Journal Entries
all wrapped up
Posted Dec 22, 2014
So i've finally finished placement for christmas brake
which also marks round about the half way mark for this placement... which means I should really remind my mentor and ask for a review at some point 
Charlie fell off of the computer chair the other day while we were out of the room making dinner and ended up with a small cut on his head which Joe took him to the hospital to get checked (it was only a graze but better safe than sorry with young children) and now we have to go to a follow up appointment tomorrow at the doctor (procedure,) Charlie is fine and has been since he calmed down all of three minutes after bumping his head in the first place but i guess in a way its good to know they do follow these things up sometimes
I managed to finish the wrapping of christmas presents and everything is hidden away in the airing cupboard in our bedroom (the boys would have to move furniture to go peeking) and we finished our grocery shopping today so we are all set and have no more need to venture into the madness that is shopping at this time of year
we went to the supermarket first thing this morning as the doors opened at 7am and there was a whole line of people who obviously also thought it would be quiet at that time and all in all there must have been about 50 people waiting to get in
anyway its done now... hopefully although now that I think about it we haven't actually got anything for Joe's siblings, I remembered my sister and mother and step dad... (we got him a nerf gun... granddads like that sort of thing right??) so its only fair he remembers his family
ho ho ho and all that jazz... Merry christmas
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Latest reply: Dec 22, 2014
well...
Posted Dec 6, 2014
it's almost Christmas but I don't quite have time to celebrate yet,
placement is going well I've been there for two weeks now and there are some very challenging aspects but over all i am finding it very rewarding I've learnt a lot of things... I seem be be learning some form of sign language by osmosis... Christmas nativity songs are the ultimate ear worm and you do look odd when your signing them as you walk down the street (little donkey... oh how i hate little donkey)
I have two essays to hand in before i finish this placement and it seems like I never have enough time to actually write them! I am making a start on the one due next monday (15th?) now so that should be done at least, its partly reflective but i have chosen Gibbs cycle of reflection for this one rather than De Bono 6 hats which is not nice at all and it is my fervent hope that i never need to use it again.
so far I feel a little bit more like a teacher than a nurse but thats fine some of the competencies are probably the same, most of the staff are lovely and there seems to be a real community there which is very nice and supportive. There are problems, the school I feel is a little on the small side and there isn't much for the children to do in the playground especially in the winter when it is so cold but the staff try to make the best of the situation, you can tell that budgets are tight but i think it is the same everywhere at the moment.
Today is my husbands birthday (31) he and his little brother are having a joint celebration tomorrow so I got him something nice for his dinner and we might get a chance to cuddle up together this evening and watch a movie and eat ice-cream (mint choc chip) 
I am in university for three days next week and the inspector is at the school on Monday (so the staff are a little tense) and this is the week of the christmas shows. 
is playing the angel Gabriel in his own schools version of the nativity which hopefully I will be home in time to see!
onwards with the essay writing actually... I might pop on the heating first i'm feeling a touch cold at the moment,
wherever in the world you are I wish you a happy holiday season
although i might manage to squeeze in another journal between now and the real holiday!
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Latest reply: Dec 6, 2014
well...
Posted Dec 6, 2014
it's almost Christmas but I dont quite have time to celebrate yet,
placement is going well I've been there for two weeks now and there are some very challenging aspects but over all i am finding it very rewarding I've learnt a lot of things... I seem be be learning some form of sign language by osmosis... Christmas nativity songs are the ultimate ear worm and you do look odd when your signing them as you walk down the street (little donkey... oh how i hate little donkey)
I have two essays to hand in before i finish this placement and it seems like I never have enough time to actually write them! I am making a start on the one due next monday (15th?) now so that should be done at least, its partly reflective but i have chosen Gibbs cycle of reflection for this one rather than De Bono 6 hats which is not nice at all and it is my fervent hope that i never need to use it again.
so far I feel a little bit more like a teacher than a nurse but thats fine some of the competencies are probably the same, most of the staff are lovely and there seems to be a real community there which is very nice and supportive. There are problems, the school I feel is a little on the small side and there isnt much for the children to do in the playground especially in the winter when it is so cold
Discuss this Journal entry [1]
Latest reply: Dec 6, 2014
and everything else...
Posted Nov 16, 2014
I have just submitted my first assignment for uni, so thats done now... we have to submit via something called turnitin which is actually a rather annoying program that is meant to check for plagiarism I'm not sure how many people on site will already have experience with the program but let us say I am not fully convinced that it is needed...
it was only 1000 words half of which was personal reflection on learning using DeBono 6 hats of reflection (which i now hate unreservedly) and the second half was on the importance of evidence based practice which was much easier and I got a nice reference from the British medical journal and a few from my union
I'm not entirely sure what it means to be a member of a trade union but it seemed like a good idea at the time, I joined the royal college of nurses and they send me some magazines with interesting academic journals in and updates and so fourth I'm sure it will be more important later on... I got a badge and a membership card and I'm easily won over by free badges, student membership was £10 for the year so I'm not that out of pocket although I might unsubscribe from one of the magazines (emergency nursing) as it has very little (almost nothing) to do with my specialisation
I find myself accidentally saying more and more nurse(y) sounding things like talking about intercostal muscle strain and words like sphygmomanometer which is a fantastically convoluted name for a blood pressure cuff 
its definitely getting chillier and the hike uphill to the university is no-less straining than it was in september I'm sure.. although I will be on placement soon and I wont have to worry about the hike then. I am a little worried because I got an email from my tutor saying that because I am doing LD nursing (learning disabilities) there is a lack of nurse mentors so there could come a time during my 3 years of training where there will not be a qualified nurse present.... yay....
I'm sure that dosnt happen to adult/child/mental health nurses!
Anthea
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Latest reply: Nov 16, 2014
Twelve I reckon
Posted Oct 15, 2014
Well I think its been twelve years since I joined the site
(a few days over actually since I forgot and had to look it up)
and a lot of things have changed
from the 'good old days' which to be honest are so long ago (especially by internet standards) to single sign on... through all the difficult bits and the bbc sell off... to now where we are slowly getting back into the swing of things still but we're still here...
I wore my h2g2 tshirt (the old blue bbc one) to university the other day and was surprised when someone said "oh I remember that site..." it was interesting and if one person remembers or signs up because they saw someone wearing a shirt isn't that a good thing? maybe I don't actually know...
University cumbria is a tiny tiny university in lancaster (its biggest campus I think) it has 2 lecture halls one of which would struggle to hold over 100 people...
I've been learning stuff... its 6 weeks (WEEKS!!) till I go on placement 
but I dont know where too yet, and I dont feel like I've learned anything actually useful yet certainly no practical clinical skills although i might learn a few of those actually on placement I suppose.
There is just so much to learn and even though I've done a degree before I feel completely under prepared for essay writing and actually talking to people... I know as a first year student nurse no-ones life will be reliant on me.... I just wish i felt more prepared!
but I do have six weeks to learn as much academically as possible (perhaps they might have one practical skill....?) before being thrown into the stormy waters of nurseship
also it's my birthday at the end of the month (29th) and I will be at uni studying (hopefully not 4001 ot 4002 (my least favourite classes))
Ah! and I somehow forgot how hard it is to get up at 6am every day and the commuting... once i get off the train I have a mile walk to the university mostly uphill... we've renamed that hill the hyperventilation hill - it was bishops walk
although I do hope that the walk is making me fitter at least!
so if you find me on site jibbering like a small child just tuck me into a bed somewhere I'm probably exhausted
my lectures run from 9 till 4 monday to friday wednesdays are a half day at the moment but my group wasn't in today I can't help but think the university dosnt really care about the nursing group we seem to be in different rooms and groupings every week but its... interesting Anthea
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Latest reply: Oct 15, 2014
Back to Dr Anthea - ah who needs to learn things... just google it! 's Personal Space Home
Dr Anthea - ah who needs to learn things... just google it!
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