My First Nursing Conference Experience

Hey friends,

So I was very excited to be given the opportunity to attend a nursing conference almost two weeks ago. The conference was put on by Sigma Theta Tau International and centered around population health and nursing's role: ethics, leadership, and global action. My own chapter of STTI sponsored me to be able to go, so thank you!

The conference was split into two days. The days were structured with a keynote speaker in the beginning, two 1.5 hour sessions of research or innovation presentation, and then a closing keynote speaker. Of course there was also opportunities for breaks and time to look at the poster presentations. 

My strategy for my first conference was to map out which presentations I wanted to see ahead of time. The first day I ended up attending both sessions of the innovation presentations. The second day I split my time between the two. 

Although I only knew one other person attending, I made sure to be social and network with the other individuals there. I was extremely humbled to be in a room with amazing nurses while I am still a student. A few nurses I met told me about what quality improvement projects their hospitals were working on; A lot of them were structured on preventing falls. The conference was also great because there were nurses from both areas that I am looking at working in. Talking with the other nurses made me excited to graduate in May and attend more conferences. If you know of any good ones let me know!

I took some notes from a couple of the presentations so I thought I would share with you some items I found interesting:

Nursing's Role in Advancing Translational Science

• it takes 17 years for new knowledge to be incorporated into practice
• have a generalist leadership style
• focus on relationships
• enable things to happen, do not do the work
• see the bigger picture
• rely on "executive" presence
• team development
• forming: identify team, scientific ideas
• storming: roles and responsibilities; process; encourage interdisciplinary ideas
• norming: effective & efficient work; trust develops
• performing: seamless work

Bedside Shift Reporting

• benefits
• increased pt involvement
• understanding care
• decreased pt and family anxiety
• increased accountability
• increased teamwork
• tools
• update whiteboard
• warm handoff
• check IV site, skin, and environment

Leveraging Technology to Prevent PT Falls

• remote PT safety monitoring (Careview Cam)
• virtual bed rails and chair rails
• immediate response to pt attempts to get out of bed/chair

Blood Glucose Checks

• Alcohol wipes
• dries skin which leads to skin breakdown and increased pain and risk for pt infection
• increases blood glucose reading
• Water soaked gauze
• ideally hand washing
• only when no cleaning was available did the second drop yield a more accurate result

Let me know if you have been to any conferences or which one would be good for a student to attend to,
Have a great week!

International Infection Prevention Week

Source

Hey friends,

The international infection prevention week falls on the third full week of October every year and serves as a reminder that we are the first line of defense. As nurses we are continually educating our patients on health management. For this years international infection prevention week we have partnered up with Allheart scrubs to remind you to help prevent the spread of germs. 

Here are some simple tips to help prevent the spread of germs:

• Wash your hands for at least 30 seconds
• Do not cough/sneeze into your hands
• Avoid touching your nose, eyes, or mouth with your hands
• Get a flu shot
• Practice safe cooking techniques
• Do not place purses or other bags on kitchen surfaces
• Do not share personal items
• Clean and disinfect frequently touched places

Another really neat way nurses are able to help prevent infection is by wearing antimicrobial scrubs. Brands like Cherokee, Code Happy, Allheart, Figs, and Heart Soul all have scrubs that do not sacrifice comfort for functionality. My personal favorites are Figs and Cherokee Infinity. Be sure to shop all antimicrobial scrubs here and help protect the community. 

Breast Cancer Awareness

Hey friends,

So I really wanted to get this post out in the beginning of the month, but I have been extremely busy with school. I will do a life update post soon, I promise. 

Breast Cancer Awareness is something that is extremely important to me and if you follow me on Instagram, then you know I have been showing my support all month. My maternal grandmother and a very close family friend have been diagnosed with breast cancer. My grandmother is survivor whereas my close friend is currently battling it with chemo. About 1 in 8 women in the U.S. will develop invasive breast cancer during their lifetime. 

Early detection can save lives! There are now more than 2.8 million survivors in the U.S. Breast cancer is a serious thing and I encourage every woman to do monthly self-checks. Some signs and symptoms of breast cancer include a lump, inverted nipple, a change in texture of the skin, a rash or redness, discharge from the nipple, and swelling and pain. Talk to your doctor if you are concerned with any changes. 

Breast cancer is not completely preventable but, exercising, drinking less alcohol, eating healthy, and reducing exposure to toxins can help. 


Every 2 minutes a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer and every 13 minutes a woman loses her life. Show your support by wearing pink during October and shop here http://bit.ly/bcawearpink
Allheart has some amazing items for you to show support.

MDpocket Nurses Clipboard review

Hey friends,

It feels like it has been forever since I wrote a blog post. I truly miss writing and sharing my adventures with you. The month of October has already been hectic and it is only day 11. My nursing leadership class had us do a huge EBP paper in about a week. My group was not the best, so I had to use some assertive communication skills to get things done. But now that that is over, I get to prepare for an upcoming conference I am going to. I am super excited because this will be my first nursing conference! I will do a post about it next weekend. 

My preceptorship has been going well, but the only downside is that we are still paper charting. A big help to me with this lack of technology was MD Pocket's Nursing Edition Clipboard. I am able to carry both my flow sheet and Kardex with me on a very light, aluminum clipboard. The clipboard is also able to fold in half which helps keep patient's information private when I go into another room. The clipboard is designed to fit in a lab coat pocket, but, unfortunately, I do not wear one. I still think it is light enough to carry around or small enough to hide behind computer terminals and thus have been using it for over a month now. 

MD Pocket's nursing clipboard is also an excellent tool for nursing students. Not only will it fit in your lab coat, but it also features very useful information on the back. You can expect to see a faces pain skill, pupil sizes, how to interpret EKGs, and injection sites on the back of the clipboard. Because the information is a sticker, you can buy a new one every year with updated information. MD pocket offers a variety of colors for the clipboard and even offers engraving. You can also add a pen holder to the clipboard or buy a stand for it. 

MD Pocket also offers more great items for nursing students. My personal favorite is the NPpocket Medical Reference Guide: Nursing Edition. It is small enough to fit in my pocket and contains essential clinical information. Some of the features are questions for an H&P exam, EKG placement, EKG Rhythm, lab information, and cranial nerves. 

If you are just starting out clinicals, I highly suggest both items! Even in my senior year, I find them handy.

NCLEX Prep on the go

Hey friends,


As many of you know I have less than a year till I take the NCLEX. Because of this I have already purchased a NCLEX prep book from Saunders and am trying to make my way through it. However, I am finding that it is difficult to fit time into my schedule. Luckily, I was given the opportunity to try out a phone application called NCLEX Mastery. 

Why do I love the application? Because it allows me to practice anywhere that I am!! I can choose what topics of questions to do and how many. After answering each question there is a rational for why the answer choice is correct or incorrect. You are also given the option to place the questions in a don't know, somewhat know, and know category. 

NCLEX prep apps are a must have all nursing students because it allows you to study anywhere at any time. It also allows you to control how much or how little topics you want to dive into. And they provide immediate feedback so you know what to do next time. 

NCLEX Mastery is different than other NCLEX prep apps; It is very dynamic app. NCLEX Mastery's questions are application and analysis, as well as evaluation and synthesis for higher level education.  They have close to 2,000 questions for you to practice and a multitude of resources in the app as well. My favorite is the Mnemonics! The app also tracks your progress which allows you to focus your energy on material you do not know too well. 

I spoke with a representative of the application that reassured me that they are always evaluating the question bank and making sure that they cover ever single concept. WooHoo!

I highly suggest checking them out!