Week 6... almost 1/2 way!!!

Hello everyone,

So ever since my blog has been added as a link on our program's facebook page, I have been hearing from a bunch of the students in my program that they have checked out my blog!!! I guess I feel somewhat like a movie star ha-ha. Anyways, I wanted to thank you all again for checking out my blog and following the life of a first year in the accelerated masters program! I also wanted to give a shout-out to my newest supporters, my clinical group!!! <3 the 7 west ladies and Mary!!!

Ok now back to my week. Since Monday was a holiday and there was no school on Tuesday, we only had 2 classes on Wednesday and clinical on Friday. This was definitely a much needed break!!! Since we began the program in September, we have had assignments and exams just about every week. When there wasn't, we spent a majority of the time preparing for the next week's exams. Since I had a whole week off from class, it was finally nice to catch up on some necessary rest and relaxation!!! After a fun-filled weekend with my friends, I was able to catch up on homework and sleep all day Tuesday.

Monday, I was asked to work the Tufts 10 k for women for the graduate admissions office. This was such a fun race and for a great cause. There were over 8,000 runners participating in the event and even more family members and supporters there to cheer them on. It was a great way of promoting the graduate programs that Regis has to offer. Also, this became my motivation to become a more serious runner and hopefully participate in some road races in the future.

Wednesday's classes went well and we were able to learn some of the information for the lab quiz we will be having on Tuesday. Some of the information we covered included urinary and bowel elimination in Professional Nursing and the ears, nose, mouth, and eyes in health assessment. With practice in the lab, I believe I am becoming more confident with assessing patients in clinical.

Clinical this week was very helpful. I was assigned to the same nurse as last week which was helpful because she already knew me and talked me through the procedures in detail. My patient was also extremely helpful. She was a pleasant woman who I will be using as the subject of my process recording paper due in a few weeks. She was being treated for a pnumothorax that had been caused during a lung biopsy. She was a very friendly and thankful woman who made my job that day extremely easy. One problem I did encounter at the end of my shift was with family members. A niece asked me about an aspect of her medical records that she didn't want to ask her aunt. However, due to HIPPA and patient confidentiality laws, I was unable to reveal any information regarding the patient to her. However, I explained that she could ask her aunt her question and she could personally explain it with her. Although it was tough to tell the niece that I could not help her, the patient's rights always come first and confidentiality should always be maintained.

That is all for now! This weekend, a group of students in my program have planned a get together to go apple picking. I am very excited because we will be able to get to know each other on a more personal, out of the classroom level. Since we will be spending the next few years together, it will be really nice to start getting to know each one of them personally. I'll let you know how it goes next week... maybe I’ll even have some pictures to share : )

- Katie