Happy Halloween

I will be working tonight and will have to miss out on seeing the costumed kids coming to my door to begin their week-long sugar high. It has been fun to see young families driving back from school with their little ones dressed up in the back seat.

An early Halloween treat was a local haunted house/tent in Laurel, MD. It wasn't so much scary as it was fun to watch friends jump as the staff spooked them. Erika, Maggie, and Lana displayed their tails as we entered the haunted tent. Afterwards we went out to dinner to chat and hangout. I am really liking my new floor. It has been pretty easy to stay out of whatever drama is going on and focus on learning more about patient care. I am so thankful that I was assigned to the MICU. A great staff to work with.

Halloween Celebations

This year's Halloween events have been fun and family oriented. Friday night I was Haunted House night and Saturday night was movie and game night. One of the girls whose house we went to has a 10-month old named Brendan. He is the cutest guy ever! She had bought a dragon costume for him to wear and he rocked it! Crawling around like a dragon. It was great! He even took on Cleo the cat (who was dressed as a jack-o-lantern). The cat loves him so it was really cute to watch.

Tim vs The Nasal Airway

Just for laughs one night at work, Tim and Laura came by to say hi. While visiting we took out a nasal airway to practice with on Tim. you know, just keeping our skills sharp...

Warning! Before viewing, please click here to see what a nasal airway is.

Another APUer Promoted

Michelle Siemens was promoted to 1Lt today. I was impressed as to how many people spoke during her ceremony. It is a true testimony to her hard work. Congratulations 1LT!

All By Myself

There comes a time when all baby birds must spread their wings and leave the nest. All baby birds including myself. I am off orientation and am now actually responsible to my own patients. I laughed the first night I walked in as they assigned me two of the busiest/sickest patients. Thankfully we were able to do some rearranging for patient safety. My patient load has ranged from one to three patients. I have had patients that don't truly need ICU care to patients so sick that without the medications and ventilatory support provided they would not survive. It has only been two weeks off orientation and I have already learned so much. I know that there is a ton more for me to learn, but I am sure having fun!

Where I work

A glimpse of the Medical Intensive Care Unit (MICU) during AM rounds. I am sitting on the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) side looking down to the MICU. Down on the far side is the MICU Medical Team in morning rounds. Starting at 0800 everyday they walk down the unit spending 10-20 minutes discussing each patient and their plan of care. The team consists of the 1 Attending, 1 Fellow, 2 Residents, 3-4 Interns, the MICU/PICU Charge Nurse, 1 Pharmacists, 1 Bereavement Counselor, the Nurse assigned to the patient, the patient, and (if available) the family of the patient. We have moved to a different area of the 4th floor which has fewer beds available than our old Unit. Currently we have 7 MICU beds and 3 PICU beds. Our number of available beds will increase next year as construction continues at Walter Reed.

Today was my final shift on orientation. While I still require further classes and training to be a PICU nurse, I am now a MICU nurse. It was a good last day. I cared for a ventilator-dependent seven day old. I learned a ton today. I can't just think of the kids as small adults. The PICU is an entirely different thought process. But I am eager to learn. I want to be confident in my care of adults and kids.

Arlington National Cemetery

I have an amazing respect for this place. It is an honor to walk the grounds and reading the names of those who sacrificed their lives so that I may be free. The markers of the unknown soldiers from the Civil War and the Spanish American War make me think of the families that never knew what happened to their loved on.

The grave marker of US Army Nurse Corps Officer Captain Maria Ortiz who died in Iraq on July 10, 2007. The first US Army Nurse to die in combat since Vietnam.

Retired US Navy Captain Charles Burlingame III was the Captain of the flight that crashed into the Pentagon. His family visits his grave weekly to lay fresh flowers.

Section 21, a place of honor for Military Nurses. A place that is difficult to walk through.

Section 60 contains those we have lost in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. In the middle of the white grave markers sits a mother. She comes everyday to visit her son.

It is a very humbling feeling to walk amongst the white stones marking those heroic individuals not afraid to stand up for what they believed in.

Biking with Angie

I met Angie at OBC while we were at Ft Sam Houston back in 2006. We have both been stationed at WRAMC since. Our schedules are often the exact opposites of each other so it is often difficult to find time to hangout together. However, this weekend we were both off. Angie recently got a road bike so we took off for a ride. There are some great paved trails up near the Baltimore Airport that go on forever. It was great. We had a blast catching up and talking about her future plans with the Army Nurse Corps. She is getting ready to take off back to Texas for her specialty course. She is going to train to be an Operating Room Nurse in January. Yeah for Angie!

(I know I am not wearing my helmet. I ran out of the house and forgot to put it in the car.)

Update on Coming to California

I have been in touch with the recruiting office that I will be working with and I have the dates. I will be flying in on Tuesday, November 11 and fly back out on Saturday, November 16. I am going to try to find out what my schedule will look like to see if I will be able to get an evening off so I can catch up with whomever will be around. Mark your calendar for I am coming!!!