I can officially say that I've survived two shifts in the Burns ICU. WHOOP! My final placement started on Thursday, and is off to a fantastic start.
Wednesday night I could hardly sleep. I kept worrying about my alarm not going off, getting lost in the hospital (which is the same one I currently am employed in), and meeting my preceptor only to realize she was part monster.
After a restless night, Thursday morning came and so did many amazing things. I was early for my shift, found the unit without a hitch, and met my darling preceptor (zero parts monster, might I add).
The unit cares for a mixed bag of patients - of either burn or general ICU status. So even in two days, I was exposed to quite the variety of situations.
I have never been in a unit this intimidating before. Not in a bad sense, but in a "now this is stuff is getting real" kind of sense. The machines are literally keeping most patients alive - there is a rhythmic beeping to the entire area. Some individuals are completely bandaged from head to toe, or have so many tubes from so many places that it's dizzying.
The amount of knowledge I eventually (as a RN) will be required to retain is enormous. The role of the nurse in this type of area is leaps and bound ahead of that of my previous placements - the responsibility and autonomy is refreshing, and also a little bit scary. I'm sure that even after 10 weeks, I'll still be bobbing along with unknown areas of grey in my practice.
I'm very, very excited to be in this unit, and looking forward to the challenges and learning curves to come!
D.
