Can you remember your last good moment at work? A time or incident when something truly amazing happened? I find it too easy to remember the bad things that happen, while I often struggle to remember the good things that happen in the hospital environment. But the good does outweigh the bad, otherwise I wouldn't still be a nurse. One of the more memorable, feel good stories goes like this:

At 41 Mr Jones was very young to be needing vascular surgery, especially as he wasn't diabetic and as far as he was aware, he had no family history of circulation problems. But the supply of blood to his left leg was very poor and literally getting worse every day. "Will I be able to play gold again?" It was the night before Mr Jones' surgery and he had asked me this question several times over the shift. "If all goes well, I don't see why not" I replied. Only six months out of training but I knew never to give a definite answer. "Do you think it will go well?" It was the next logical question, but I chose my words very carefully. "Well, you're young, fit, no other health problems, don't smoke and hardly drink. You've got a better than many that I've known." He seemed to relax a bit at my words and let the matter drop. "See you sometime tomorrow afternoon" I said, making ready to leave the room. "If all goes well, I will" Mr Jones replied.

It's three thirty in the afternoon after Mr Jones' surgery and all seems to have gone well. He's still sleepy but he opened his eyes as I entered the room. "Think I'll be playing golf anytime soon" he smiled then drifted off back to sleep.

It was just as well that things had gone well with Mr Jones as I was so busy that I wouldn't have had time for things to go wrong. I had another patient due back from surgery sometimes after the evening meal, plus four other patients that were reasonable heavy. One was a stroke patients which was fully dependent, another was a prostate patient that was now 36hrs post surgery and still having reasonable heavy bleeding and in need of a blood transfusion. The other two patients were medical patients, one a male with congestive heart failure and the last patient, Mr Davis, with unstable angina. (heart pain)

At five o'clock I was seeing to Mr Davis as he had an episode of chest pain. At the same time the bell in Mr Jones' room began ringing, and didn't stop. "You'd better go answer that quick" Mr Davis said to me. He had been in and out of hospital so many times that he recognized a distress call. "He's probably sitting on the bell" I said, "But I better hurry and have a look. I'll be back in a second." I popped an oxygen mask on Mr Davis' face before leaving the room.

"What's wrong?" I asked Mr Jones as I walked in the room. Whatever it was it looked bad. His faced was screwed up in agony and he was clutching his leg. "Please do something, the pain, it's unbearable" he pleaded. His left leg was swollen, hot, and I couldn't feel a pulse in his foot. I called the doctor immediately.

Within five minutes the junior doc and the registrar were standing at Mr Jones' bed. "What' wrong doc?" Mr Jones managed between moans of pain. "We're going to have to take you back to theater" the registrar said, "It could be a clot, or the graft has failed. We'll know for sure when we open it up." The next hour passed in a blur. By the time I eventually saw Mr Jones off to theater, it was six thirty in the evening.

I wanted to rest, but I remembered Mr Davis and his chest pain. I had left him there with a mask on his face. I just hoped he was ok. I'd completely forgotten about him. I entered his room expecting the worst. "How you feeling?" I asked Mr Davis. He looked up from his paper, "Quite all right" he said. "And your pain?" I queried. "All taken care of" he said, then went back to reading his paper.

I went to check on my other patients, as one was overdue to start his blood transfusion and the others needed some other intravenous medication. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw that the blood transfusion was started, and the medications given to all of my patients. I confronted the nurses in the office to ask who had done my work.

"We all did" Jan said to me. Jan had forty years of nursing behind her and was someone that anyone could turn to for sound advice. "But, no one has done that for me before" I stammered. My first six months of work since graduation had been spent in the gynaecology ward and I had been left to defend for myself. "That's how we do things here" Jan said matter of factly, "We look after each other." I was caught off guard by the rush of emotion that swept through me. I truly felt a part of this place.

-Years later I still vividly remember that moment and those words. To this day it still is the best run ward I have ever worked in and the patients received the best care in the world. We didn't always have the latest medical gadgets and medicines, but we had what mattered, people that care.

Hey CDNURSE, I am a newly graduatee LPn in need of a mentor. I have been searching and find your input very wise! Will you help me with comments on my email about your experiences and wisdom?? Sincerely, Jenelle

I was praying and praying for my vocational calling "make my life worth living, use my head, my hands and my heart to do your work" and life just didn't seem to answer. One day I put down my laptap, stepped out of my corporate high heels, slipped off the Rolex and tried on a pair of nurses shoes. My friends and family were livid, "you want to what, where, you have lost your mind, stay where you are, money, cars, houses, health insurance, blah, blah blablablahblah blah". I had a newly born, four day old CNA liscense when I applied for a job. I clicked the crystal beads of my rosary from child hood between my fingers praying. I waited so long for the interview that my foot fell asleep. The interviewer came to shake my hand and when I stood up, I fell down. I thought "okay this is not my calling" and she held me up and hobbled me into the interview. She asked "what brings you here and I answered "I prayed for my vocation and God has called me here". She hired me. I left and realized that I had lost my cherished crystal rosary! I was in a world far from the crystal chandeliers and conference rooms, cars and drivers, prada "not in Kansas anymore". Last week my happiest moment happened. I was leaning against the wall dripping with sweat trying to catch my breathe when a family waved me into the room. They stood silently, reverantly as their dear mother stood slowly from her chair, nine children, spouses and grandchildren watched as she looked into my eyes "you are were He has called you, thank you". She blessed my forehead with holy water as I sank to my knees. Then she pushed a black velvet box into my hands, I answered "thank you mother, I can not accept anything from a patient" she quipped. I am not the patient my husband is, accept". I opened the box slowly and there sparkling was a new crystal rosary exactly like the one I had lost the day I started. The mother wiped my tears away and pulled me to my feet "He sees your heart, live and work for Him, we and He are pleased with you". It is the last beautiful moment and I look forward to many more blessings and miracles through my work.

Jennell, Would be delighted to help you

I was less than 6 months out of school and having a particularly rough night on the floor of the LTC center I was working in. A new patient, Mr. Smith, was admitted to my unit wrongly. He was sundowning...badly. I was sitting at the desk charting...at that time we had to write everything still, so things were going a bit more slowly than they do today, and I looked up just in time to see this man give one of the CNAs a solid upper cut to her lower belly. I quite literally jumped over the desk, called for help to assist her to a spare bed where she started complaining of abdominal cramping. I learned at this time that she was 16 weeks pregnant. Concerned about her welfare, and the baby's I called the supervisor for permission to call an ambulance to transport her to the hospital...about a 20 minute drive via freeway...and was denied. When I went back to check vitals on this girl, she was stating that the cramping was not improving, and she just didn't "feel right". Here I learned that not only is she expecting, but she's also epileptic!!! My head starts spinning...what do I do? I called the DON to ask permission for an ambulance this time, and fully explained why I thought this was such a critical situation. For a second time I was denied, and was told to have another CNA drive her. My fear was that she'd seize in the car on the way., so the DON said, "Do what you think is right, but you cannot call an ambulance." I decided to drive this woman to the hospital myself, fully knowing that if anything went wrong, I may suffer repercussions from her and her husband. Well, I asked a couple of the girls to help her into a wheelchair while I went downstairs to bring my car to the front door. When they brought her out she was vomiting, and stated again that she didn't "feel well". Then she started seizing...I held it all together, but I thought I was going to lose my mind. She must have seized for nearly 5 minutes, she was just coming out of it as the ambulance pulled up. At the hospital it was discovered that the blow to her belly had literally twisted a portion of her bowel...she needed to have surgery. The child was born on time and healthy to very happy parents! Her husband gave me a big hug, and thanked me profusely while I cried (tears of joy, of course). I had been terminated for disobeying a direct order shortly after the incident, and that was probably for the best...I was happy mother and child had been delivered safely!

DaMomb: that was quite a story! You did the right thing. I worked in a nursing home where they did not want a ambulance called for a patient unless it was absolutely necessary. They said we were calling the ambulances too often and the nursing home had to "eat" the cost of the ambulance. I had a arguement with another nurse one night. I felt the patient needed to go to the ER. My motto is always, better be safe than sorry. She didn't want to call the ambulance because of the cost to the nursing home. That's ridiculous! I called the MD and got a order to send the patient out and called the ambulance. Calling an ambulance should depend on the condition of the patient, not whether it is cost effective or not. And in your case DaMomb: if you were in charge and felt the aid needed to be sent out (and you had good reason for thinking this) then it should have been up to you to make that decision. A good nursing supervisor would have listened to you. That's what is wrong with alot of these places, they don't care about their employees or the patients. It's always about the money!