Routine Vitals

Routine vitals are important to keep up with patients, especially if they just had some type of surgery. Blood pressure, oxygen levels, tempurature and how many times their heart beats every minute is important to monitor! Normal blood pressure usually depends on each person, but this is the generic chart.

Medical Monday

Sometimes, when things are slow and I have a free day, I visit the medical library downstairs. This is the periodical room of the library. Most doctors spend time here for peace and quiet. When they need to chart or need to look something up, there are multiple computers in the back with microphones. The medical library is pretty cool. It's a great place to relax and read medical books!

Funny Bone!

Everything is okay in the end. If things don't look okay yet, it's not the end!

Telemetry

Telemetry is the department that monitors a patient's heart after surgery or if they have congenital heart defects. Telemetry covers all the floors, however, a doctor would have to request for it. The nurses are able to renew/request the orders as well.

I visited Telemetry with my mom today and I met a couple of her friends. They showed me the ropes of what they do and how things are done. I was able to run a couple errands and help some nurses connect the heart monitors on some patients! It was a pretty busy day, but fun nonetheless!

Avasys

When a patient is at a high risk for falling, there is a camera put int the room to  watch over them. We call up to the Avasys department and ask for them to watch over the patient from the monitors upstairs. My mom is a regular float up there. She's good at calling right away to notify the techs about the patients who try to get up when the nurses aren't there. It's just a precaution to ensure that they meet their goal of preventing falls!

Today, there was one patient who was always trying to have a laugh by getting up and laying back down when they techs upstairs talked through the camera. I was supposed to watch the patient from the hallway to make sure he'd stop. However, I found out he was a funny man that was just bored of laying in bed. We ended up talking about life and how society has changed. It was a pretty great day and the genuine conversation made it even better.

Snow Day

Whenever it snows, there is always this aura of bad vibes. However, the nurses and I were able to set the patients up with heated blankets and some movies in their rooms. The staff and I enjoyed some hot chocolate, coffee, and snacks before going back to do vitals. It was a pretty calm day for the most part.

Toddler Tuesday

There is always something a child could find that would entertain them. After pet therapy day, they were excited to see if another pet would be coming. However, a patient had his grandkids come visits and they were all under the age of 6! The whole floor had a field day on trying to keep them from running up and down the hall! It was fun to watch them play for a while, but after I set them up with a movie so I could take the grandfather's vitals. It was definitely an interesting and busy Tuesday!

Pet Therapy

There are certain days that are designated for pet therapy days. This is where different dogs come in to visit patients. There is my favorite, Lily, she comes in with puffy tutus and cute costumes. She is always dressed up for every holiday and even wears things that go with each season! Pet therapy dogs are specifically trained to interact with patients. They know the hospital is a special place. They don't jump or bark at patients. Visits from dogs like Lily help brighten up a patient's day, especially small children. They love pet therapy days! It's definitely a great way to start the week!

"It is well to think well; it is divine to act well."

-Horace Mann

It's true when people say actions speak louder than words! Doctors and nurses are always there to help!

Big Dreams

There is no better feeling than having a positive impact on a child's life. There was a boy, I'd say about 5/6 years-old. He was a family member of one of the patient's on the floor. As I came into the room to take vitals, he asked if he could watch me from the big chair and ask questions. When I said that it was okay, he was fascinated as he watched me hook up the BP machine to his grandpa's arm. As he sat there, I heard him ask what I wanted to be when I was a grownup, I explained how I wanted to become a doctor and save lives. After about two minutes, the little boy came over and hugged my legs saying thank you for 'saving' his grandpa, even though I was checking his vitals. It was one of the purest and most genuine thanks I've ever gotten. It's that feeling of happiness that drives me to become a doctor!

Conversation

There isn't anything that really goes on a Monday at the hospital. Patients are either going home or being admitted. However, some patients do like to start the week on a good note and try to become friends with the nurses and staff.

For example, there was this one patient who just came back from open heart surgery. While bringing his food, we ended up having a genuine conversation about life and how things changed over the years. He was a sweet man and his wife eventually came and sat down with me. The short conversation I had with him made me realize that the future is changing and not many people stop to have a genuine conversation. He said, and I quote, "You know, if you stop to have a conversation with someone the way you put everything down and came to me, there will be opportunities crawling your way." He chuckled and laughed and told me that I was becoming a fine lady and how I'd get far in life.

Not only did that boost my mood, it made me feel great that I was able to make his day a bit brighter as well. There wasn't any sugar-coated lies and what not. The couple I was able to talk to started the week bright and it was a great feeling when he waved back at my as his wife drove away.