the ER which is where I worked before I finished school. I think that I am missing a number of skills that a floor nurse has, I would freak out if I had to take care of ten pts for 12 hours. I have no doubt that I could take care of them but I think that I would be there until 9am charting I don’t think that I would have a problem caring for the pts but I think that I would forget how to chart everything. I know that I can prioritize multi task and work efficiently but there is something to be said about floor nurses, I admire them but I don’t think that I could hack it.
I found an interesting web site http://jobs.myspace.com/ I found over thirteen pages of open OB nursing jobs. I could not believe how many open positions there were. I know that there is a nursing shortage and the new grads usually have to have one year experience to travel, but I thought that was a lot for OB. I see a lot of new grads who want to work in OB.
I would like to know more about travel nursing is there anyone who has traveled as an OB nurse?
Is there a company that you would recommend and why?
Are there particular questions that I should ask?
http://jobs.myspace.com/a/ms-jobs/list/q-OB+Nurse/pn-1

Baby Wearing

Ok so Motrin has apologized for this ad at Motrin.com.

So we have all stuck our foot in our mouth and I think that is what they did. If you are a mom who has ever worn you baby in any type of sling, front pack, back pack or wrap then you know how convenient it really is. I was able to get more done when my infant was in her sling than now when she can walk around an make a mess in front of me. So this is not a plug for Motrin by any means but if you have ever had a c-section Ibuprofen is the best home pain reliever.

That a side the true meaning of my post is that Baby wearing is better for mom and baby in my opinion. When my infant was in her sling I knew where she was, she cried less than when she was in her swing. She could hear my heart beat just like when she was in the womb. I could breast feed in the middle of Publix and not many people noticed what I was doing. I say most because a former co-worker saw me and wanted to see the baby and I had to tell her that the baby was eating and so she knew but she said that she could not tell until I said something. So there are a number of slings out there and if you have back problems it is so worth the price to get one because it distributes the weight of your child across both shoulders, keeping your back in line, which is why I like Kozy Carrier. They are supper strong, comfortable to wear and after you use it a couple of times is not hard to put on.
There is a second carrier that I really like for newborns it is ring sling or tube sling, this is the type of sling that I used a lot when I was breast feeding. My little girl slept very well in this type of sling. Since I am a bigger mom it was nice that it was adjustable. I do not think that I could wear a tube sling that did not adjust. I really like Pretty Mamma slings, there are well made and comfortable for mom.
There are a number of different slings out there and if there is one that you really like please leave a comment as to why you like it so well.
Kim

Nursing school Acceptance, Increasing your chances

When I started trying to get into Nursing school I had no idea how to increase my chances in getting in, I thought that is was based just on your GPA, although it is that is not the only thing a school looks at. Most of the students entering ADN programs are nontraditional students, in my particular class there were only two students who had graduated from High school in the last couple of years. So like me some prerequisites required for admission were quite old so think about retaking Anatomy and physiology if you have a B or C it is a good refresher and your GPA will go up. If your worst subject is math think about taking a math class whatever is required for the program you want to get into, because you will have to pass a drug calculations test when you are in pharmacology, although this test was very easy to me, there were some people who failed out of nursing school because of that one test. Nursing school places demands on you and your family that may not be previously thought of, for those of you who are currently working and plan to work while going to school please understand that nursing instructors will tell you not to work while you are attending nursing school, so they go on the premise that you are not working. I was able to work the whole time I was in school although I worked on the weekends Friday and Saturday nights, toward to end of school I was able to increase my hours although my grades fell from A’s and B’s to C’s which was Ok with me because I had a good GPA. If your program requires you to take an entrance exam, we had to take the NLN exam, I bought the book to help me study it did not teach me anything new but it did help me to start thinking about school again and formulas that I might need. The last peace to the puzzle is to have all the information that they requested in On Time. If you feel that you were excluded incorrectly call to make an appointment with your advisor and discuss their criteria and ask ways to improve your chances for next time, this will bring to light your situation for them and they may see something that you did not know about as to why you were not accepted and it will give you an idea of a class to take while you are waiting for the next entrance. If you apply to more than one school and are accepted to both please call your second choice and tell them as soon as you know that you will not be attending so that your slot will be given to another person. If for some reason you have questions about getting into your school ask other students who are currently in the program. If you have general question please leave me a comment, also be aware that these are all suggestions they do not always work but increasing your chances is always worth it, especially if it does not cost you much. Good Luck!

Latching problems things to know before you deliver

I had a patient a couple of weeks ago who had a problem with her infants latch. So I thought since I find this a lot in my practice that I would share some little hints that could make a difference in breast feeding, which could have helped me before I had my first baby.

1. Nothing in the baby’s mouth for the first 6 six weeks but mother’s breast. This helps with nipple confusion, although some people do not believe that an infant can confuse a plastic nipple and mother’s skin. I do not know, but what I will tell you it that practice makes perfect. The more your baby latches on correctly the better, quicker and easier it will be to the point that mom will not have to do anything. My little girl, would latch herself on in the middle of the night whether it was in the right place or not she just wanted to suck.
2. Babies will suck what you give them. If you area mom to be look at your nipples if they stick out all of the time great if they are flat or inverted you might want to talk to your OB about what you can do, find a lactation consultant, La Leche League group in your area. There are nipple shields that can work there is also a product by Phillips Advent Niplette that might be useful. What I used was a breast pump after my baby was born, do not use this before your baby comes or you are 39 weeks because it can bring on labor.
3. Know and understand the feeding policy at the hospital that you plan on delivering at different hospitals have different policies. My current hospital gives infants d5w or Dextros 5% in water (sugar water) then a bottle or breast milk, but if asked the infant can breast feed right after birth if the infant and mother are stable except in the case of c-sections those infants are monitored closely for the first 6 hours of life so the first two to three feedings are determined by the nurse caring for the infant. As a mother who breast fed, I will facilitate breast feeding as soon as mother is back from the OR. If you as the mother want to breast feed ask the nurse to bring your infant to you as soon as you can to nurse.

Biggest hint is to educate yourself about breast feeding before you deliver. Ask friends who have breast fed, your OB, the nursing staff at the hospital you plan to delive, or the La Leche League.

No Sleep for the busy!

Wow! Today was a killer. Up at 6 am to go to class, a test and a paper to turn in, in class from 8:30 to 12:30, the test was not bad I guess because I studied for it most of the weekend until Lena decided to use my note cards to draw on. I turned my paper in and if it was for a grade I would not pass, trust me I did not care about it because hey it was not graded or at least I hope it is not graded. I picked Lena up and to the house for our afternoon nap, to lie down and sleep for a couple of hours how wonderful is that, but alas I could not go to sleep, I tossed and turned fighting the bed. So at five we were up getting ready for work. By 7pm I hit the door running and my first opportunity to sit was around 4am so I am about to fall asleep and it is only Monday.

School a Necessary Evil!

Blogging has had to g by the waste side because of school. This quarter is the last for my BSN. This quarter I have all new instructors, one is a corporate DON who has bought in 100% to corporate Nursing, and as a floor nurse, our views are massively different. My total goal, focus, purpose, whatever you want to call it, are my Patients, where as her focus is saving the corporation money at all costs. Don't get me wrong I understand that hospitals need to make money to survive so that we have health care, but my view that people are more important than money. For example when caring for a patient I feel that everyone should be offered an epidural while in labor unless contraindicated for them, but some of our Doctors think that if they do not have insurance then they cannot have one. May be my view will change as this quarter progresses, or not.

My First Blog Award!

Katie at Homemaking 101 has given me my very first blog award! Thank you so much! I write different experiences and share different things, but I enjoy reading other people blogs just as much as I like writing my own if not more. Katie, Thank you for this award I am excited to give to 5 other people, I enjoy these blogs all for different reasons.

1. Batty Nurse, who writes two blogs My life as a Nurse and I want to be a Mommy. Batty Nurse, is a Traveler she writes about her experience as a nurse and the her journey to Mother hood.

2. Elli, who writes ECing and Attachment Parenting, She is one of the coolest people I know. Ellie writes about everything. Ellie is one of the coolest people I know in real life. We enjoy getting together and listening to each other's bad Mommy moments and everything else.

3. Jody who writes Baby Catcher, Jody is one of the bloggers that remind me why I love my job so much. She shares her stories of Labor and delivery, her last post about Tuff Daddies is just wonderful.

4. The Triage Queen who writes Ready to Deliver? Triage Queen is a new blogger, but she just tickles my funny bone with her stories of Labor and delivery. Keep those crazy stories coming!

5. Betty who writes two blogs Army Mom and Geriatric Nursing. Army mom is about Betty's son and David in the Army. Geriatric Nursing is about the older population and good assessment tools that are at times missed.

Again thank you Katie, please take the time to visit any or all of these blogs! They are all great places.

Look at your Patients

I was reading a post from August 30, 2008 on Mitch’s Mom blog about a baby timer; she hit the nail on the head when she said parents look at your babies, it is true they will tell you when they need something. As a nurse I was taught do not rely on your monitors Look at your Patients. Well I worked in the ER before I became an OB nurse, one night I was working with an overzealous young nurse (not me) who saw on the monitor that a patient was in v-fib. Running from the nurses’ station she knocked over a doctor and two chairs. She was on the phone to the operator to call a code before she reached the room. She grabbed the crash cart on the way to the room nearly hitting other bystanders. She ripped open the curtain slung the cart in and laid the man flat. The family jumped up, asking what is wrong. The nurse did not even realize the stunned look on the patient’s face. Until I asked “what is the problem?” She said in a frantic voice “he is in v-fib!” I said “why don't you slow down and ask him how he feels first” she finally lays eyes on the man. She found a man not in distress, although a little nervous about what she was going to do, looking back at her. His reply was “I’m sure as hell glad someone was here to stop you before you started pounding on my chest.” I had been in his room explaining that he was going to the floor talking to him asking question. I had just adjusted his monitor so that we could see the tracing better. She scared the patient, his family and me, by her entrance to the room. I understand the sense of urgency when you have a strip that looks bad but if you hurt yourself getting there or scare the patient you are not doing anyone any favors.

Fears of another Baby

It is interesting to hear other mother’s fears and to know in an instant that Oh My Gosh, I am not crazy! On one of my previous post My Favorite Thing, Milk Mama left me a comment that I could relate too and did not even realize it until I read her comment. “Anna is old enough to be weaned, I'm sad about the fact that we may choose to add more to our family. Would we have the same connection as my daughter and I had? Questions like that.” As I read her words I understood my feelings of sorrow.
Never for a moment would I or Milk Mama be sad to add another baby to our families. I think we are sad, our first born is growing up the infant mother relationship is changing. I feel our babies are not totally reliant on us in every, they are able to go and do on their own. “No, mamma I do it myself!” I know I miss my little girl crawling up to me and asking in such a sweet voice “Nurse Mamma nurse?” I miss having her all to myself for a little while, just our time. I miss the being able to comfort her in an instant. There is nothing that will melt a mother’s heart faster than nursing your baby looking down and having her look up at you smiling with a mouth full of boob.
As a mother I know my birth experience will be different with the next child. I worry that our bond will be different; will they need me as much and Lena? Will they nurse as long as she did? Will I have enough the time, to spend one on one with the next child? When I had Lena she had all of my attention all of the time, I was not worried about anyone or anything else. The next time I will worry about Lena. How will breast feeding change my relationship with my daughter? Will I have time for Lena when I have another baby? What will Lena feel, will she be angry or will she try to be a little Mamma?
How will another baby change the family dynamic? How will my husband and I related to each other and our children when we have another baby? I feel as though I am now second behind my daughter, which is not a bad thing, but I miss our relationship before we had children. (A totally different Post) Will we feel neglected by the other when another baby comes?
I think these are all legitimate fears that most parents have to deal with. I know that I want another child; I want to repeat the wonderful things about Lena’s birth. I want to skip the hard things, I want to just fall into a routine that works where everyone has what they need. In a perfect world that is the way it would be, but nothing is perfect except the little life you create. As parents we travel over the bumpy roads, we endure the sleepless nights, we clean up the spit up, and we make do, just so we can have a glimpse of heaven watching our children learn, grow, and experience life.
I would like to know about your biggest fear when thinking about another child. How will you cope with that fear? Or how have you coped with fears of additional family members? Please comment here or post on your blog and leave me a comment that you posted. I hope that I am not alone.

Feast or Famine

August was a busy month for my little Ob department we had 35 deliveries which is more than we have had in 2 years. Every night in August I had patients which is quite unusual, but a nice change I would rather come to work and work although now that I am in school some quite time is good too. August first we changed to a new computer system that has increased the amount of time it takes to chart anything, so we have all gotten a lot of practice on Sorian (the name of the system).
My first week end of call last month I was out of town unfortunately because I could have racked up on the overtime which would have been nice. Then the rest of the month no one was called in oh well.
Now that it is September we only have 17 due this month so that means lots of low census which really stinks because we have to use our Personal Time for that, or we can choose to not get paid. I know I cannot afford that so I guess I will use some Personal Time. On the nights I work with little or no patients I will be doing homework!

What to do or write about?

Ok so I am so I have not posted for some time because I just did not know what to write about, should I write about school, and just how much fun I am not having? Should I write about how my husband is ready to have another baby, and how I am not quite ready? Not that I do not desperately want another child because I do I just am not sure that I can do everything at once. I work fulltime nights; I am going to school full time, and a mother to a 2 ½ year old. I will be done with my Bachelors in December but have discussed with my hubby about going on for an MBA and MSN which will take another 2 years then 2 more for the repayment of tuition. So that puts me done with school in December 2010 and then able to move in December 2012. That seems like forever but I have learned one thing about going to school it doesn't matter whether I go to school or not the time still passes in four years I will still be four years older (35) and it is my choice if I will have a MSN and MBA or not so I might as well start. My biggest worry is that as years pass it will be harder and harder to conceive. So I am not sure what I so do about having another child? With all of that to consider I have also gained about 50 pounds since Lena, starting out over weight with her I am ever worse this time around. So I think that starting to lose some weight while I am going to school will be the best move on my part. I keep trying to figure out why I have gained so much weight in 2 ½ years, the only thing that I can think of is that I changed jobs from a very active job working in the ER to a slower pace in Labor and Delivery. Since I have tried so many different ways to lose weight and nothing has really worked for me except working my tail off working. So I am still not sure what to write about, so I guess that I will keep thinking about what I want to share with the great big Blogging world.

TAG You're IT!!

I have been tagged by Julius at Life after infertility and loss. This is also my first time and am excited to play!

The rules are: Mention six quirky, yet boring, unspectacular details about yourself. Tag six other bloggers by linking to them. Go to each person’s blog and leave a comment that lets them know they’ve been tagged. If you participate, let the person know who tagged you you’ve posted your quirks!

1. I like to eat frozen fresh grapefruit; I buy the fresh grapefruit in the plastic containers and put it in the freezer until it is just starting to freeze. That is my nightly snack at work.
2. I love to scrapbook I have a number of them, but like most moms am not up to date on my little girl’s scrapbook I have completed up through her second birthday.
3. I lose everything, I lose my phone, my keys , my badge, everything, thank goodness my little girl talks so that when I call her name that she will answer. Not that I lost her when she could not talk.
4. I tear up the covers at night, everything comes un-tucked and my husband pesters me about pulling up the covers every night.
5. I have trouble keeping my car and house clean another thing that drives my husband nuts.
6. When I clean I make a bigger mess than when I started because I feel that to clean a room you have to take everything out, throw things away, wipe out the cupboards, then put things back in an organized manner, this also drives my husband nuts because he thinks that if you cannot see it then there is no mess, but I know that it is in the draw, cupboard, closet, box, or any other nook or cranny he can find.

I have tagged the following:
Martha at Giverny Circle
Ellie at ECing and Attachment Parenting
Betty at Army Mom
Sports Dad at Gazette
Batty Nurse at I want to be a Mommy
Ebby at Ebby's Corner

I hope you all Play!

Back to school

I am back to school which started Monday for the last quarter!! Hey I am taking Management, Ethics and Stats (barf). I am having to take stats because my Statistics was older than Five years, which is OK for my bachelors but if I want to continue in January for my Masters I need to retake it so I am taking it this quarter. The only blessing is that Stats is all online. I may not be able to post as frequently as I did in the summer. I go to school on Mondays and have sixty yes 60 clinical hours. Photo courtesy of Fotosearch. I am also working on determining a new direction of this blog so please visit Kim's Photo blog.

Show and Tell

This weeks show and tell, I am showing a makeup bag that my dad's new wife made for me, I thought this was very thoughtful. I had to hide this from my little girl because she loves puppies.
It is really crazy I have had a step day for the last 16-18 years almost I guess, my mom's husband. He really was the "Step-Parent" where as Nancy has come into my father's life after I have moved acrossed the contry twice once to each coast. So she really is not the "Step-Mother" she lucked out in timing because I was well hmmm a really big b*&$@. It is crazy I don't like calling either of my parents spouses step mother or father, so what are they called besides my dad's wife or my mom's husband, they don't call my husband "my daughter's husband" or at least I don't think that they do. Just a weird thing for an adult to go though or at least a wierd thing that I have been thinking about. Thanks for visiting my Show and Tell post. Please visit more Show and Tell!

SUMMER BREAK!!!

Well, summer session is over, YEAH! I finished Death and Dying with an A even though I can't spell! I was so aggravated that she deducted 10 points from my final for spelling errors, Oops. I was so glad to finish this class, it was truly depressing I did not even want to do homework. I received an A in my eating disorders class, which was my cake class. I squeaked by with a C in my Patho class, I could have studied for a B but I had better things to do like work, sleep, parent, and blog. Any way I am out for the summer or at least until the 18 of August for my last quarter. So I used Spell check on my Post Mrs. So and so, blah blah blah!

Doll Stories

My Dad gave me this Doll for my 12th birthday I think or right around there. She was made by Barbara Maroz from Sheridan Wyoming. I collect dolls, and have since I was too little to know that I collected dolls. Growing up I had shelves around three walls of my room which were covered with dolls, now that I have a house of my own I have five dolls out on display. The rest are still in boxes, maybe when my little girl gets a little older I will start giving them to her for her room. I want to give her the story behind the dolls that I give her like who gave it to me, when, and why I received the doll. This case I know who made the doll. To see more Show and Tell click here. Thanks Kim

HIPPA

What I want to talk about today is HIPPA, not in the staff meeting sense but in a more personal sense, maybe something that would pull at your heart strings a little. First I would like you to read an experience had by Tarah who was heading up the escalator.
I read this experience and thought what an eye opening seen for the observer, then as a nurse I had to think about what was said and where it was said. The nurse made a personal comment to the birth mother in a place that was open to the public, on an escalator. I do not feel that the nurse meant any harm, hurt feelings or anguish. Although this nurse didn't have any right to discuss her personal health issues in a public area.
I appreciate the message Tarah is relaying, bring a more compassionate view of birth mothers. Until reading of this incident I to had a picture in my mind of a birth mother, a women who was not really suffering or morning the loss of her child. Now after reading Tarah's post I tend to feel as though a birth mother is morning the loss of a child. The loss of being a mother, and all of the joys that comes with motherhood.
As a nurse I would implore you to be acutely aware of your surroundings when discussing patient information. Only do so with those who need to know, that are continuing the care of the patient. There may have been no crime or violation of HIPPA in this encounter but this birth mother deserved privacy.

Show and Tell

My show and tell today is my Hutch, my mother gave this to me, and she received it from a good friend Diane. This hutch has lived in more towns than some people. My mom received it when she was living in Glenrock, then she moved to Casper, then to Portland, back to Glenrock, then to Yakima, those were all the places that my hutch lived with my mom. Then in 2000 my mother gave me the hutch, I moved to Tallahassee and then in 2005 to Cairo. So my hutch has been on both costs, it is one of the things that my house feel like home. I remember having this in our home since I was two.

Wordless Wednesday!

This is my brother ang three of his buddies when they graduated from West Piont in 2005, he is now in Iraq.

Show and Tell

I wanted to share something that was from Wyoming where I grew up, this cabin was built by my grandfather who will be ninety this December. The rock part of the cabin was built first and the second room was built. I remember going up to the Mountain on the Fourth of July most years unless there was a wild fire. We would BBQ, then make Angles on Horseback. This picture was take the last time I was in Wyoming about 6 years ago. I wanted to share this I guess because I am home sick, for Wyoming and Washington where my mom lives.
Angles on Horseback was my Grandmother’s Name for S’mores Gram crackers, Hershey bar, and toasted marshmallow.

Bright Summer Day!

My little one on a bright summer day with a bight smile!

A Mother’s Journey

I am approaching the last quarter of a BSN program, in December I should be finished!!!! This quarter I am in Death and Dying So I think that I have cried more in the past five weeks than I have since 2004. That is beside the point though we are working on a presentation for class next week the topic is Children and death, our focus is assisting parents and children thought the dying process I found this web page of pictures of a women and her son who was dying. A Mother’s Journey by Renée C. Byer. I cried I could not imagine the pain she felt watching her vibrant little boy deteriorate to a skeleton with skin. As a mother I wonder how I would muster up the strength it would take to day in and day out take care of my child. I believe that Heavenly Father would give me the strength and mental capacity to care for my child while in this crisis. After the death I would then break down, or at least I would hope that my child would see me as someone who could be their rock and the person they turned to.
I do not know Cyndie but my heart goes out to her I admire her strength in allowing Renée to capture the most trying time of any one’s life, the treatment of neuroblastoma. Cyndie had to have been courageous in caring for Derek it looked as though she did things to make him feel loved, to have fun, to give support, and comfort.
I thought this was a wonderful set of pictures, raw and emotional, but worth the time. After I watched the slide show I just wanted to hold my little girl tight, to love her and to have her feel my love, a mother’s love.

Trashcan surprise

We had absolutely no patients tonight, not one at all, but at 5 am we have two direct admits coming in one for a c-section and one for an induction. It is nice to not have to do anything, so I studied patho so exciting. I was reading Rebirth’s story tonight I thought it was hilarious, talking about smells. I do not know what it is but when ever my stomachic is upset I get a stinky patient. Right before I had my little girl I took care of this woman in the ER, every time I went in her room I put a mask on with Vicks in my nose, in I would trod. I did fine until I had to Discharge her she wanted to ask a question and she started to talk and I could feel my lunch start to resurface. Before I could get out of her room I lost it in the trash can. So when the lady left everyone was teasing me about barfing in the trashcan.

Show and Tell

This is my first time to post on Show and tell I think this is a great thing I was able to look at others show and tell is was very interesting. My Dad who is in his late Fifty got married on Friday, after being divorced for the past 20 years I am really excited for him. So I wanted to share it.

It will be Ok Mommy

Working in Labor and Delivery I very seldom have to deal with death and dying, but since I am working on my bachelors and that is one of the classes I am currently taking I have been forced to look at mortality. In the not so distant past I had to assist a mother who was extremely preterm. The infant passed right after delivery only gasping once the mother had been prepared for what to expect, but I as an experienced nurse, I was not ready for the death of someone so small. I had had a number of old people die while under my care in the ER but none so young. It really took me back at how I was able to get through the day but then I just wanted to go home and hold my baby. I was able to compartmentalize my feeling until I got home and then I held my little girl and cried, she did not understand why Mommy was crying. She just let me hold her and patted me on my back as if to say it will be ok. Thinking back I wonder if I should have handled my emotions that way. Was it wrong of me to bring my work home with me? I think that this is my way of coping with the situation, to hold my baby close and cry because I am so thankful for her and what she brings to my life and in all the ways that she teaches me. “It will be Ok Mommy I will sit with you while you cry.”

Today is Father’s day, so to all Happy Father’s Day!!

Today makes me think of the birth of our daughter and how my husband was with our daughter. He is so gentle with her he plays with her, he reads to her, he does her hair; he even takes care of her all night when I am at work.
In the beginning he could not do much because I was breast feeding, so he would change diapers, hold her, and anything that I would ask of him. As a father he wanted to be right there with the birth, early days, and he enjoys watching her grow.
As a father the biggest help you can be to mom and baby is to limit visitors, change diapers, and support your wife in what she wants and needs. My husband was great he was there to change diapers and as time went on has become confident in his abilities as a father, so much so that he cares for our little girl at night while I work.
Happy Father’s day to all and kudos to all DADs who are willing to share the work with a mom who works out side of the home.

Boy Scout Oath (or Promise)
On my honor I will do my best

To do my duty to God and my country

and to obey the Scout Law;

To help other people at all times;

To keep myself physically strong,

mentally awake, and morally straight.

Scout Law

A Scout is trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly,

courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty,

brave, clean, and reverent.

From Boy Scouts of America National Council

No one could comprehend the loss of a child, except one who has lost a child. My prayers are with the families of the boy scouts that lost their lives in the tornado and for the families who are experiencing great trials with the flooding in the Midwest. Hold your families close. May you find strength in trials, hope in destruction, and safety in family.

Saving Money

In a day that Gas prices are outrageous, cost of living is increasing, and there seems to be no relief in sight, parents need to save money any way they can. The first way to save money right off the bat is to Breast feed. The average cost of bottle feeding an infant is $1,500 for basic formula according to kidshealth.org. There are hidden savings in breast feeding also, a mother who breast feeds is less likely to call-in to work for a sick infant. The journal of Pediatrics determined in 1999 that a bottle fed infant had $331-475 additional medical expenses in the first year.(1) The next way to save money is look on the back of the products you use the most and cost the most like diapers and formula call the eight hundred number and request coupons. I receive coupons about every two months which saves me about 20-45 dollars, this used to be a tank of gas. My last money saving tip is to shop with a list. I have a note book on the counter next to the frig if I need something it goes on the list, I have taught my husband that he needs to writ things down too, otherwise he does not get them. When we go to the store I get only what is on my list, if I think of something that I am getting low on I add it to my next list, because I usually have a second one at the house. I think this saves me about 30-50 dollars every trip to the store. I do let my little girl pick one thing out that is not on the list, she only gets one thing and if she is not good it goes back, most of the time it is a small item costing about two dollars. I am teaching her to compare prices, looking at the store brands verses the national brands although there are some products like conditioner that I do not elect the cheaper version. Breast feed, find coupons, and us a list to find out just how much money you save, let me know!!!
Sources:
http://www.kidshealth.org/parent/food/infants/breast_bottle_feeding.html

Road blocks to breastfeeding.

As an OB nurse, who breastfed for 2 years, I find it disheartening when mothers react negatively to breastfeeding. I have had patient’s family members make snide remarks about breastfeeding that were completely uncalled for especially in front of a new mother. In my practice I find three main problems First Doctors, Nurses and then Doctors again.
Doctors are first because they see the patient first, they can encourage breast feeding, assessing for inverted or flat nipples, and support. Ways to encourage breast feeding is education at each visit give a mother one bit of information, moms are seen for about seven months prior to delivery that is a lot of tidbits. If the Doctor would take a few second to assess for inverted or flat nipples in the sixth to seventh month the patient could purchase Nipple shields (http://www.medelabreastfeedingus.com/products/breast-care/103/softshells-for-inverted-nipples ). Support could be offered to the expectant mother through referrals to a breast feeding class, breast feeding consultant or the la leche league (http://www.llli.org/resources.html).
The next problem is some nurses, who find it easier to feed an infant with a bottle instead of assisting with breastfeeding. It is understood that not all nurses have breast fed their own children and do not have a large knowledge base to work from, but in most cases nurses do not work alone. When a mother wants to nurse some of the nurses I have worked with have sabotaged breastfeeding unintentionally but none the less the harm is done. The only thing that should go in a breast baby’s mouth is the mother’s breast. THE ONLY THING THAT SHOULD GO IN A BREAST BABY’S MOUTH IS THE MOTHER’S BREAST. No pacifiers, no bottles, no rice cereal, no exception.
Doctors again, there is a misconception that a breast baby has to return to birth weight in one week, this is not true. If the infant is content, having 6-8 wet diapers and 2-5 stools around the third day of life there is not a problem. So many doctors want new moms to supplement to get the weight up on the infant that a good breast milk supply is not established.
As a new mom, trust yourself; if you want to breast feed be your own advocate. Explain to the nurses Before delivery that you want to breast feed ask them to not feed your baby. Ask for help; ask to be seen by the lactation consultant on staff. It is your right as a mother to determine the best care for you and your child.

Screaming in the utility room!

So my husband and I are talking about another baby. I am all for it I think except I don’t know if I want to go through all of the disappointment, the first time is was three years of trying and then months of fertility and puking the whole time, until I had my little girl. You know when I was trying to get pregnant the first time it seemed like every one was having a baby but me. I went to several baby showers in the last year before I got pregnant. The last couple I almost did not make it through without crying. I am not sure that I can do it again, getting my hopes up just to start in the next couple of days. I am thinking that it is only going to be worse this time because I am now working in labor and delivery. I see a lot of great moms but when I have a mother who does not want to take care of their baby I just want to rip her head off now (not pregnant) so how am I going to be with all the hormones racing through my body?? I guess I will just have to breathe in and out, in and out, in and out, and then scream at the top of my lungs in the Utility room, and pray that no one hears me.

Fight over hair!

Every morning with out fail, there is a fight, between mother and daughter. This little girl wakes up bright eyed and bushy tailed, ready to start the day with a great big smile, she is ready to learn, play, explore, and just have fun. On the other hand, mom gets home from work just as her little one is waking up; mom is ready to crawl into bed, to sleep the day away as she did prior to the birth of her buddle of joy, having taken care of people all nigh long. Mom gets breakfast started; oat meal is in the microwave, little one in her chair, apple juice in her sippy cup. With oat meal all over the counter, little girl and in her hair the fight begins. Mom tries to clean off all of the oat meal, before she starts to comb her little one’s hair. A shrill scream comes from the little girl when she gets sight of the comb. “You’re hurting me!” she yells before the first piece of hair is touched. Mom tries to complete the task with out the painful removal of hair. Mother knows that some day again her little girl will again have her Daddy’s hair line. Alas, hair is done too cute for words and every one is happy.

My Favorite Thing!

My favorite thing in this whole wide world is nursing, the one perfect thing that I as a mother can do for the perfect little girl entrusted to me. The time spent holding her, examining her tiny fingers, gazing into those big blue eyes, stroking her curly blonde hair will never be again, for this month we stopped.I remember crying for days when she was just new because I could not get her to latch on, I felt that I had failed as a mother; I had failed her, my little girl. After what seemed hours of frustration, trying to nurse, my mom would come take her and feed her. I would pump and cry knowing that in 3 hours we would try again.Not until my little girl was a month old did we really click, at that time I was relaxed taking care of her, I was confident in my abilities as a mother. Sitting on the couch holding my little girl with her wisps of hair in my fingers did it dawn on me that she had not had a bottle in days, the flood of tears started again, we did it!Time went on I had to return to work. My little girl was not happy with a bottle for formula from dad; it was another adjustment that she soon made with only a few sleepless nights. Nap time was ours, my little girl and mine to lay side by side so close we were almost one knowing that we were there for as long as she wanted, nothing else was important but her. She would look up at me with her mouth full attempting to smile.How comforting to my little girl when we were away from home to know that her safe place was right there, mom was right there. She would venture so far and then back to me for soft reassurance that everything was ok. She would pat at my chest when she wanted to nurse, looking into my eyes melting my heart, asking with all her trusting abilities to nurse.Starting to talk was wonderful; the third or fourth word she said was nurse. When she would ask to nurse it was as if she were saying “I love you mommy, can we cuddle and nurse, please?” it was always so sweet.Eating new foods, such an exciting time for her, new textures, flavors, and temperatures, learning that this would soon be her only source of nutrition; nursing became less of a necessity and more of a comfort. An injury was always made better by nursing; it stopped the crying almost instantly. Bed time was easier when she was able to nurse to sleep.As she grew older and bigger I realized that this bond only we shared would shortly come to an end, for she would not need me in that way, but I still wanted my baby girl to come to me and only me, curl up so close to me that we were again almost one, look up in to my eyes and say “Nurse? Mamma Nurse?” giving me her smile that only I got.Now at two years old I have finished that part of being her mother more confident for the next. Yet still morning, this very short period of time I have had with my daughter to bond to be her world, these short precious moments we shared will always be my treasure the best part of sleepless nights. Nursing is the best thing that only a Mother and her infant can share. 2/14/2008

What I love about my Job:

1. I love the smell of clean baby’s hair that is soft.
2. I love seeing a father cry when he sees his little girl for the first time.
3. I love to help mothers breast feed and watch them bond with their new baby.
4. I love to see a mom hold her new infant kissing their head ever so softly.
5. I love to see a Daddy hold his new baby for the first time they are always afraid they will break them.
6. I love to see the joy when a child is truly wanted by a mother and a father.
7. I love to see a mother dress her new infant in new clothes pick especially for taking them home, it does not matter if they are from Dillard’s or hand me downs.
8. I love knowing that if this child never feels love again that I love it for a moment in time
I have been blessed now for over a year working in Labor and Delivery I still feel as though I would work here even if I won the lotery.