Newly Diagnosed And Frankly, It's Scary

Yes, and it is everywhere and a growing problem. The need for CNAs is so high that the testers pass a lot of incompetents that will never develop the skills. CNA's are so underpaid compared to RN's, that they don't have the same scrutiny from management and many don't have the desire to undergo the study to become RNs. I wish they would bring back the LPN and make all CNAs that do blood draws, IVs, etc., become LPNs within two years or get tossed out on their careless keisters. The state boards that regulate the nurses seem to care less about abuses with IV needles and procedures using needles and patients' rights.

What po'es me to complete drainage (take note @John Brunner- aggravation might help your problem) is the use of student nurses without consent or the nurses badgering a patient into agreeing to a student. I had one bad experience that I took to the hospital admin and the state nurses' board. They both said to me, "How do you expect these students to learn if you don't give them a chance?" I said, "Listen you Nazi's and listen close, that isn't my problem, but being the helpful person I am I will make a suggestion. How about they get their practice on all the ones on welfare, homeless, or ones that never pay? You geniuses ever thought about that? I worked for everything I have, pay my part of the bill in full and on time and I deserve better than to be used as a stinking lab rat against my will."

They could care less because very few sue because the medical providers will spend 100 times what you can afford to beat you in court and winning in court isn't about justice, it is about who can afford the best lawyer. I have it on all my records and remind them every time I go in for needlepoint practice, no student nurses, and no incompetent lab technicians. Also, I make it clear before they start ... no wiggling the needle. Pull it out and get someone else to try. Wiggling the needle has never worked for me and I don't care if you are the best nurse in the world, pull it out or else prepare for battle!

 

Boy they must be putting something in the water in every medical facility.
I was supposed to have a blood draw today to check kidney function. Made appointment last week. Showed up today and told I didn't have an appointment. On of thing Dr. told me was he wanted to check acid in urine. But no pee in a cup.

 

Are you sure they’re not checking for proteins in your urine?

 

yes he does that but without urine there can be no test. He started me on sodium bicarbonate to neutralize acid.

 

Thanks for the tips, Logan. Actually, I do not have small veins, in fact, they seem more prominent since I started chemo. I have had a "stick" at least once a week for the past 3 months and not once has any other nurse had to stick me more than one time. In fact, one male nurse commented that "you must drink a lot of water; you have easy veins." (I do drink tons of water.)

As for the PICC line, I have a chemo port on my chest that can be used for blood draws, but the idiot yesterday MISSED IT, too. It's the size of a dime, so how pathetic is that?

 

Honestly, Gloria... I think there's such a shortage of nurses nowadays that the doctors don't really care. I'm just shocked that the nation's "#1 Cancer Treatment Center" has such poor performers. I'm sure they are stretched thin with the Covid mess, but I pushed the call button for a nurse to help unhook me from the IV so I could go to the bathroom and no one ever responded. I waited 20 minutes and then just unplugged it and walked to the bathroom since I didn't want to wet the bed.

 

Thanks, Tony. Yes, chemo has all sorts of unpleasant side effects so it's hard to know when to panic. Since I have an aggressive cancer my mind jumps immediately to "metastasis!" when I feel a weird pain. It seems that every pain is magnified with a cancer diagnosis. I don't believe this was muscle related because it kind of radiated from my side to my back. I'm wondering if I might have a tiny kidney stone or something.

 

They still use that "tourniquet and fist pump" thing at MDA, and it always works for me. I can just tap the surface of the skin and a vein will pop up in the bend of my elbow. I don't know why the nurse couldn't seem to stick it, but her random "sticks" are mapped on a plot of skin at least an inch wide on both my arms this morning. I knew her first attempt (that she had all taped into place) didn't work because the IV fluid was making a bubble under my skin so it obviously wasn't going into a vein... not to mention the bleeding. Since that stick was going to be where they injected the contrast for the CT scan, I didn't want that stuff pooling in my arm.

From now on, they get ONE chance and if they aren't successful then I'm telling them to call someone from the lab who knows what the hell they are doing.

 

So weird you should mention that, Al. When I was being discharged, the nurse was going down a checklist and got to "urine test." She looked at me and said, "you didn't give me a urine sample." I told her "You never asked for one. And should I pee in my hand and give it to you?" There was no sample collection cup given to me and I was there for 9 hours. So an opportunity to see if there was a problem with my kidneys/bladder, etc. totally missed.

 

@John Brunner surgery still might help even if the prostate is not the problem simply by making the sphincter area slightly larger. Do NOT cut that sphincter though!

 

I was in a hurry when I posted that question because I had to leave.
For protein leakage (creatin) via the kidneys they only need the blood test but yeah, for acidity I guess you need a cup for that. From my understanding, the main reason they check the Ph levels in the urine is for the possibility of stones. Dunno.

 

I just got all the test results in MyChart; I'm surprised to see that all the liver and kidney testing results are within normal ranges. My blood numbers keep dropping (WBC, RBC, platelets, etc.) which is to be expected and probably why I'm feeling more tired these days.

 

@Beth Gallagher in my experience, the phlebotomists and nurses in oncology areas have a whole basket of tricks and are very good at difficult IVs.. Maybe you happened to get a couple bad ones. Do you have edema? If so, sometimes the warming technique mentioned by others makes that worse. One oncologist showed me a "Turkish Towel" trick for blood draws and IVs in folks with edema. You press a Turkish-type towel into the area for 2-5 minutes, and release it ready to palpate and get the needle or catheter in there before the tissue fills again. This only works if you are experiencing edema and is no help otherwise. I have no suggestions regarding peeing into your hand.

 

Yep stones and crystal identification. Alkaline urine tends to be more susceptible to infection as well.