1: Older lady with chest pain deemed non-cardiac - sent home at 4PM with a perscription for Nexium (the purple pill, have the commercials been effective at telling you what it's for?) and an appointment with a GI specialist.
2: Heart bypass patient going home tomorrow. Today's tasks: pacing wires pulled out (these are small wires that are actually screwed into the heart and run to the outside where they can be hooked to an external temporary pacemaker if needed) and stopping the wonderful drainage coming out of 2 old chest tube sites.
3: Slightly mentally retarded older diabetic who passed out in his driveway with a blood sugar of 500. On an insulin drip with every ONE HOUR BLOOD SUGAR CHECKS. The joy of my day... I also had to fix an unexplainably low potassium and magnesium.
4: Older lady with old right masectomy with a sternal plate placement that had worn through her chest. At the doctor's office the nurse said she looked at the lady's chest and saw metal staring back, not skin. Needless to say, they took that plate out. Now nice long mid-sternal incision with staples.
5: Arrived at 4 PM (yes, right when other patient was leaving, how wonderful) older stubborn man who came in to get a cath done to check his coronary arteries for blockages as a pre-back surgery ok for his heart. Results: RCA 60% blocked, LMain 80% LAD 90%. Layman's terms? WALKING HEART ATTACK. Plan: Lots of heart bypassing on Friday.
Tomorrow? 6AM date with one of the cardiothoracic surgeon's nurses for clinicals. How wonderful... I did say things would change a bit when clinicals started...
1 comment:
This sounded like a dinner table conversation with my parents.... ;) I'm glad you're really getting your feet wet at work! That's so neat. I have lots of respect for you! Hope you have a great week!
love ya,
tara
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