Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Feb 9, 2012, 4:34 pm
I have always considered the American Nurses Association my professional organization. And I mean “my” organization. I didn’t always agree with the political candidates they backed, the health care legislation they promoted, or the fact that my dues paid for political lobbying I might not ag...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Feb 2, 2012, 2:37 pm
Looks like someone has some explaining to do. This photo has a very “Twilight Zone” feel to it. The only thing missing is Mr. Serling. Unless he’s standing at the other end of the table… ********** The nursing blogosphere is on fire with the Amanda Trujillo story, but there haven’t be...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Jan 31, 2012, 8:42 pm
Sorry, no. This is the problem. There is a huge injustice being perpetrated against a nurse right this moment. It’s getting worse. And the ones who got the party started aren’t happy that it isn’t quiet. That their moves, and their motives, are under public scrutiny. That nurses are talk...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Jan 29, 2012, 6:03 pm
I’ve been blogging for 6 1/2 years. I have a twitter account and although I went to Facebook kicking and screaming, I’m firmly ensconced in the world of status updates, messages, and the occasional “poke.” I never miss BlogWorld New Media Expo, and if I can make it to BlogHer, I will be at...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Jan 28, 2012, 3:03 pm
Sorry, no. Nurses and physicians share a collaborative relationship, working with the patient in a team effort. That is how it is supposed to work. As a nurse, my duty is solely to the patient. If I am needed to be anyone’s “right hand”, it will be my patient. I’m very lucky. I work wit...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Jan 27, 2012, 12:32 pm
Information. So much of what I do as an ER nurse involves information. As an RN, I am responsible for providing patients with information about their illness/injury, their medications and their follow up instructions. Patient education is paramount; I find out what they know, then provide educati...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Jan 24, 2012, 3:15 pm
No funny, vintage picture today. An Arizona nursing colleague is in danger of losing her license for acting as a patient advocate within her scope of practice. Her hearing, initially scheduled for today, has been delayed for two months so this registered nurse can undergo a psychiatric evaluation....
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Jan 24, 2012, 12:18 pm
Okay, this is exciting! The host for Grand Rounds this week is none other than USATODAY! Our very own Dr. Val took 100 (!) posts, representing the best of the medical blogosphere, and will roll them out in four sections over the course of the day. The theme: patient-centered topics. The sections...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Jan 21, 2012, 3:30 pm
No one ever wants to go to the emergency department, but unfortunately illness and injuries don’t keep Monday through Friday office hours. Here are four tips that will make your visit go smoother and keep you safer as you enter the world of the emergency department: 1. MAKE A LIST, BRING THE LIS...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Jan 20, 2012, 8:04 pm
Tea time at the nurse’s home! Considering it’s been a full two months since my last post, I’d say I took a rather extended “tea time”! I didn’t intend to take a hiatus, the hiatus just sort of took me! I’ve actually been blogging regularly, both Masters In Nursing.com and All Health...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Nov 17, 2011, 12:02 am
Looks like Mr. Administrator has some ‘splainin’ to do! And I suggest he be straight with my colleagues, because a nurse can sense BS before it is even spoken. I am not in management, and I never will be. No, I am one of the “rank and file.” And right now, this member of the “rank and f...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Nov 14, 2011, 11:41 pm
Couldn’t make it to BlogWorld Expo in LA this month? Wish you could have been in the front row of each keynote, attended every session, had a chance to hear the superstars of the blogosphere? Me, too! There were sessions I missed! This is year is different – over 100 sessions of Blog World Ne...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Nov 11, 2011, 11:53 pm
I’m using my favorite ad council promo, the one that made me realize that I was damn proud to be a nurse. Because right now I don’t feel like posting something funny, or cute. I need to see this ad again. Having a bit of a burnout/compassion fatigue/why-the-hell-am-I-still-working-in-ER-at-my...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Nov 6, 2011, 11:31 pm
It’s early Sunday evening, downtown LA. Blog World Expo 2011 is over. Nurse Ratched and Nerdy Nurse left in the early morning darkness for the long journey back to the east coast. I’m still here! I always stay an extra day so I’m not traveling during the NASCAR race. I picked up good infor...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Nov 6, 2011, 2:53 am
Six books, a T-shirt, a beach ball and a little rubber brain. This what I will physically take home from Blog World Expo. There is no photograph that can depict all that I will take away from here in terms of creativity, energy, motivation and a renewed love of writing. Things were getting mighty...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Nov 5, 2011, 4:32 am
It’s late Friday night. Los Angeles, California. There’s one thing about Blog World. They know how to throw a party. Lots of people can vouch for that. I’m not one of them. I didn’t attend the party. I’m old. I’m in bed. ********** LOL! How’s THAT for a Jack Webb impression! ...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Nov 2, 2011, 1:58 pm
I may be sitting in the Oakland International Airport, but my heart, and soon the rest of me, will be in the heart of Los Angeles, California! Swimming pools, movie stars? Oh no. Something even better! BLOG WORLD EXPO! ***** If you are a blogger, if you read blogs, If you own a freaking compute...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Oct 5, 2011, 10:12 pm
My husband surprised me with a Macintosh Performa 575 in 1994. I told him it had to be a Mac. None of those god-awful Windows pieces of garbage. A Mac. I was Apple to the core from the beginning. ***** This family eats, sleeps and breathes Apple. Okay, my son and I eat, sleep and breathe Appl...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Sep 27, 2011, 1:59 am
You know me. I’m all over anything that is from the BBC. But this is different. There is no TARDIS. And there are nurses along with the doctor. Lots of nurses. And the only people flying through time and space are the trauma patients before they hit the bus or the ground. 24 Hours in the ER p...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Sep 18, 2011, 5:47 pm
Shades of Gordon Ramsay. Master Nurse Chef! Will Cherry win the Cream of Wheat challenge? Can she hold off Sue Barton in the Clear Liquid Clinic Cook Off? Will they crumble under pressure facing the 5th floor med/surg judging panel? Who will earn the honor of wearing the cap of the Master Nurse...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Sep 15, 2011, 1:39 am
It’s that time of year – and I’m not talking about Halloween candy! BlogWorld Expo is about seven weeks away, and this year my favorite convention is in Los Angeles! Swimming pools! Movie stars! Oh wait, that was Beverly Hills… Close enough! I’d go if they held it in Antarctica. ****...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Sep 6, 2011, 5:22 pm
Welcome to the September, 2011 edition of Change of Shift! This is quite the eclectic selection of posts from across the nursing blogosphere, composed of those submitted for inclusion and those I found in my travels through the neighborhood. Remember, submissions are always accepted for Change of ...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Sep 1, 2011, 8:17 pm
My youngest daughter has begun her senior year in nursing school at a university in the Pacific northwest. She never read Cherry Ames, never wanted a blue cape. never tried on my cap. She never expressed an interest in nursing. I mentioned it as a career possibility during the high school years. S...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Aug 11, 2011, 2:12 am
Boy, time flies when you’re not paying attention! I had a fantastic experience, last week, and I’m just now blogging about it!! I spoke on blogging at the annual conference of the International Academy of Nursing Editors. Here is a picture with Shawn Kennedy, Editor-in-Chief of the American J...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Aug 3, 2011, 4:15 pm
Editor Kitty is pretty funny! Actually, I’ll be hanging out with a bunch of “Editor Kitties” tomorrow! I’m giving a talk on “Getting Started in the Blogosphere” at the annual conference of the International Academy of Nurse Editors, held at the Sir Francis Drake Hotel in San Francisco....
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Jul 15, 2011, 4:17 pm
Need magazine subscriptions? Check out these guys for great prices and no auto renewals. Apparently a few nurses did not complete their HIPAA modules! My goodness, ladies, remember yourselves! You just know that one in the back follows all the rules, all the time. Doesn’t eat at the nursing sta...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Jul 6, 2011, 4:56 pm
Get great prices on nursing scrubs every day. Ah, the benefits of sand therapy! Time for little Bettina’s daily afternoon face plant! Not only does it appear my colleague is about to lose her grip on her patient, I’m concerned about her choice of body mechanics. I predict a lumbar strain in ...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Jun 15, 2011, 9:00 am
Be careful what you wish for. When I said I wished I could wear my nursing cap, this was not what I had in mind! Behold the latest in Respiratory Isolation fashion – to be worn when your patient is undergoing an aerosolized treatment. First, you put on a cap to cover your hair. Then, you zip a d...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - May 31, 2011, 1:44 pm
Welcome to the latest edition of Change of Shift, the nursing blog carnival! Submissions to CoS are now accepted on a continuous basis, simply click the “Contact” button at the top of the page whenever you have a post you would like to submit. I’m dropping the BlogCarnival submission route d...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - May 10, 2011, 7:05 pm
Get your AJN Subscription from MagsDirect.com Happy National Nurses Week to all my nursing colleagues! And a very Happy Birthday to Florence Nightingale, born 191 years ago; May 12, 1820! She was 40 years old when she opened the nursing school at St. Thomas’ Hospital in London. It still exists. ...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - May 5, 2011, 3:12 pm
Well, that was an extended blog break! I’m still kickin’! Stagnating, but kicking. Restless. On edge. Waiting. For something. ***** Love these uniforms! I actually had the one on the right, albeit in a more ’70s updated version (aka: shorter). Not very practical, but boy did we look goo...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Apr 5, 2011, 1:24 am
Welcome to the Angry Birds edition of that weekly compendium of medical blogosphere goodness, Grand Rounds! I’ve chosen my addiction du jour, Angry Birds, as the theme for my 7th turn as host. For those who are not familiar, Angry Birds is a game in which Green Pigs steal Bird eggs, causing the B...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Mar 29, 2011, 7:51 pm
Grand Rounds returns to Emergiblog next Tuesday, April 5th! Many thanks to Dr. Mike Sevilla, the Doctor Formerly Known as Anonymous, for hosting Grand Rounds: Volume 7, No. 27 over at Family Medicine Rocks this week! Next week is wide open. No theme. All submissions, all topics, all comers. Bring ...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Mar 22, 2011, 8:25 pm
And the winner for Best Posture in a Student Nurse goes to….. I wonder what they are doing here? It does look like they are all standing at attention. I’ve been trying all day to think up hilarious dialog for this pic but nothing is coming to me. If you think of any, have at it in the comments...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Mar 21, 2011, 9:07 pm
Ah, another exciting Saturday night at the nurses’ residence! I’d love to make fun of this, but I was geeky enough to view this as absolute heaven at thirteen years old! Living in the dorm, wearing my cape (and lord almighty wearing my cap!), being casually professional and just all that and a...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Mar 9, 2011, 10:55 pm
Get 15% off hospital scrubs with code “white_onsale I want to give a huge shout out and thank you to Scrubs Gallery for their continued support of Emergiblog through their advertisement, and new to 2011, their monthly sponsoring of an Emergiblog post. Thanks, Aaron! You guys rock! ***** Well, I...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Mar 4, 2011, 8:43 pm
Welcome to Change of Shift, the Double Edition! Between traveling and the ENA Leadership Conference, the last edition Change of Shift was, shall we say, delayed. That’s the bad news. The good news is I’m combining last week’s CoS edition with this week’s edition. Be sure to read to the en...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Mar 2, 2011, 11:47 pm
Chocolate and Vicodin? No, it is not the latest flavor from Ben and Jerry! Chocolate & Vicodin: My Quest For Relief From the Headache That Wouldn’t Go Away is the latest book by blogger/author/web designer/busy woman, Jennette Fulda. I became acquainted with Jennette’s blog, PastaQueen, durin...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Feb 22, 2011, 2:44 am
Greetings from Latte Land, USA, aka Portland, Oregon! Thanks to wonderful colleagues (including one who works miracles with the schedule), I am able to take some time off to regroup, recoup and recharge while visiting my daughters. I was also able to attend the 2011 ENA Leadership Conference. Noth...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Feb 4, 2011, 3:57 pm
Welcome once again to Change of Shift! This week our themes lean to education and the art of “being there” and we have two new bloggers submitting! Welcome!! Man, that was a fast two weeks! So….let’s get started! As a profession, nursing has been criticized for not having a standardized ...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Feb 2, 2011, 2:47 pm
It didn’t take long for Doctor Throwafit to realize he had some ‘splainin’ to do. You don’t tug on Superman’s cape, You don’t spit into the wind… And you don’t ever, EVER mess with the nurses in the emergency department! Srsly. ***** Oh my god. I need a long vacation. I am sit...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Jan 21, 2011, 2:42 pm
Welcome to Change of Shift! This is a miniature edition! The quantity is tiny, the quality is superb! Grab some coffee, kick back Change of Shift is in da house! ********** Editor’s Pick: At the AJN Off the Charts blog, Juliana Paradisi pens a fantastic post on privacy, both personal and for...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Jan 7, 2011, 1:41 am
Happy New Year! Welcome to the first 2011 edition of Change of Shift, the bi-weekly nursing blog carnival! CoS took both a Thanksgiving and a Christmas break, and is now ready to dive back into the blogosphere and bring the most interesting nursing blogs together. Change of Shift is what you make...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Jan 6, 2011, 5:27 pm
Scarlett O’Hara, RN says goodbye to Rhett Butler, MD and that wimpy orderly Ashley Wilkes from the porch of Tara Medical Center. She didn’t get the order for morphine that she wanted, but no matter. She won’t think about it now. She’ll worry about it tomorrow. Because tomorrow… Is anot...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Dec 24, 2010, 2:57 pm
I used this picture three years ago, and I still love it! Sweet, heartwarming, the angel of mercy solemnly decorates the tiny Christmas tree while watching over the poor sick children who must spend their holidays under her watchful gaze… Christmas in the forties; makes me want to curl up with a...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Dec 9, 2010, 2:50 pm
Welcome to Change of Shift! After a healthy (and hearty) tryptophan-induced Thanksgiving break, the nursing blog carnival is back! (And its host is on a diet…) Before we get started, just a little note. CoS is still getting submissions of lists. Lots and lots of lists. Many of them are of the �...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Dec 9, 2010, 10:11 am
I spent a funny, enjoyable, informative hour in a chat room last night. And get this… the topic was plastics! No, I don’t need to get a life (very funny!) I was live tweeting The Real Truth About Plastics: What You Should and Shouldn’t Worry About, part of the Health Chats series put on by ...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Dec 4, 2010, 12:59 pm
Having fully recovered from my tryptophan-induced Thanksgiving coma, I’m happy to announce that I’ll be participating in a live text chat about plastics safety on December 8th! This is open to the public; all are invited to submit questions! You can register for the chat at the MedHelp site he...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Nov 16, 2010, 2:24 am
Welcome to the Doctor Who edition of Grand Rounds! We’ll travel through the medical blogosphere of 21st century Earth, where we will find that Grand Rounds can be found on Twitter (@grandrounds) and on a website known as Facebook (Grand Rounds). Our spaceship/time-machine, the TARDIS (Time And R...
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Kim McAllister posted an article on Emergiblog - Nov 13, 2010, 6:16 pm
Deep in the quiet depths of a night shift on the ward, an RN… Sits writing a novel! Not that I’ve ever done that . I’m am writing my 50,000 word novel for National Novel Writing Month. I wasn’t going to show it to anyone, but then Doctor Rob went and shared the first part of his NaNoWriMo...
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