 Hi guys, welcome back to this video. So today I want to talk about a couple little tips for being a nurse during a pandemic. I have been working during the COVID pandemic since it hit my state of Arizona in about March. And we had our first surge in the summer at about June, July, and we are now in a second surge in its December of 2020. And it has been very, very difficult as a bedside ICU nurse that's working specifically on a COVID unit. I have had to sort of change my style of nursing and have learned a couple tips and tricks along the way that I wanted to share with you all because I just I want to try and help you guys out as much as I can. And working during a pandemic has been just so different than like normal day to day nursing. And so I want to share a couple helpful tips with you all. So my first tip, and I know you guys are probably like, well, this is lame, but it's probably the most important tip is please take care of yourself during this time. If picking up an extra shift is going to just push you over the edge mentally or physically, don't do it. Remember to drink water throughout your shift and pack lots of snacks so that way you can kind of eat as you go. I am actually 21 weeks pregnant right now. And so I not only have to prioritize myself, but also my baby that's inside of me. And sometimes when you get busy and you're just like swamped at work, it's so easy to like forget to drink water, forget to eat. Trust me, I have done it countless of times and then you go home at the end of your shifts and you feel so terrible. So remember to take care of yourself. I know that your patients are important to you and they are important, but they are not as important as yourself. And please, please remember that is that if you are not taken care of, then you cannot be working to your full capacity, your full level, your full skill. If you're not feeling well. So what I like to do is instead of trying to like sip on water throughout my shift, I will just every couple hours like chug a bottle. Or I'll fill up those little Styrofoam cups and just drink like two of those that way. It's like, okay, I'm staying hydrated, but it's not like the act of just trying to sip on water. And I also have been packing lots of like little snacks because I haven't had a lunch break in literally weeks. And so I've been just trying to eat snacks as I go something quick so that way I can like be at my full capabilities and take care of these patients. My next tip is to get in a full head to toe assessment at the beginning of your shifts on all of your patients. And then from there on out, you can do kind of quick assessments. Most places that are like experiencing this huge surge, we are like in crisis mode and that's what we are in Arizona. So right now our nurse to patient ratios are like we are taking on more patients and in the ICU specifically right now, we're taking on like three patients. Sometimes it'll be two, but you'll be those patients should have been like one to one and they're pairing them with another patient. So we're taking on more workload, which means that there's just more things to do. But please get a good assessment in the morning. And that way your future assessments can be kind of, you know, a little bit quicker and you'll notice that there's any, you know, changes or whatnot. My next tip is to chart specific things as you go. Our charting has been modified right now. So we only have to chart like one assessment in the morning and then just chart everything by exception. If something has changed, we chart one assessment like on our lines, tubes and drains and then eyes and nose are technically at the end of the shift. But I just try to do certain things as I go. Like if I dump my patients fully, I'll chart that I know right away. If I talk to the doctor, I'll chart that right away. If I do vitals or a temp, I chart that right away because those are things that are really hard to go back and remember or back chart. If you don't do them right away, I feel like it's easier to back chart and put in an assessment than it is to like be like what time and I talked to that doctor and what time did he give me that order. So if you can just put those little things in as you go, that's been super helpful for me. My next tip is to do the basics well. So hear me out when I say this. I know that the basics of nursing like doing good oral care, turning your patients, making sure they're cleaned, peri care, central line care. I know all of those things can seem like not as important when you're like so far behind on meds and labs and assessments and all those things. But like at the end of the day, those are the things that are going to prevent your patients from getting further issues and complications. If your patient gets a central line infection or a catheter associated UTI on top of COVID or whatever other reason they're in the hospital for, their hospitalization was just now prolonged and complicated and they potentially could not have as good of an outcome. I know specifically in the ICU that I'm in, we see such sick COVID patients that they already have very slim chances for either survival or having a good outcome or good quality of life without running into other issues. And if they get a VAP or they get a CLABSI or a CAUTI, it's kind of just like, I don't want to say it seals the deal for a negative outcome, but it really makes it difficult for them to now have a positive outcome. I'm not saying it doesn't happen, I'm just saying it makes it a lot more complicated. Their ventilator days are prolonged, their hospital days are prolonged and the quality and potential outcome decreases. So do those basic things well. I would personally say that it is better for an antibiotic to be maybe an hour late than it is for you to just neglect your soiled central line dressing that a patient's drooling all over and maybe someone has a different opinion. But if you can do those basic skills well and those basic skills are what you learned in nursing school, that is going to really help your patients overall. The last thing I want to say is just give yourself some grace during this time, be gentle to yourself. I know for me, I feel like I am not doing as good of a job as a nurse because it's just so different from my normal style of nursing. I'm used to my room being tidy and my patients being super like orderly and clean and knowing every single detail on all of my patients. And right now, I feel like I'm just like trying to keep up every shift. Every shift is super physically exhausting. It's mentally exhausting and it's tiring and I'm in the same boat that you guys are. I get how you're feeling and just be kind on yourself because we're all literally just doing the best with the resources we have. And right now that has to be good enough because we're short staffed, physicians are getting sick, nurses are getting sick. Everyone around us is dropping like flies and it's really, really hard and we're in survival mode over here. And so just be gentle on yourself during this time. It's so easy to kind of beat yourself up that you're not doing as good of a job, but just know like you're doing your best and this isn't how nursing is going to be forever. So those are my couple tips. I hope they're helpful for you all. Let me know if there's any other helpful tips that you're finding in the comments down below. Give this video a thumbs up if you enjoyed it and I'll see you in my next video. Bye.