Pre-placement visit and First proper day.

Last Friday was my pre-placement visit to my placement, I got there and spent about 2 1/2 hours there, met a couple of the patients and got chatting to some of the staff, and then got invited to sit in on the handover which was quite interesting as it helped to hear about the patients and what has been going on with them and how they are doing. Saw the pharmacist too and she said if there was anything I wanted to know just to ask her, so I mentioned about certain drug calculations I have been having trouble with and she said to make a list and then come and see her next with it and she will help me. GREAT, that makes me feel tons better :)

Fast forward to yesterday and my 1st day of placement, Arrived really early for my shift which started at 1pm and then got chatting to my mentor and some of the other staff and saw some more patients, also there were the other 2 students that are also on placement on my ward but they were both doing the early shift so only got the get to know then for about 2 hours before they left for the day. Lucky we all have different mentors so it does not get confusing plus we all have sub-mentors too so that there is always someone about. Shame that my mentor and sub mentor are both off for the next 2 weeks from today...EEEEEEKKKKK....But I don't think that will be too much of a problem as everyone is so nice and easy to chat to and get help from that I am sure I will be OK.

Had a long chat with my mentor about what learning outcomes I can reach while on my placement within reason, so have got my 3 to aim for, first being communication and then 2nd being drug administration and the 3rd being observations. So I have now got to work on filling in the rest of the relevant sections that I have not done already and then get observed doing this too so that I can be signed off to say that they believe me to be competent.

Walked around the ward getting to know the patients and through out the day was told some bizarre and quite interesting stuff by different patients, it had already opened my eyes so much I can tell you. Got the chance to use their "RIO" database where all the patient records were kept and started reading the notes of patients that I had met and so I could connect their faces and names to their case history, some of the things these people have gone through, it's no wonder they are suffering from psychotic episodes.

At one point I was left on my own in the office while everyone was doing stuff and I was still looking at patient notes, I think the full moon might have something to do with the randomness of the evening for sure, one person wanted to use the phone to call hi mum, another wanted to ring for a pizza, someone was ringing the buzzer to get in (I hadn't been shown how to let people in) but I couldn't, then a guy's brother was leaving after his visit and gave me £25 for him to put in the safe, hadn't been shown how to do that either, one of the other phones started ringing and 2 patients were standing at the door needing attention. To say I was a little overwhelmed was an understatement, but I decided to prioritise what I could do first, so the buzzer and the phone had to wait while I dealt with the patients at the door. But I have to say I quite like working the late shift.

My mentor left me go 45 mins early, I think she was feeling generous and she was there when I arrived early so I'm sure that must of impressed her even though she didn't say it.

Today I start my 2nd day, and it's another late shift, This time I am taking in lunch, it is far too cold to trek about to the shops to buy food...

Oh and better locate my wooly scarf...my neck will thank me for it :)

Trust induction day and pre-placement visit

Yesterday I had my trust induction ready for when I start my placement on Monday, there was about 20 of us there all mental health students from various classes in our cohort, In my class I am the only MH student (the rest are child or adult). Many of them seemed to know each other so I felt a little left out, it seems a shame that when they divvied up the classes they didn't put more than one of each discipline in each class. So I will effectively have to wait until next year when we are split into our branch classes to properly meet and make friends with some other mental health students. I def felt like the last kid picked for PE back in the days of school.

Anyway I made the effort to chat to some others and the day was quite all right, I heard from my friends who went to their branch trust induction days that their's were quite boring. We got to hear from 2 different service users who were quite interesting to hear their stories and then other stuff relevant to our placements etc, we even got a free hot meal for lunch provided, more than what my friends received.

Today I rang my placement again and confirmed that I will be going in tomorrow for my pre-placement visit which is to last about 3 hours or so and what it was OK to wear as we don't have to wear our uniform there, so I didn't want to turn up looking too business like or too comfy, sticking out like a sore thumb is something I want to steer clear from. So I have to be there at 1pm which I am quite glad of as my friend is at her's from 7:30am eeeek!!!

Tonight I have spent the evening deciding on what to wear and filling out some of my practice learning document, there is so much stuff to it and it is so confusing, many bits we can do now before we start placement so why not get the bits done I can actually do, and then I might actually get some rest when I get home from placement instead of sitting up late filling out the dam thing. Why don't universities make it easier to understand? I might even treat myself to an early night tonight, how lucky am I?!

Will let you know how tomorrow goes when I return... fingers crossed it goes well for me :)

Finished finally and now on to other things

Yipppeeeee, I have finished my annotated bibliography, don't know why I was so bothered about it, but its all done and out the way ready to be handed in on Friday.

Sooo, the next 2 days are going to be filled with looking at the "Mental health act" and all the different things I may be doing during my first placement and reading up on Friday's skills session, urine analysis etc.. Plus I am also going to do more maths, like nursing calculations and re-do my test to try and get a better score. As well as that my plan is to read some more on the cardio-vascular system to embed it into my brain, if I read it enough ill understand it and then it will stay in my brain!!! Well that's the plan anyway, I can only but try haha

Time for bed now, so good night :)

I am confused dot com (PLD document)

Today I had to go to an important lecture at uni, it was all about how to fill out our PLD or Practice learning document in long, and I am telling you it was the most confusing lecture ever!!! I came away from it with no idea what had to be filled in when, they do NOT make it easy for you at all, I start my placement so soon and I am going to be freaking out that I am not doing it right or I have made a mistake or something.. Talk about making something that was relatively hard, much harder. I have noticed at least 2 greys hairs I'm sure since I started uni almost a couple of months ago.



Rang my placement today and asked to speak to the person who is meant to be my mentor, she was not there as she is on nights starting tomorrow so I have to remember to ring up the ward from 10pm tomorrow night, well at least I wont get interrupted by my noisy 2year old daughter while I'm on the phone as she will be snoring her head off by then. I am just so excited to find out my shifts and to go and visit the ward..

Right I'm off to complete my annotated bibliography that I didn't end up starting last night in the end and decided to wait until this evening,but go me, iv'e already done a 3rd of it already. So might even finish it tonight :)

procrastinating

I should be making a start on my annotated bibliography right now, so why am I on here?

I have flicked back and forth to facebook, studentnurse.org and my uni blackboard so many times its unreal. I need a sharp kick up the bum!!!

I have only got to read 3 things, all of them I have read before, and then write 150 words on each one about it and what I thought and whether I thought it was informative etc.. So why the hell am I doing everything except that? It is due in this Friday, Granted we only got given it last week so it is not like I have had it for ages and not done anything about it, but still it is not even that difficult and I am avoiding it like the plague.

I am almost tempted to go to bed and continue reading my book I have on my kindle application on my I-touch called "Room" its a brand new book out, think of that "Fritzl" bloke who kept his daughter locked up in a cellar for years and then you will get the gist of what I am reading about. So far so good. My back also hurts, does it really hurt or because I am trying to find another excuse not to do my work?

Hmmmmm, might just give it another look, see how I get on, can't hurt can it?

Handed my 1st essay in. Phew!

Today was the hand in date for my 1st essay. So last night I finally finished putting together my references at the end of my essay, did I tell you how much I hate having to do referencing before, well if not I DO!!! It is hard enough writing the flipping thing for then to have to make sure you have put the reference on properly at the end. Why can the not just all be the same as well, I mean you have the Harvard referencing and then there are other types, it would make it much easier to have everybody using the same to stop confusion. RANT OVER...

Put my completed essay through "Turnitin" which is this special programme the university uses to check your work for any plagiarism and was very happy with my result. But boy it was nerve racking as all I could think was "I hope I didn't read something and then use it in my essay forgetting that I have read it and thinking it is my own idea" Today I handed in the hard copy to the teacher, so hopefully if all goes well I shall get my feedback from the essay next Monday. As it is only a formative essay it wont be graded but will have feedback and advice on how good it is and where I might need to work more on my subject etc.

Some other people in my class had a huge percentage of their work showing as similar mine was only 17% which is very good as that was basically the references and the title and statement used by everybody in the beginning which we then have to argue it within the essay, makes you wonder how people can have such a high similarity mark... considering the essay was only 750 words for someone having 40% that's almost half their entire essay!!

Right I'm famished and need to eat some food and relax for a bit, only just got in from uni and I have lots of homework to do this evening, got an annotated bibliography to start and finish by this Friday and I am still not quite sure how to do it yet, so need to crack on with that..

The respiratory system, peak flow, blood pressure and temperature (+ me feeling ill)

Another Friday done and dusted. Today back at uni and back in our nursing uniforms, started off the day with a different teacher as our one was off sick!!! But it showed us that so far we do not seemed to have learnt as much as we should. This teacher was going through the stuff we have done on the cardiovascular system and also skin, Well all I can say is it is time to get my head even more stuck in the books than before. He told us of the major tests we will be doing in February and it scared us shitless, do not want to fail because I feel I have not done enough...

Then in the afternoon for the skills session, we learnt about peak flow charts and how to do them properly, I learnt my lung capacity is not what it should be for my age, but all I can think of is that I am feeling unwell at the moment. We then did some more temperature taking, where I found out that I have a raised temperature and with the way I am feeling now this evening (glands started to get swollen and sore throat and headache) I can foresee that tomorrow I shall be feeling quite rough... *sigh*

We had another practice at doing blood pressure and I am getting even better at it now, and then lastly I took a few pictures of things that were going on in our skills room. Overall it was quite day, tomorrow I assuming I feel well enough will be doing much more reading and trying to get some of this anatomy and physiology into my brain...

Got my 1st Placement details today

So today I got my first placement details, I am now even more excited and nervous..


My god I hope I get a lovely mentor and that I can survive it for 6 weeks.. It looks like it could be quite a stressful time as well as exciting, I hope I do not fall apart, but they say what does not kill you makes you stronger!!

Feeding, dressing and washing + HOMEWORK!!!!!

Friday was our skills day, We had to feed another person and let them feed us, bought some yoghurt on the way to class as we were told prior as this is what would be fed to us. Emily and I worked together, feeding each other 1st with facing each other, taking it in turns, this felt really weird and I think it must make a patient feel quite uncomfortable to be fed like this, rather intimidating. Then we had to sit next to each other feeding from the side, it also felt weird but not as much, but much less intimidating than the other way.

Then we had to do the same but with our eyes shut (patient) while being fed, this was strange but I suppose we have to understand what it would feel like to a patient in this position. After that the next part of the class was to in groups of 4 to deal with a scenario, there were dummies placed in situations where we had to either change their bedding while they were still in it, give them a bedbath, or help a patient with only one arm wash herself and put her nightie on and take her hospital gown off. We had to pretend they were real people and talk to them and do everything as if they were real. Gave me an insight that everything is not as easy as it looks, I did feel a little stupid as they we dummies but well its the next best thing I suppose.

We also got more chance to practise taking each other's blood pressure, I am getting the hang of it and am waiting for my spygmomanomiter to arrive in the post from ebay so I can practice on my family at home, we are going to be tested on this so got to get it correct. Finding the pulse can be quite hard sometimes, I know in one arm my pulse feels quite strong and in the other its quite weak, so will make sure my partner for the test does it on my strong arm, just to help.

We also did some class work on skin, so many notes to take but I noticed my anatomy and physiology book has everything in it so decided only to take a few notes and refer back to my book.

Went to a halloween party that night and decided that Sunday will be dedicated to continuing my uni work, I have to hand my essay in by next Monday which I still have a little bit to do including one reference plus an annotations piece of work which is due in in just over a week, I am not even sure what this means, but will speak to my teacher and get some advice. Plus I have a group work presentation due to be done in front of the class in January which is 20 minutes long and includes a powerpoint and presentation, this is about a scenario that we were given and we have to decide who the main people involved in the person's care is and then talk about what they do, then choose one of the 3 main people and go into a complete breakdown of their role and how they would participate in the care of the patient in our scenario, this involves us meeting up as a group and working out how to do this, who will say what, who is involved in our care plan etc.

I also till have to do the various bits of work we need to do for preparation for each lesson, my lessons are Monday and Friday, so today is a busy day indeed. I don't have much time to do my group work either even though it is due in January I will be on placement from 22 Nov till 19 Jan and so it has to be started ASAP...

Oh and somehow I have to fit in playing with my daughter and having dinner and getting everything ready for uni and the childminder tomorrow. So not that much then..... Happy Halloween.....

Noisy students and uniform day again..

Went into uni yesterday, nothing unusual about that but it was not the day I am usually in. I am going out tonight so I decided to go into uni and continue doing some more of my essay and finish off the case work we need to to do for today's lesson. Met Beth as she came out of her LDU 2 hour appointment (learner development unit) at the uni campus and got some lunch (have decided that the food in this campus is actually rather good) got my self a jacket potato with cheese and bacon with radio active salad (green leaves with bright red covered in some strange sauce red cabbage) it did look illuminated..

Then we went to the library, this campus is supposed to be the best one from our uni as it has the best nursing books, well there were not computers free, the computers areas that they have were small and badly spaced, not so good. So we went to another building where there is another computer room (not so good, not near the library) but found some computers, sat down and started to get work out. All of a sudden the fire alarm went off just GREEEAT!!! Thankfully it went off again after a few mins and we did not get escorted off the building (this does not leave me with much hope if there is a real fire though) Back to work and then BANG, BANG, BANG, it seems that they have an electronic stapler which everyone seemed to be using and my gawd it made such flipping noise, every time someone wanted to staple something it shook me to the core!

I was starting to get slightly fed up and could not concentrate, then another guy decided to take a call on his phone on loud speaker, "I mean is he serious?" I said to Beth, I promptly complained to the woman at the desk who gave me a wimpish excuse about why she couldn't do anything!!! Back to work, decided to not do any more essay and do some more maths, but everyone was so load it was impossible to work out drug calculations in that room, gave up and decided to have a look something else. In the end the noise was just too much, we decided to call it a day and go home.

Great library but might not go there again...

Today we are back in our uniforms, we will be feeding each other, oh this should be fun, got to remember to buy some kind of yoghurt on the way to uni, no shops on my route wish I had the sense to pick something up on way home yesterday! Well better start getting dressed and will report back how the feeding went later on. Oh we are learning about skin today too...

Happy Friday :)

Drug Calculations Tests....ARGH!!!

Today was a day for maths. Maths has the ability to turn my brain into spaghetti junction.

I spent the afternoon with Emily and we worked through our drug calculations tests, my god, its enough to to turn anyone's brain to mush. but together we managed to work quite a few things out and got through some of the tests. These tests were like practice ones, we don't get officially marked on them, but they can see our attempts and where we are putting in the incorrect answers etc.

When I came home I had my dinner and then decided to continue with the drug calculations, I was going at a nice stead pace, or so I thought, but there is always a question to stump me!!!

Here is a list of the tests I did tonight when I got home:

38 drug_calculations_introduction_5_rights
39 time_24_hour_clock
40 configuring_drug_calculation_software
41 Oral medicines
42 drug_calculations_oral_1_tablets
43 drug_calculations_oral_2_liquds
44 drug_calculations_oral_3_measure
45 Injections: equipment & materials
46 injections_syringe_labelled
47 injections_ampoules_vials_1
48 injections_ampoules_vials_2
49 injections_syringe_insulin
50 Injection volumes
51 calculating_injection_volumes
52 injections_volumes_pethidine_1
53 injections_volumes_morphine_1

Some of these tests were filling in the blanks in a paragraph, some were just normal sums, some had only a few questions some had loads of questions, if you got a question wrong then it would tell you which ones you got right and the ones you got wrong so you could do it again. My head is hot right now, my brain on fire, I have worked hard this evening. Time for a rest!!!

Who ever said nursing was just looking after patients?! My god it is so much more and a cherry on top!!!!!

Health promotion, prevention, injections and being a wimp.

Today was spent in small groups during class discussing health promotion and health prevention "prevention is always better than cure" This last class has really helped to give me much more of an insight into how to continue my "different ways of looking at health" essay.

Tomorrow I am going to go to uni for the afternoon to the uni campus there and get stuck into my essay and some other uni work, got to be home though by 6pm to go to my appointment at my GP to see the nurse for a Hep B injection, I have to have this before I can go on my placements, I can categorically say I do not want to be injected with it, but that's cos I am a wimp and so I am def not going to want to have my MMR jab which I have since found out from a blood test they did at occ health at St Pancras Hospital that I am not immune, ARGH I hate injections... Time to man up though, if I am going to be a nurse better get over this fear quickly...

Took the evening off from studying tonight as what with the next 3 days being used to do lots of uni work I thought I'd treat myself with an early night. So I'd better get off this computer and go to bed soon....

So tired..Yawn

Well it's Monday morning and I am knackered, I have not slept a wink all night, I don't know why, it seems to be a recurring thing this past week, but now as I start to get myself ready to go to uni I know that the feeling of wanting to snooze off all day is going to be lying right beneath the surface and I will spend the day fighting it off.

But at least I managed to get up, alarm was set for 6:40am as usual and I did the usual snooze 2 times and got up at 6:50am, it is definitely getting harder now its winter. Brrr. OK better finish off my toast and get dressed, got to leave in 50 mins.

Sunday, Sunday

It is Sunday evening, I would love to sit here and do absolutely nothing other than have a bath and watch TV, but there are things I need to do in preparation for tomorrow's class and also going over my essay amongst other things.

1st I have to get my child to bed so I can have peace and quite to be able to read and take it in and it is impossible to attempt to try writing or reading when you have a child around that wants your attention every second you are not paying them any.

suffice to say I am itching to get started so I can then finish and relax...tick tock 8 o'clock...

Wearing my uniform

Yesterday was the first day of wearing our student nurses uniform to class. This is something we will have to do every Friday for our skills sessions. I had such a hard time on Thursday night though taking up the dam things, I mean they make them for the tallest people on earth and then the shortest people then have the task of taking them up. What a nightmare!!! (I hate wonderweb with a passion)

Anyway I was given a horrible pure white tunic to wear for my NHS trust placements and am in a minority of people, as the rest of the people in my class get to wear a much more user friendly blue and white striped tunics. I already got a huge tea stain on the front of mine, so you can see how the rest of the year is going to go. I will look like a rainbow by the end of it!!!

Spent the first half of the day writing stuff about different things from stuff we had shown to us on the overhead projector and then the second half of the day was in the skills room and we were back in our groups of 4 and taking each other temperature and also having another go at taking each others blood pressure. I think I have got the hang of the blood pressure taking but to be sure (as we have an assessment on this soon) me and a friend have gone halfs on a sphygmomanometer (blood pressure taking machine)so we can practice on each other, just waiting for it to arrive in the post.

Taking temperature is quite easy, although I couldn't quite get the hang of how to read the little disposable ones. But I might have just been being a bit thick! It is really quite hard to try and learn how to take someone's bloody pressure in a room with 20 other students all there, most of them talking while they are doing it which means trying to hear a pulse through the stethoscope with lots of voices to ass in to the mix (not easy)

I have to say though it was quite nice knowing I had to wear my uniform to uni and not have to think about what I was going to wear, the bonus of it was it was nice and warm so I didn't think I needed to wear more layers to keep warm in this typical british weather...brr..

Now it's time to enjoy a relaxing weekend and then come Monday, it will be back to work :)

So much reading to do (brainache)

Right now I am sitting at my computer and have been reading some of the stuff needed for Friday's lesson, the 1st thing I read was a long article from the "Nursing Times" called "Measuring Temperature" there is so much to get into your head, I just dont know how I will remember it all, the second article also from the "Nursing Times" is called "Applying the Key Principles of Nutrition to Nursing Practice".

I found the second article much more easier to understand, who knows why, maybe its because I love food?!

There are so many things for this course that have to be read that it looks almost impossible, I love reading, now its a matter of learning to love reading stuff that's not in my normal comfort zone. I have 3 years of this course so lets hope my this learning to love alternative reading material kicks in soon.

Tomorrow I am going to get my printer sorted, there is so much stuff for my modules I need to print out and read and its building day by day, I am from the old school and find reading much more enjoyable on a comfy sofa with a hard copy of something and and not sitting on the battered office chair which the cats of this house have mauled to pieces and reading off my computer monitor.

Well I suppose I should get back to my reading and then go to bed, where I shall get my I-touch out and start reading under the comfort of my duvet something my more to my "normal" taste a nice novel before nodding off to dream world..

Referencing

Why is referencing such a pain in the arse? It's hard enough writing the essay but then you have to make sure every bit of info you have used in there is properly referenced. I understand why etc, but that does not stop it being a prize pain.

I should be grateful that as this is my first essay which is only 750 words only need to have 3 references in it, I am not looking forward to starting one of my much bigger essays and the amount of references I will inevitably use as I can foresee the headaches that will accompany it...sigh...

1st assignment "Different ways of looking at health" almost done. Due date 8th November. I can see the trees through the clouds, if you see what I mean.

OMG i am a student mental health nurse!!!

So its my 4th week at university, I am studying mental health nursing, 2 years ago I would have never even thought that I would be doing what I am now, its crazy...maybe that's why I have ended up doing what I am... because everyone has always said I am a little mad.

I start my 1st placement on the 22nd November, yes I am scared and nervous, but if I can get through this and out the other side (its 6 weeks) without too much harm then I can rejoice. Got my student nurse uniform last week, its hideous, its a white tunic and navy blue trousers, bad fitting but that's the NHS for you, god knows how they expect me to keep a white tunic white, what with all the things I am sure ill be doing, nursing is not a clean sport I can tell you!!!

I am worried about my maths, as to be a nurse it is very important to be able to do drug calculations, my first test didn't go too well, must keep practising, it is hard as there is so much to do, what with assignments, homework maths work and researching by reading tons of books, journals and websites, honestly to be a nurse you need a few heads and a couple of extra brains to boot. I hope I can live up to the expectations...

Tomorrow is the first time I will not be going into uni,I have a funeral to go to, its so sad, but I will have extra catching up to do, but sometimes some things just have to take priority and being there for your nearest and dearest is paramount.