ICU Observation/ GC Activities

Responsibilities:

• Observation

New knowledge or skills:

• Rooms with yellow coverings with PPE in them means that those patients are isolated
• A goal in the ICU is to make the patients as comfortable as possible
• Hand washing and sanitizing every surface (keyboards, tables, door knobs) is important to keep germs  that can harm the patients from spreading
• The ratio of patients to nurse is 2 to 1 in the ICU

Best thing that happened:

• I was allowed to help reposition a patient

Worst thing that happened

• It was a slow day and the nurses had already finished all of their runs

This week was: Bad

I was excited to go to the ICU but there was not very much going on that day.

Technology Experience Record:

The technology I observed was medicine given through an IV.
Some patients were on heart monitors.
Crash cart was in the ICU.

Diagnostic Procedures Observed:

None 

Therapeutic Procedures Observed:

Vaccines, oxygen therapy

Medical Terminology Abbreviations Encountered:

DNR- do not resuscitate
PPE- personal protective equipment

ICU Journal:

I was excited and looking forward to going to the ICU this week. But, the day was relatively uneventful. I was disappointed. I saw vaccines given, IV's changed and blood pressure taken. None of this was new to me.

One patient was getting transferred to medical surgery. That patient happened to be the nurse's patient that I was shadowing. Many of the patient's rooms were isolated, so I was not able to observe in those rooms. Again, not very much was going on in the ICU today.

A patient was not breathing properly and they were already hooked up to a machine to help them breath. The nurse changed the patient's IV and gave them some pain medicine.

Another patient was slumped too far down in the bed. They were entangled in the wires attached to all of the machines. We had to reposition the patient to make them more comfortable and make sure the wires were not tangled up.

The nurse was explaining to me that everything is electronic and the doctors can give orders electronically. After the doctor's order is completed ( Ex.give medicine to patient) it is charted and the amount of medication is recorded. 

GC Journal:

I was assigned activities in the Garden Bridge area of the nursing home this week.  I went to the activities room to see the head Activities Nurse. She told my partner and I to bring the board games into the room. Our task was to get the residents involved in playing the games. The games included Go Fish, Candy Land, and Chutes and Ladders. I had to explain to the residents how to play Go Fish and what the rules were. I thought that was strange since I have been playing this game since I was very little. I thought everyone knew how to play. After explaining the rules, we helped them play and get cards for them. The residents were very excited when they got a book (4 of a kind). I was glad to see them having fun and getting involved. Time went by fast because we were all having fun. Suddenly, I realized it was time to go. Everyone was glad we there that day to play games with them. Overall it was a fun experience.

Myths and Facts about Aging

Myths:

• People 65 years and older have moderate to severe memory impairment
• Most people 65 years and older have a moderate to severe disability
• You will live in a nursing home if you live long enough
• If an older person has been a life-long smoker there is no point in quitting it will not matter 

Facts:

• Long term memory remains even though short term memory declines
• The majority of people 65 years and older are not disabled
• Less than 5% of people 65 years and older live in the nursing home
• First off it is never to late to quit smoking. Quiting make it eaiser to breathe and blood flow increases

It is important for a healthcare worker a to differentiate between myths and fact with aging. For example, diagnosing, healthcare workers do not want to diagnose their patient incorrectly, and knowing these myths and facts allows healthcare workers to give the best care they can possible give.