what i did at work today

I know, blog whore.  But, the thumb's down fairy can't get me this time.  I just wanted to share my work day.....again. 

I felt good about work today.  I was productive, efficient, and I saved a life.  Yes, right there in the clinic, I saved a patient's life.  I will back up a bit.  We have a chemo, Erbitux, that is nasty, nasty, and can cause allergic reactions anywhere from hives to death.  Yeh, it can cause anaphylaxis.  This was his first time, so a doc had to be at chairside for the first 20-30 mins.  Ok, I got out the epinephrine, solumedrol, and the oxygen, just in case.  I was ready for anything.  2 minutes into the infusion I told the doc he looked flushed.  Aha!  That's the first sign something is about to happen.  Yikes!  All hell broke loose!  He got redder, said his eyes were blurred and he was "swimmy headed".  I took his blood pressure.  64/32, which basically means he was shutting down.  He had chest pain and was having a hard time breathing.  Gave him all the emergency drugs, added a shot of famotidine, and called a code.  His O2 Sats dropped into the 80's, normal is 92 or better.  Got the oxygen going.  Turned up the IV fluids to get his pressure up, laid him down with his feet up, and took his blood pressure every minute.  Wow!  The meds kicked in and then his blood pressure was 202/104.  Good thing the emergency drugs are short acting.   Save him from chemo reaction, and then he strokes out!  Nah, the code team came and pretty much watched what was going on, cuz he never really coded.  But, they were able to transfer him to the ER, which was a plus.  When I left work I checked on him and he was stable and doing well.  Oh man!

People ask me all the time if my job is depressing.  Hell no!  Too much excitement for me!  Not really.  I was on top of it and ran the lines, which I have actually only done a few times.  Running the lines means you are giving the emergency drugs directly into the IV line.  I kept a clear head, and stayed calm, which I am very good at.  I got all kinds of kudos from just about everybody, including my boss and ex-boss.  I even got to go to lunch first cuz everyone said I deserved it.  lol  Any excuse to get a lunch break!  All in all, I felt good about today.  That's all.