Pages

Sunday, December 5, 2021

A Day in my Life

Can you believe - it's December!  Here's how my first day of the month went.

It was a bit of an unusual day.  Tues night, I got a call that the night nurse had called in. Our Director of Nursing was already working the evening shift and had been there during the day, so I said I would come in to work at 10:30 pm.  I took a little nap and came to work... so I started my December 1 at work.

Here is one hall, looking very quiet.  However, it really wasn't.  One man was near death.  His son and wife were at his bedside and we were frequently in the room checking him.  He passed away about 3:30 am.  Another man was up at the nurses station with me.  He wasn't tired and just wanted to talk.  Another lady was up and very confused.  She was sure she should be getting ready to go somewhere and was upset that I wasn't calling her daughter to come pick her up.  She agreed to wait until morning, and settled down with some cookies and milk.  :)


At about 2:30 in the morning, I had a call from the pharmacy delivery person saying he was coming with our med delivery, but would also have our new IV tote.  When these delivery's come, there is a lot of checking and signing that has to be done to make sure what was supposed to come, really did come, and then signing that you have accepted it.

There is a med pass that needs to be done between 5 and 6 am; with meds that should be taken on an empty stomach.  That takes about 45 minutes, and then there is the never ending charting that needs to be done.

Because I had a death on my shift, there was extra paperwork and phone calls to be made, but I was ready at 6:30 when my replacement came. I gave report and we also have to count all the narcotics to make sure nothing is missing.


Then I went to my office to get some things done.  My office is getting emptier every day.  At this time I had only a few more days in this position so I'd been sorting things out, cleaning off the bulletin board and trying to organize so the next person would find it easy to find things and work here.


The nurse who replaced me, knew that I had worked the night without much sleep, so she brought in a Frappuccino to keep me going!  :)
I got a bunch of paper work done, and also prepared charts for the doctor visits the next day.
I left about 9:30 am.


 

Look what I saw on the way home!  The long horn cattle were out.



I think they are majestic animals.




I came home, emptied out the bag of things I had taken from the office; a sign, photo, fan, pens, cup...

I crawled into bed a little after 10.


I got up at 2:30.  (I couldn't sleep for too long or I would have trouble sleeping that night)


I sat and did some work on our Christmas cards.


Bob came home around 3:30.  He had picked up our groceries. I order our groceries online and we just have to pull in and pick them up. That worked out very well on this day!



We had a simple supper I had in the crockpot - pulled pork sandwiches.

After supper, Bob went to church for a mens group gathering.


I had some chicken that I wanted to make some freezer meals with.  Here's the pasta cooking and the beginning of a sauce.



Here are two pans of Tuscan Chicken...





and two bowls of Cheesy Chicken soup, all ready for the freezer.


Then it was time to relax, and off to bed at 10pm.
Another good day!

 

18 comments:

Debi said...

Somehow I totally missed the post about you changing jobs! I scrolled back until I found it... congratulations on your new position. It certainly sounds like it will be a good change for you. It's hard to leave a place that you love and have been at for so long. I wish you the very best of luck.

Ginny Hartzler said...

Your kitchen looks like mine. And I have the exact same little fan, a Vornado. I am so happy for you that you will now have a nine to five job with regular hours. I am assuming you will be the nurse for one of the docors. and there won't be as much running around, either!

Joyful said...

You had quite the start to the month. It's a good thing you are an organized person so you know how to prepare and plan ahead for some things like the freezer meals and so on. I wish you a blessed December.

Anni said...

I'd be exhausted!!
For your sake, I will be happy for you with your new job.

Kerin said...

Mari, this post sure brought back a lot of memories for me.
I worked the graveyard shift on an Alzheimer's unit when I was pregnant with our first child...many years ago.
Our DON was wonderful and even crocheted a darling little blanket for our first baby :)
I'm so happy for you to have your new job, and spend more time with your husband and family.

Warm wishes.
~K.

Jean said...

Totally amazing what you get done in a day, Mari!!!

I'm so excited to hear more about your new job! And I'm so happy for no more call-ins for you!

Changes in the wind said...

I would think it would be hard to sleep at such odd hours but glad you can. I am glad you will not have to work all the night and week ends with the new job and they will be hard to find anyone as good as you have been to replace you.

Jeanette said...

I had to look back to see the post where you mentioned your new job! It sounds like a great opportunity! No nights or weekends and no on call is perfect! I hope you love it!!

R's Rue said...

Your meals look delicious. I loved this post.

Jenny the Pirate said...

Oh Mari! I am so glad that this era in your life is over. That work schedule sounds grueling. BUT now it's Christmas and as usual you have everything well in hand, and then a new job which I just know you will love! I can't believe you had what it took to make those freezer meals that night. I would have been snoozing in front of the TV. You should have been a Home Ec teacher! And I mean that as a high compliment. xoxo

Barb said...

All the very best to you on your new job. I think we are all very happy for you and hope you are pleased with all the changes.
Any chance you could give us the recipes (or the link to them) for the Tuscan Chicken and the Chicken Soup? They both look so delicious.
Thanks, and best wishes to you.

happyone said...

Wow that was some busy productive night and day.
How nice that the nurse brought you a Frappuccino!
Wonderful to see the long horn cattle. Have never seen any of them around here where I live.

Sparky said...

Gosh, you're tougher than me. I can't pull all nighters like that. I'm the one that would be on med's if I did. *lol* Well done.
The food looks scrumptious. This ordering on-line and picking whatever up is nice. I'm totally spoiled with it 'cause I don't like shopping.
Blessings. xx

Suemn said...

I'm still sad that you have to leave your job because you are so good at it and love the residents but I totally understand why you need to leave and I am glad for you at the same time. You'll be very happy to not have to work those overtime hours that you've been so gracious in working and you'll definitely have a better life balance. Your pasta meals look delicious!

Terri D said...

They are going to miss you, Mari, but I am so happy for you to have regular hours and more time at home. God bless nurses everywhere. Have you given us those recipes? The casserole and the soup look delicious!! :) xo

Doris said...

what a day. And I know it's repeated over and over in that environment. God Bless every nurse!! God Bless you, Mari ❤

Arlene G said...

I am so glad you are going to a job that is less demanding.....they will really miss you at the nursing facility. Good luck on the new job.

Catherine said...

It look like you have two or three days in one!
So busy! I hope you new job will leave you some quiet moments! Good luck for your new job!