my own little kingdom in chicago
Career in nursing that began as a CNA. Followed by Registered RN, MSN Nursing Leadership and finally Family Nurse Practitioner post-master certification. Never stop learning – education, evidence-based research & practice and continued collaboration with colleagues.
Once you graduate, pass your licensure exam and obtain your state license as a Nurse Practitioner, your next step is to find a position. There are many options for Nurse Practitioners to start their career. One area that can be a flexible option for many is working in a Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF). Could this be the right position for you?
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Nurses are making the headlines now more than ever, most often the image of frontline workers in the COVID-19 pandemic. Before this virus was a household name, the World Health Organization had already declared 2020 the “Year of the Nurse”. What is the history behind the celebrations of the most honest profession for the past 18 years?
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You read that right. Shingles – that painful rash and blisters that’ll turn crusty can pop up right on your ear. Your EAR. I have worked in the hospital setting for fifteen years, seen numerous cases of shingles almost everywhere, but never just the ear. Now, after dealing with the aftermath of this for a month and finally feeling like there is a light at the end of the tunnel, I want to make sure everyone realizes what the wrath of shingles can do, how to recognize it and even how to prevent it.
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While I love writing about my kids, our trips, my crafts, and all the madness life can bring – I also love my job. Being a Family Nurse Practitioner allows me to care, treat, educate, reassure, and motivate patients to return to their optimum health. Since I found myself with too much free time, I wanted to do more with my nursing and nurse practitioner knowledge….and Nursing Decoded was created.
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We go to work when the world is asking people to stay home. We will take are of you if you’re sick.
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I really had high hopes for 2020. As an oddly quirky gal obsessed with numbers, I have been looking forward to 2020 for quite some time. My birthday falls on the 20th of the month (in October, the best birthday month of the year) so I really expected the year of “20” to be amazing. Inspiring. Game changer. Instead is started out pretty crappy and barely rebounded by the end of the month.
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Today, I woke up with a headache. Not a migraine, just an all-over-eye-strain-didn’t-sleep-right headache. With the headache came a bit of nausea. Then my nausea got a bit worse. Then I started to get worried. Last time I had this headache/nausea upon waking it didn’t end well. That morning, back in 2013, ended with vomiting & my second ER visit for A Fib (atrial fibrillation). This morning was eerily similar.
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It has been a year since my short stint as a patient. Thankfully after undergoing a cardiac ablation in 2017, I am happy to report that I have been A-fib free for an entire year. This experience has been quite educational not only as a human that will probably use a hospital again sometime in my life but especially since I spend my working hours as a Nurse Practitioner.
Nursing school is the ultimate test of organization. Organizing study notes, clinical hours, clinical notes, nursing diagnosis, medication side effects, disease processes…the lists are really endless. You’d think that once you graduate you would catch a break on having to keep track of so much. Not a chance. Aside from developing a fantastic resume to secure your dream job – you need to continue to track your CE/CEUs, memberships and all levels of licensure. Time to create your Nursing Portfolio. Read more
With a household of three boys, quiet isn’t a phrase that it uttered here often. It is loud. All. The. Time. From the moment they wake up (usually in the 6 o’clock hour even on the weekends) until lights out (10pm if I’m lucky), our house is noisy. To combat all this noise, I usually have to be louder then the boys. Even before the three boys I was known for my ability to “project” my voice. Even with my volume ability it never fails that someone “couldn’t hear me”. Because of this I didn’t give it much thought when Owen couldn’t hear me. Selective hearing was my assumption, not hearing loss. However, after a marathon month of hearing tests, it seemed our little Owen had some pretty crappy hearing. Read more