my medical nightstand.

let's talk about books that have impacted the way i want to practice nursing.

now, i'm not a huge reader. i've always been slow and my reading comprehension is a work in progress, but get me going on a medical, human connection, nursing kinda book and its off to the horse races. the books that i have listed below have shaped the way in which i have and plan on praticing nursing throughout my career.

becoming dr. q

critical care

the anatomy of hope

phantoms in the brain

the spirit catches you and you fall down

gifted hands

if you want to join me on my next medicalish book adventure, pick up a copy of
my own country by abraham verghese (the author of 'cutting for stone'- another one ofr my faves).

happy reading friends!

more.

a great piece.

please go great it.

NY Times Article- How long have I got left?

"i am writing more, seeing more, feeling more."

happy friday my friends.

many things to be grateful for on this bright, sunny day in the bay.

disability.

disability(n): a concept that i am fascinated with;

a driving force instilling passion in my nursing work;
the reason for individualism. 

aren't we all disabled in someway or another?

too good not to share.

be thankful for yourself and your body my friends.

in all forms and in all ways, we are pretty darn incredible.

humanity.

there is something incredibly humanizing about my past year.

i think that i have come a lot closer to understanding humanity and life and meaning.

my time in nursing clinical at a particularly incredible hospital and unit, has brought a whole new meaning to the word 'purpose.'

opportunity, is an understatement.

(via)

i think it is particularly pertinent during this time.

thanksgiving and the festive holiday season.

do you have a home?

someone to put as your emergency contact?

a mailing address?

income?

clothes?

family and friends?

belongings to call your own?
shoes?

my sweet, sweet patients may not have any of the above but they have an incredible amount of humanity.

poor in possession, rich in life.

a true lesson on daily gratitude. i am so very thankful for the life lessons that my patients have taught me in the most subtle of ways. never take a day for granted.  

that one time.

hey remember that one time when i went on a multi-month hiatus from blogging?

oh wait, that's every few months.

sorry friends.

it has been a little crazy over here. 

school is busy, busy, busy with projects on papers on meetings but none-the-less, finally feeling like i am making a difference in the healthcare system and the sfgh patient's lives. 

a great but often overwhelming feeling.

thanksgiving, masters exam, graduation, b's graduation, holiday parties, christmas, all things job related, and much more coming up in the next bit. lots of fabulous things to look forward too.

can't wait to have you along for the ride!

(via)

so that's whats up around these parts.

no promises, but i hope that i can be a little better over my favorite season of them all. 

too many fun things to celebrate over the coming holiday season.

oh and in my time away, i became an RN- wahoo!

suffering your kinder.

so happy to be back in the sweet and crazy san francisco general hospital for my final masters rotation.

oh how i have missed the special patients of sfgh.

here's to a busy, challenging, and inspirational semester back in the 4B unit.

love this place.

bay bound.

headed back to the bay.

san francisco to be exact.

ready to start my last semester of nursing school.

oh how time flies...

(via)

filbert street.

my second home.

news now.

the addition of a tv in close proximity to my bed has thoroughly propelled my love for news and fascination with keeping up to date on the happenings in medicine, community health, and unfortunately all the tragedies that are happening around the world right now
(kidnappings, bombings, foreign affairs, homicides- really world, really?).

(via)
a few of my favorite sources, in addition to television coverage and occasional newspaper pick-up.

the new yorker (fave source for lay-person medical articles)

cnn (iphone app)

the every girl ('in the know' series)

the new york times (duh)

and near and dear to my heart is this story {(1) & (2)}, making headline news in the bay area this week.
this sweet man was my very first patient as a student nurse.
he was a well loved, humble homeless man that was struck last year by a hit-and-run driver suffering a traumatic brain and spinal injury resulting in paralization and absence of speech.
the community in north beach and his family back home raised over seventeen-thousand dollars to airlift him with a nurse back home to be with his family during his recovery.

see there is a little hope out there.
happy friday friends!

nursing the nation.

happy national nurse appreciation week!

please watch this.

so proud that i will one day be a nurse.

in not so long- this time next year!

hooray!

pedi nursing.

my most anticipated college course thus far is finally here.

pediatrics.

i am seriously already in love and i haven't even spent a day in the hospital.

i am sure that you will be hearing lots from me about peds on this fine little embitions 

because it's my dream to work as a nurse in pediatric neurology.

pediatric icu, see you tomorrow.

we walked into orientation and our desks had these little surprises awaiting our arrival

(only in peds would your teacher give you stickers and blowfish toys for painful procedure distraction).

our first assignment was to create an art piece of one of our most vivid childhood memories and explain a bunch of developmental stuff on the back so i decided to paint 

'sunday afternoons comprised of splitting dr. pepper and gardening with dad'.

we studied pediatric med calculations, fluid dosing, and iv administration,

and i decided that even that is cuter when you know its for peds.

plus, i get to wear colored scrubs... omg.

i (heart) pediatric nursing so darn much.

nerdy reading.

if you are on the market for a new good read and you love a little hospital talk,

i have just the thing for you.

read all three and love them all.

true stories from doctors and nurses as they face life, death, the first years, crucial conversations, and much more.

happy reading!

nursing + crafting.

like every other nursing student, i have a little stress in my life.

one of the ways that i have found helpful for calming my (ridiculously crazy) nerves is a bedtime ritual.

i light my capri blue volcano candle, brew a cup of lavender chamomile or mint tea, spray my lavender spray, and chill out in my bed with the lights off while i do something non-school related.

it has become 'my thing' and i really like it.

in efforts to give some of my nursing friends a little bit of 'relaxation in a package', i conjured up a crafty and grad school budget idea to put together lavender nursing sachets, my favorite herbal teas, and a candle in a mug for their six week break enjoyment.

and here they are.

nothing says 'thank you for all of your support, poop jokes, study guides, pre-sunrise clinical carpooling, and friendship' like a little handmade, red cross, lavender sachet.

happy holidays to all my nursing friends- may you sleep a little better knowing that 4:30am alarms are still two months away!

my day job.

although you mostly see my fun adventures, inspirations, plans, and musings here on the blog-

 by title, i am a student nurse day in and day out.

this blog acts as my creative outlet to channel my inspirations and connect with all my friends and family wherever they might be. so really, most often my life looks a lot like this.

it is always a constant slew of papers, exams, presentations, homework, and whatnot.

as of next thursday i am off of school for six weeks.

yes, six whopping weeks before it is back to the grind for one more year of school.

what do you do by day? do you love it? have a creative outlet?

someday, this could be me.

as promised, here is my number one coffee-table book pick.

i ran into this book at barnes and noble the other day and i am completely obsessed.

watch the book trailer below and pick up a copy here.

doesn't it look totally incredible?

i thumbed through it... and it is.

i can't wait to be a nurse.

(this is high on my christmas list- you lovely readers. aka mom.)

p.s. on the agenda- flying to la to see my b for the first half of the week before heading home to celebrate thanksgiving with the whole family! wahoo!

upon reflection.

on monday, i finished my last clinical day on the floor of the 4B unit at san francisco general hospital. this semester, i have been completing my medical surgical clinical units in the 'progressive care and traumatic brain injury unit' working as a student nurse. this is a 30-bed critical care unit serving the san francisco uninsured population with an acuity level ranking between intensive care and step-down. to many, the 4B unit would be considered an intensive care unit, yet the population demands and resources provided at this hospital cause the unit to be labeled progressive care. patients coming to this unit arrive in the emergency department and intensive care unit before being admitted to 4B with approximately half of the beds being filled with traumatic brain injuries and half filling with acute medical conditions.

the patients that i cared for in this unit come with a variety of diagnoses including: 

congestive heart failure, respiratory failure, alcohol withdrawal, poly-substance abuse, end stage renal and liver disease, hepatitis c, end stage aids, meningiomeningitis, internal abdominal bleeding, lung and bone cancer, gun shots and stab wounds, pedestrian verses automobile accidents, suicide attempts, and various other medical and trauma concerns. 

some of my favorite skills that i have performed:
IV insertion, blood draws, tracheostomy suctioning,  catheters, nasogastric insertion, physical assessments, and psychosocial care (you grossed out yet?)

the patient population that i worked with came from a variety of backgrounds and lifestyles including:
homeless, drug addicts and alcoholics, undocumented immigrants, gay and straight individuals , cantonese, english, spanish, and russian speaking, those living in single resident occupancies, international travelers, business men and women, and those young and old.

if you can imagine, i learned a lot, grew a lot, and have been touched by many of the individuals that i have been fortunate enough to work with on my days in 4B. many would think that this is an interesting and somewhat undesirable population to care for,  but i can ensure you that there is much to be learned from everyone you meet and an incredible level of human dignity that each person deserves despite their past, present, or potential future.

(readers, meet saw francisco general hospital- an incredible place)

can't wait to see you again next semester, 4B!

recommended.

i highly recommend finding the closest independent theater near you and heading out to see this film.

'the waiting room'

it's the story of the 'highland hospital' emergency room in oakland, california that serves a unique uninsured population.

trauma, routine care, surgery, everything comes through the emergency room doors at this hospital.

it's just plain great!

http://www.whatruwaitingfor.com/

this hospital very much mirrors my experience currently serving the population at 'san francisco general hospital.'

fascinating patients, incredible stories, jaw dropping histories, and daily battles. 

gets me so pumped up to be a nurse for the rest of my life.

p.s. it will be out on netflix in the coming months!

according to my iPhone.

in no particular order,

here are a few snapshots of my life these past few weeks.

commuting and working (student nursing). 1/3 done with nursing school!

 time with my super six. love you all.

a whole lot of olympic time. and yes that is a screen shot of the tv- those four couldn't be passed up.

 

 strolling thru the good ol' slo and enjoying a warm summer farmers night.

spent some great quality (super fun and relaxing) time with this little physical therapist. so cute.

you shouldn't be shocked by now that i have pictures of my foodie outings. yummm.

 the most colorful dump run ever. goodbye crapola of walnut. you have served us all too well.

 lounging poolside with B. nothing better than magazines, pool games, snacks, slurpies, and the boy!

 had the pleasure of attending some dear friends wedding (B was in it looking handsome). congrats j+k!

 celebrated the BIG 5 YEARS with my B!

no big deal, just my home.

home sweet home. yummy meals, great coffee, family time, shark week, backyard parties, you name it.

super random but i hope it pleases you followers;) 

enjoy your tuesday- semester three starts tomorrow!

goodnight my dears.

last one.

seriously sitting here laughing out lot by myself.

dead on.

could be my life.

http://whatshouldwecallnursingschool.tumblr.com/

doubt you'll think it's funny but whatevers.

have a great friday!

it's funny.

read this. its hilarious. 

http://whatshouldwecallnursing.tumblr.com/

have a great thrusday!

almost slobound and you know what that means... partyyy.

the very last party EVER in walnut.

wahoo!

a look at clinic.

sorry, i've been so MIA but here is just a little look at my clinic experience over the past two weeks.

san francisco general hospital

3% patients with private insurance

60% patients with medical/medicaid

safety net hospital with 'no turn away' policy regardless of ability to pay

UCSF resident and physician oversight

baby friendly including promotion of breast feeding

level one trauma center and emergency center for the peninsula and city

full OR surgical team and obstetrics rapid response on staff at all times

onsite county jail will full incarceration protection

largest inpatient psych/mental health facility in the bay

number one admission- schizophrenia, number two admission- pregnancy

inpatient skilled nursing facility that acts as a home for the ill homeless population

numerous outpatient clinics including urgent care, women's health, dialysis, neuro, ortho, optho, GI, wound care, chemo, anticoag, dental, to name a few

dual unit that I am currently working in:

4M- ophthamology and neurology unit

clinics rotating through general ophthalmology, optometry, pediatric ophthamology, glaucoma, retinal disease, plastics, neuroscience, traumatic brain injury, general neurology, ENT, and audiology depending on the day of the week and that morning/afternoon shift

I am on the eye side of the unit now and will rotate to the neuro side in a few weeks:

hours of operation- 7:30-5 (or whenever the last patient is seen)

average patient wait time- 1.5-5 hours (busiest clinic at the hospital)

number of residents/physicians- 2-5

screening rooms- 2

medical assistants- 4-6

front desk- 3

nurses- 1

patient rooms- 7

diagnostic/laser/procedure rooms- 2

average number of people in the waiting room/spill over to the hall- 40

patient population- homeless, uninsured, incarcerated, psych, routine, pre/post-op, trauma referral

notable patients:

fully progressed AIDS

domestic abuse

head trauma from fights

screwdriver impalement

complication with brain cancer and tumors

facial cancer skin grafting of the face

pipe to the face from street fight

screening for the first post-op and determining they can't see

there you have it. back to homework, nursing care plans, and dinner before I pass out. 

so exhausted, so cool, so interesting.

gives whole new meaning to treating the patient, not the disease process.

hope to check back in soon!

p.s. the patients are the nicest. yesterday i received a hundred thank you's and a few candies.