much ado

Just having a nothing much doing day watching stock market going down reading food blogs and the girl with the dragon tattoo. computers are time wasters I guess could be cleaning well gardening anyway. Back veranda still a nightmare of stuff of Mums that I find hard to get rid of. All sentimental. We are quiet at work I thought because of GFC but the others laughed and said most of the Mums wouldnt have heard of it. We dont have the brightest demographic I admit but then I was barely aware of world economy buried in motherhood, barely aware of my toes. 

Big puzzle was girl with retained urine. I've never seen this problem before much but we have had a couple now. They either cant void at all or they just void small amounts and retain heaps. We thought she was ok but when we did a bladder scan she had a lot retained and then put the catheter back in there was 3L she went home with a catheter in  and follow up. I did some reading but it all looks pretty vague. Seems to just cure itself the trouble is we get no feedback so you never know the outcomes of these things. Academic papers are ok but somehow anecdotal teaches you the fine details. Someone dug out a four page protocol of urine retention I had a bit of a look at it but it was a bit much to take in, must have another look later. 

Talked to one of the Dads he's one of the IT guys in the health service, yeap he said they change programs all the time but dont worry he said in a couple of years they will buy new programs and change it completely, how reassuring. I hope the patients are happy to look after themselves cause we will be looking after the computers. Does it make our job easier? one step forward 2 steps back the IT guy said the trouble is they dont consult the people using it. Yep. Maybe its me I'm just too old and inexperienced with computers to be comfortable with this stuff. What gets me through is the equipment in the place broken down machines not enough and I stuck a stethoscope in my ear the cover of an ear piece missing ow. They've bought these awful no doubt cheap heel prick things whats the official name? I had to prick the babys heel so many times to do the newborn screening test, some saving. You watch those medical shows drooling over the beautiful equipment. You get the feeling of being so isolated with the actual patients and this whole edifice of health bureaucracy making decisions. But who cares anymore, not them and not me, 

Oh heck I managed to make the writing bigger tech achievement but can I turn it back. 

once were wild

I have a friend who is always going on about how wild they were when they were young, That means getting very drunk I think and trying any sport or activity. We were thinking about the wild people we knew who are now dead or in wheelchairs. Sadly they werent very interesting people. We decided the most interesting people we knew were artists and people with a passion for something. Its why the Collectors show on ABC is interesting. I like gardeners too. What does being wild mean anyway. What I most admired was coolness but thats a pretty hard to define thing too. Maybe its a fundamental self assurance based in your own self belief and not on the opinions of others that might be the essence of coolness.

what we are worried about this week

Nurses like to be worried about something I think, they are very stressy about the job and change is nearly always seen as threatening. Mostly because it is often used as punishment and control. People are stressing about the 20 education points a year and that for mid we will need 40 points to maintain our rego, they want to know how they get it done how much it will cost them in time and money but there is mostly only rumors. I did a bit of a search around about it but no answers.
The other worry is something about decreasing aged care nurses penalty rates. If they reduce aged care rates anymore they better call the relatives in I'd be working for Aldi, no dirty beds. Husband works in aged care.
Also we got a story in the paper about nurses neglecting a mum and baby, in what was essentially a misdiagnosis by doctors and an understandable one at that it suddenly becomes the nurses fault and patients look like the enemy. One of the staff had printed off the story and the comments on it, nothing like nurses to scratch a wound. Thank god I didnt look after her anything looks like court cases I try and stay out of. Dont want to be in the walking frame giving evidence.
I body boarded twice this week so that stuff is all just down below, nothing like riding that wave to bliss you out and put the work stuff in perspective. maybe. never entirely give up the paranoia, they might actually be out to get ya.

rubbery brain?

I was watching a show about learning and the brain they called the brain plastic it is much more changeable than they thought it was really interesting especially about exercising the brain. i just wanted to note it here I'm going to read more about it, but I think I need to learn new things but what?

still fluey

God this flu lasts forever. Two reflections today i just realized that the nutters that wrote the very crappy computer programs for work would be eternally modifying and "improving " the programs so as well as learning it initially we would be always adjusting to them changing it and we would have no ability to say no to any upgrading they want to do as you can on home computers. We will have all the past records on it soon as it is it is taking up a lot of nursing time. There doesnt appear to be any nursing input into the system as they bought rubbishy add on programs like diet lists that just take too long to change compared to a rubber and a pencil.
Also one of the issues at work is the birthing unit runs on minimal staff so when they get busy they like to call on the ward for help, problem is when they get busy, we get busy so they really need to call in their own staff. One of the ward midwives said at the large prob best practice hosp she trained at, the MGP (midwifery group practice) on call would be called in to help. Now this is a truly awesome idea as it will cost them no more to do this, MGP are paid a negotiated salary and it would solve a lot of staffing issues but it will totally annoy MGP midwives who think they are the elite of the job. Evil laughter, maybe they will never do it but it will certainly p them off and the idea of it will give us nobodies on the ward a big laugh. We get very sick of them swaning through the ward visiting their ladies without doing a nursing thing for them. The problems of 2 different models of work shoved together, one of which gets the glory while the other is doing the work. Yeah yeah co-op understanding of others roles. Personally I think the hardest roles are dealing with nightmarish wards, trying to get a handle on what 28 more or less patients are up to then staff mix of experience or lack of it and dont even talk about trying to get hold of doctors. Its always easier one to one even if your busy. The only reason I can take wards is because of patient allocation, I can get a grip, mostly on 7 mothers and 7 babies through a couple dont get much attention, and because I almost never get put in-charge. They suspect, rightly I might not turn up! I dont help other people anymore unless I can count on them to return the favour and I dont worry about what other people are up to, unless life theatening.