May 6-12 National Nurses Week…

There are nearly 3.1 million registered nurses in the United States; 2.4 million of them are employed according to the ANA and every year, we celebrate and honor these nurses. The celebration begins on May 6, which is National Nurses Day and ends on May 12, Florence Nightingale’s birth anniversary. Some interesting statistics about our…

“Single Use” Only = Safe Injection Practices

Last February 2010, I wrote a blog when I observed some nurses re-using syringes. I couldn’t believe that a nurse would actually re-use a syringe but it happened and I was there to see it.  Here’s my blog post in case you missed it…“Single Use Only” I wanted to believe that it was an isolated…

“Is there a doctor on board?”

I was on a 6am flight and like the rest of the passengers, l was sleeping.  As the plane cruised at 30,000 feet and everyone sleeping on board, this announcement came over the PA system…“Is there a doctor on board?” Ok, even though I was just waking up, I knew what the announcement meant…someone on…

Better late than never….

I can’t believe I totally missed it… the start of “Break Cancer” WordPress World Record to mark the beginning of National Young Adult Cancer Awareness Week!!!  Sadly I did…but as the saying goes…better late than never. 🙂 It’s hard to think that adolescents and young adults (AYA), ages 15 to 39, are diagnosed with cancer.…

No joke…2011 CDC Guidelines is now available…

The long awaited update to the 2002 CDC Guidelines for the Prevention of Intravascular Catheter -Related Infections was released today April 1 by the  Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Healthcare Infection Control Practices Advisory Committee (HICPAC). The 2011 guidelines  outline steps to eliminate bloodstream infections in patients with intravenous catheters, which…

Contaminated IVs….

Anything with the letters…”IV” catches my attention immediately then I’m all over the article/topic or whatever the letters are attached to. More so when the word…”CONTAMINATED” appears before it. CONTAMINATED IVs…ugh, not something an infusion nurse want to see or hear at anytime. My heart broke when I saw the news about the 9 patient…

Calculating and counting drops…

When was the last time you have counted the drops on your patient’s IV? Thanks to the marvels of infusion pump technology, for many of us, it may have been a while and to some of our new colleagues, perhaps none of them have actually counted drops. Why bother with such unimportant matter? Is it…

March 19 National Certified Nurses Day

Are you a certified nurse? It’s a day to recognize you and other board certified nurses in many nursing specialties.  Congratulations! Certification is a profession’s official recognition of achievement, expertise, and clinical judgment. It is a mark of excellence that requires continued learning and skill development to maintain.  I have been a “CRNI” – certified registered…

New drugs….new hope!!

Several new treatment options for chronic illnesses have received FDA approval in the last few months. Among them are two biologic agents administered intravenously for chronic refractory gout in adults (September 2010)  and the other is for Lupus, a serious autoimmune disorder (March 2011). Krystexxa (pegloticase) has been approved by the FDA  for patients with…

Hello to Florence….

that is, Florence Nightingale. During a recent business trip to England, I decided to stop by London for a quick visit with friends. Certainly a lovely city to visit with all the wonderful historical attractions. Like many tourists, I boarded the tour bus with a tour guide providing live commentary. As we approached the area …