MetroDocs: First Rotation (3rdyr - 2ndsem)

We had our first duty for this semester at Metro Docs. It is located at Rizal. We stayed there for 4 days (Graveyard Shift). The hospital is not that big but it sure is clean and comfy (basing on the ambiance) and it’s really far from where I’m coming from (Makati) I need to transfer rides five times before reaching the destination. The place within the hospital’s vicinity is actually nice since it’s full of commercial establishments. We’re assigned in the ward and it’s nothing new for me. My groupmates are also retained (except for three, so they were replaced by new people that I also know) so there’s no hassle when it comes to working relationship.
Having the duty on the ward was not really my favorite because it’s like a never ending routine without that much of action compared to OR/DR cases. I’m still doing my job though, even if taking Vital Signs was boring, I have to because as what is stated.. it is VITAL and it’s my responsibility too.


First day
Muri (my group mate/sis/friend) shared duties for one patient. She would take the RR/Temp and I’d take the BP/PR. Our patient has been diagnosed with CAP (if I’m not mistaken) She’s 73 years old and has so many contraptions (IVF, ET, NGT) She can’t even talk and she looks so weak and pale. I was the one assigned by our Clinical Instructor for the first feeding (via Nasogastric Tube) it was my first time in the real setting and I find it fun. Our patient responses by just nodding her head and rasing her eyebrows whenever I ask her questions or whenever I knock at the door and tell her that I’d get her VS and whether it is Normal.
My groupmates and I had fun together we always talk about The Walking Dead, Zombies, Ghost stories, Movies and stuff, we’d also like to exchange jokes just for us to be kept awake.


Second Day

I’ve got the same patient in the second day but now, I’m by myself because there’s a lot of patient in the ward that day. I was the one responsible for taking her VS every hour. She seems to be recovering because she’s a lot energetic than she was in our first day and she seems happy. I, again was instructed to feed her and change her IVF, the usual things you do in the ward. At the last hour for taking VS, I said goodbye to her and her significant other watching her. We’ll not be seeing each other for a week and I’m also not certain by that time if she would still be there or if she would be discharged.


Third Day
Our group is starting to cram, again. I hate it because our sub-group never had those kind of experiences when it comes to deadlines and paper works requirements. Maybe it’s because our new leader doesn’t also know us all that well yet. I don’t know, I wish we could make this work our for the whole sem, because we have to. Aside from me, doing the AnaPhy for the case, I also started to edit the Initial Data Base and the other information needed in the Functional Health Patterns of our case. There’s just too much to revise and add on from what my other group mate has done.
I’ve got a new patient also this time. He’s a 2-year old kid and he’s situation is not that critical compared to my first patient. There’s a lot of drama this day because we’re all stressed on how to handle our time for there’s also an upcoming orientation 5 hours after our shift (WHAT IS SLEEP?!) But I can’t complain, I wanted this and I have to live with it no matter what.
Just an hour before we’re about to be allowed to go home, one of the patient had Cardiac Arrest. It’s just sad because who wants that kind of situation anyway? And I also received a news from one of the staff nurse that my previous patient (73 y/o) has died few days after our duty. Muri and I were really shocked because she seems to be recovering at the time we left.

Final Day
All of us (the group) are deprived from quality sleep. We all look like we’re pandas and zombies. I’m just thankful that it is the last day and we’re gonna have some deserved rest after. The afternoon before the shift, we had our orientation at PNPGH. It’s our group’s second time to be in there.
My patient this time was a young girl with DHF. She’s having fever still so we need to monitor her closely but because of case pres, we’re not that required to look after her (the staff nurses are the one’s doing the job for the shift) We presented our case and there’s a lot of correction to be made. The lack of supporting details especially the laboratory results and diagnostic examinations ruined it all. We should have planned it better. I wish we can bounce back and have a better requirement to pass the next rotation.
What I’ve learned about this rotation: TEAM WORK really matters. SLEEP is priceless for Nursing (as always and good time management can save you from toxicity. I wish we’d have a better performance next rotation. Oyeah!