We were rolling and shaking this morning here in Southern CA. Fortunately it was just a “moderate” earthquake, and we have laws governing structures so that we don’t experience the level of damage a 5.4 quake could cause elsewhere in the world. At the same time, we are reminded that there is a 5% chance that this can be a pre-quake to a much larger one within 24 hours and that makes for some serious nerves. It is also always a “drill” for a much larger disaster. We know that the BIG one will come someday. As everyone jumped on their cell phones, we soon found the circuits jammed and…
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R.I.P. Randy Pausch
On July 25, 2008, Randy Pausch lost his battle with pancreatic cancer. But he left his family and the world a wonderful legacy in “The Last Lecture,” a beautiful piece about how to really live your life to the fullest everyday. My thoughts and prayers are with his family. Thank you Randy Pausch for such a great battle and for bringing attention to the battle too many people face each day with pancreatic and other cancers. Rest in Peace!
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Take Care of You to Avoid Burnout
Nursing is extremely challenging. It’s a physical job and emotionally draining. It’s also a profession that requires constant replenishing in order to keep going and giving. The rewards can be the best, but sometimes you have to dig deep to find them. As we know, patients are not at their best. They are more concerned with getting well than with saying “thank you” to those helping them along the way. Families and friends are usually too stressed to be grateful either. It isn’t even likely to occur to them that the nurses would appreciate being thanked. Today more than ever before, patients are going home earlier and sicker. Nurses are…
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How to Prepare Your Nursing Resume
The research shows that there is a huge increase in demand for nurses in this country. The shortage should not give you, the prospective nurse or job-jumping nurse, a false sense of security. You still have to bring your A-game when applying for jobs after finishing up your studies or if you’re already established in the industry. This means that you need to have the most impeccable resume you can prepare. Make sure you remember that nursing shortage doesn’t lower standards. Unfortunately, your resume (typically a one-page document) is your foot in the door so you want to make the best impression possible. With that being said, here are a…
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Get Organized and Reduce Your Stress
Organizational skills are essential to nurses. In some areas they can be even more so such as for travel nurses, home health nurses, and advanced practice nurses with independent practices. Paper work is a huge nemesis and nurses who are not organized tend to struggle with the paperwork more than others. Paper work and documentation is a fact of life and the sooner you stop fighting it, the easier life can be. The better your organizational skills, the easier the paper work can be as well. The nursing process can help to organize nurses. Learning to prioritize tasks and patient needs is an excellent format for organizing the day’s work.…