Monday, March 25, 2013

Our God Cares


Today as I was reading Isaiah 40, my mind was blown by the awesomeness of our God and the fact that, even though He is God, He still cares about little ol' me. In chapter 40, Isaiah talks about the God who created the stars and knows them all by name—the God who measures the water of the sea in the palm of His hand. This God, whom we serve, cares about us

Tears welled up in my eyes as I read further in the chapter about just how much He cares for His people. The Lord says, ''Why do you say, O Jacob, and speak, O Israel, 'My way is hidden from the LORD, and my right is disregarded by my God'? Have you not known? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint" (Isaiah 40: 27-31). 

Sometimes I feel as if God is far removed from my circumstances or He doesn't know what I am going through. But this passage is a testimony to the truth—He cares for us, so much so that, even though we are like grasshoppers in His sight and like grass that quickly withers, He watches over us. Jesus understands what we are going through. He is a High Priest who can sympathize with us in our weakness because He took on human flesh and became like one of us, experiencing some of the same trials and temptations that we experience (Hebrews 4:15).     

Not only does the Lord understand our weakness, but He also provides us with the strength we need. It's natural for us to become weary and tired. But God never gets tired; more than that He gives strength to us when we have none. On Saturday morning when my alarm went off at 5:25 AM, I did not want to get up. After sleeping for only 6 hours, I did not think I physically could get up. I had been at the hospital for 16 hours the previous day for clinical and leadership. As I laid in bed, I pleaded with the Lord to give me the strength that I really did not have, and.....He did. I had a great day in the hospital that day by God's amazing grace.  

I wonder how many times the Lord is just waiting to give me that same grace to not just get through the day, but live for Him throughout my day. I know I probably miss out on it quite often because I forget to ask for it. Sometimes it takes me coming to the end of myself to realize that I NEED God. I am completely dependent on Him.

He has promised us new mercies every morning. Will we accept His offer and ask for new strength every morning (Lamentations 3:22-24)? I pray that He would be the first thought in our heads as we awaken in the morning and our last thought as we lie down at night. 

Saturday, March 16, 2013

Sample Patient Profile

Below is a partially filled in patient profile designed to act a guide for sophomores completing their first profiles.

Please note that the patient information used in this document is completely fictitious and is designed for educational purposes only. Also note that the patient profile form has been used with permission from the Liberty University Nursing Faculty.

Patient Profile Tutorial

The following tutorial was created to guide sophomore nursing students as you complete your very first profiles next week. It is my hope that this tutorial will help you visualize what a patient profile should look like as well as provide clarification when you sit down to write your profiles.

Please note that the patient information used in this video is completely fictitious and is designed for educational purposes, and the patient profile form has been used in this video with permission from the Liberty University Nursing Faculty.

Saturday, March 9, 2013

Free Drug Guide

Recently one of my friends introduced me to a great Drug Guide available on the ATI (Assessment Technologies Institute) website. The tool is great for finding the information you need to make medication sheets for patient profiles. I have found this tool to be very helpful, especially when I cannot find a medication in my drug book. The website provides all of the information you need to fill out the various components of the medication chart you use in clinicals, including mechanism of action (MOA), category, side effects, contraindications/precautions, and indication/use.

To access the Drug Guide, all you have to do it log on to the ATI website. You should already have a username and password from when you took ATI quizzes in your NURS 200 (Nursing Process Application) class. The "Drug  Guide Term Search" box is located on the right-hand side of the webpage. To search for a specific drug, enter in the generic name of the medication into the search box. This will bring you into a new window where you will be able to scroll through and find the information you need for your profile medication sheets.