1/30 Journal for Day Surgery

Questions

What were your responsibilities or duties this week?
-Observe the tasks of RNs


What new knowledge or skill did you  learn this week?
-Learned about wound care
-Learned about port maintenance

What was the best thing that happened at the site this week?
-Met the one of the most interesting patient with sickle cell anemia


What was the worst thing that happened at the site this week?
-There was no definite person to follow so I just jumped to people
-I wanted to be there longer

This week was GOOD.

Experience Record

Technology observed:
Some interesting technology I saw, which I didn't really see, was a port. A patient had a port on the left side of their chest due to how many times they had their blood taken. It is a faster and easier approach for taking or giving blood without having to go find veins.


Diagnostic procedures observed:
I did not see anything be diagnosed. The patients I saw were already diagnosed and they were just going through regular therapeutic procedures.


Therapeutic procedures observed:
I saw the cleaning of a surgical wound. It was not really pretty. It was a long procedure that involved lots of tape, some sponge, and a strong disinfectant. The nurse had to be very through due to the fact that it was a foot and it was not allowed to get wet so foot infections are a high possibility.


Diseases/disorders observed:
There was a patient who had part of their foot removed due to an infection of some kind, I believe. There was also a patient with sickle cell anemia, who came in for a port cleaning and check up.


Medical terminology encountered:
Sickle Cell Anemia is a disorder in where the red blood cells become curved shape like a sickle. It is due to abnormal strands of hemoglobin. It causes 'traffic jams' in the blood stream which does not allow the blood to oxygenate the extremities easily.

Journal

The unit was rather quiet when I was there. All the equipment was to the sides of the wall and the nurse's station was clean of any paperwork. Which in a way was proof that it was an easy day but then again it meant little for me to do. In one of the patient's rooms I was in there was not much equipment at all. The room itself was rather small too. There was only the small cleaning station which included a sink, counters and some cabinets which held medical equipment, I would assume. There was the patient's bed right in the center of the room; there was a chair right next to the bed. Other than that it was a rather uninteresting room, I believe it is for outpatients due to the fact that they would not need lots of big, expensive equipment if they will only be there for a short time.

The whole time I was there, I did not get to see the nurses interact much. I spoke to only four nurses the whole time. Each of them was very nice, and tried to find something interesting for me to do or observe. They seemed genuinely sorry that there was nothing 'cool' or 'interesting' for me to see while I was there. That, however, is all just depends on whose point of view it is. I believed the port cleansing and wound care to be fascinating to see, no matter what.

I learned that one' veins can gain 'scar tissue' if they are 'poked at' a lot. A port is helpful if this becomes the case for some patients. The port is under the skin, which is one of the weirdest things ever. It spans about six or so inches of the chest and is made of a hard material. It is so odd feeling it under skin. It's funny how feeling a port under skin un-nerved me more than seeing a foot being held by some stitches and having a 'chunk' of it missing. I also learned that a port has to be maintained by cleanings at least every month, if not, it will clog up and become useless. The patient admitted to trying to have their port cleaned every two months. After the fourth month, it clogged and they had to have it moved to the other side of their chest. They say they learned their lesson from that.

All in all, I had a fantastic time. The nurses I did interact with were horribly nice, and the patients I met were even kinder. They both were willing to talk about themselves and help educate me in either who they were or what happened to them. Some patients are not that receptive but the two I met were, which I am glad for. I learned that on has to have the right mindset to be a RN in anything, including Day Surgery. They see a wide spectrum of patients and illnesses, which they have to meet with the same calm composure without freaking out. That, I am not so sure I can do.