June 2009: Burn Patient Comes Full Circle as RN

by

From the Editor
Julie Lancaster
Penny Poole, RN, CNOR, this month’s Student in the Spotlight, was severely burned as an infant and spent most of a year in the hospital under the care of a plastic surgeon, receiving multiple skin grafts.

Her family later told her she used to scream and try to climb out of her crib to get away from any doctor or nurse. “None of my family ever believed I really wanted to be a nurse when I grew up,” she says.

But she did want to, and she did become a nurse. And now, after 10 years as a surgical tech and 20 as a Registered Nurse, she is working in a plastic surgery clinic that is just starting to care for burn patients. Scroll down for her story.
And we’re pleased to bring you Shades of Gray: Interpretation of Perioperative Imaging, Installment 2: Abdominal X-Rays, written exclusively for our readers by Michael Sheehan, MSN, RNFA, NPc. Even though most of you are not involved in “interpretation,” we think you’ll find this article educational.Do YOU have a surgical article or personal experience to share? We welcome your submissions for consideration. Please send your ideas to [email protected].

Julie Lancaster, Editor

 

Student in the Spotlight:        Burn Patient to RN 
Penny Poole

Name:  Penny Poole
City & State:  Jackson, Mississippi
Credentials:  RN, CNOR
Current Job:  Nurse Manager in the microsurgery clinic of Dr. William Lineaweaver, a world-renowned Plastic Surgeon.
Quote: I’m sharing my story because I feel too many people my age do not try to reach their goals, and I hope maybe this might help someone to take a step toward a higher goal.Education is a lifelong process whether in a formal setting or everyday life. Look for it, enjoy it, and just see where it can take you.

Penny’s Story: One Circle of My Life

It’s funny how life has its way of coming full circle. I was an infant when I was burned by boiling water over my right chest, axilla and medial upper arm. It was 1954, in a very small rural community in the delta of Mississippi; the closest hospital was 17 miles away. . . Read more.

Shades of Gray: Interpretations of Perioperative Imaging

Installment 2: Abdominal X-Rays

By Micael Sheehan, MSN, RNFA, NPc, FCCM 

In this installment, Michael Sheehan guides readers through examples of “normal” and “abnormal” radiographs of a patient’s kidneys, ureter, and bladder (KUB), explaining what the various shadowy shapes are and what kinds of issues to look for when reading an abdominal X-ray.

Although most of our readers are not in the business of interpreting X-rays, we think you’ll find his article quite interesting. And, as Michael says, “learning to interpret medical imaging studies can increase our confidence and autonomy as well as increase our marketability and professional stature.”

Read the full article here.

For last month’s installment on chest x-rays,click here.

 

News: No More Pre-op Pin Cushions!
AcccuVein LLC announced the launch of AccuVein AV300, the world’s first hand-held, non-contact vein illumination device that helps healthcare professionals locate hard-to-find veins,” Medical News Today announced on May 21, 2009.

The AccuVein AV300 can help to advance patient care in a variety of settings by assisting healthcare professionals in locating the vein quickly for blood draws, intravenous lines and delivery of medications. Detecting and highlighting hemoglobin, the AV300 scans up to 8mm below the skin’s surface to help locate peripheral veins normally used for venipuncture,” the article states.

Click here to read the whole story.