Hello all! Well, since I posted last, my semester has really
started winding down to an end, which is actually really hard to believe
because it seems like it just started! My honors project that I’ve been keeping
you updated on however, is reaching its half waypoint. Which is about where I
thought it would be at this point, so we’re staying on track. Over the past
week and a half I’ve continued to assess patients over 65 years in the ER and
gather collection data.
The biggest
obstacle I’ve faced over the past couple of weeks is conveying myself with a
sense of purpose in the ER; I know this sounds like a silly concept, but when
it gets crazy down there, the last thing the majority of the staff and patients
are worried about is a nursing student trying to gather data for a quality
improvement study (and rightfully so). Regardless of the chaos, I still have to
be persistent and vigilant to perform the cognition screens and collect the
data. Speaking with as much conviction as I can muster has helped with this.
Something
interesting that’s happened over the past couple weeks was I saw my first
“code” situation where a patient stopped breathing. I saw the rapid response
team come flying in with the crash cart not far behind them; as a
nurse-in-training, I could feel the adrenaline in the nurses (and in myself!).
Standing outside of the patients room observing, the tension and nervous
anticipation you could feel was almost electric; it made the hair on the back
of your neck stand on edge, your palms sweat, and your skin tingle. Even though
I wasn’t actively involved with the rapid response, I can see why being able to
“work a code” as a nursing student is a once in a life time experience and one
worth sharing!
Over
Christmas break, I think we should be about done with our data collection and
can finalize the data entry process. The week after Thanksgiving we will start
entering our data into analyzing software to give us an idea of where our
progress is at the half waypoint, which will be very interesting to see!
I know that
my project got off to a slow start, but at this point I am so excited about the
direction it’s heading, the experiences I’m gaining, and all of the doors it is
opening for me as well as for the future of patient care.
