I wish I was an Octupus

It has been a tough summer and I have been unseasonably busy in work.

Normally the month of August is battery re-charge month for me

as many patient with chronic chest condition have a more settled period.

Not this year.

I don't know if it is the weather or not but the number of exacerbations is well up on last year..

This hasn't allowed me the time I need to work on other aspects of my work which have deadlines looming.

I really wanted to work on "exploring my web space" this summer so that the next round of assignments was not so frantic as the last lot.

No luck I'm afraid.

It has meant that I am struggling to spend time on my journal and have had little time experimenting with a web page.

There are quite a few entries on OCT3 in the communities and once

again I am unable to join in.

I think this really going to be an on going weakness of mine.

There are some very clever people in the community

and you often see their names in there.

How do you match that when you feel you have nothing to say except drivel.

Who the heck am I to comment on someone s work, I know nothing.

I have found working on a web page so difficult and I really have nothing to go in it.

Developing a web site for work will be more complicated because of the confidentiality clauses. It is surprising what we can and can't put in and it will take some work.

Not giving up though

Petula

Caldicott Training

There is some rubbish mandatory training within my LHB

but this one was well worth attending!!!

The training covered areas of the Caldicott report mainly to do with Confidentiality.
It is amazing how often confidentiality is broken without you being aware of it, e.g.
leaving the computer, with patient details on,when you leave a room .
Anyone can come into that room and have access to that computer and the patient details.
This is not something personally do but I have seen GP's and other colleagues do this.
There many examples given and I am sure that we all have be guilty of it at some point but I don't think any break in confidentiality is done maliciously. Many insidences sited made you think "oops! I have been guilty of that"It made me think about the position of power I am in and how vunerable patients are. A lot of information is shared about our patients and we need to think about how and when this information is going to be used.

I think that with e-mail and pathlinks etc information will be whizzing around and may be difficult to keep track off.

Perhaps we just need to stop and think a little more before we part with sensitive and personal information.
I know I will be.
Petula

Light relief

I had to travel to Bronllys today for some mandatory training on the Caldicott Report.

This is a journey I do regularly, and it is a beautiful run in the car.

I do, however feel a little lonely sometimes so I like to listen to CD's to break the silence.

The car is my stage. I turn the music up very loud and perform the songs, yes, I mean perform. Singing does not quite cover it.

Whilst I was traveling today, I came up behind one of the many army transporter lorries in the area and vaguely registered a group of soldiers in the back.

There was a particularly good song on CD and I was singing my heart out, when I glanced up at the lorry 4 soldiers were kneeling in a row all clicking their fingers and swaying side to side just like a backing group, all grinning widely.

I blushed scarlet but laughed all the way to Bronllys after receiving a cheery wave from the boys when the turned off.

It was a good start to the day.

Petula

OCT3

Here we go again!!

Started to read little red flags that have come out of hiding in FC.

Couple of people have started talking about web spaces, developing websites and the like.

Why is it that I don't understand what is being asked of me and yet everyone else does.

I seem to be taking one step forward and three backwards.

I wonder if I will ever feel anything less than thick?

I have decided that I really am not an academic and perhaps show accept that instead of beating myself up about it. After all, there has be people like me around so that the brightest people have someone to be compared against.

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On a work note.

One of the things I identified as requiring work on

was my reluctance to take on the managerial part of my job.

Well this has really taken off.

Since completing the fist assignment I have thrown my self into it and

am now enjoying the challenge.

I have taken the lead role for development of 3 major policies affecting Respiratory health which have either been or in the process of being ratified and then implement throughout Powys.

I have written a job description for 2 f grade nurse and am developing a profile and level of competency document to use in the Link nurse scheme.

all this work has been received very well, and it was all new to me.

Ii feel really pleased with my self and also feel that I have grown more confident.

I do, however, still have a problem discussing anything face to face with senior management , this is more to do with shyness and lack of personal confidence I think.

Wednesday 1/9/04 I returned to work after a long weekend off to

find most of YCH in a blind panic.

Why?

One positive case of TB. My phone was on melt down and people, mostly fellow nurse were almost hysterical because they couldn't get hold of me.

After many hours between then and now, spent trying to alleviate peoples concerns whilst trying to establish direct contacts with this poor patient who by now felt like some form of leper.

Finally calm has been restored.

It wasn't until now that I had realized how much fear there was for this condition. The fear was mainly from middle aged people most of whom had never come in contact with the condition so it seemed a bit extreme to me. Elderly patients who had first hand experience of it took it in their stride.

I think this highlighted how complacent we all become when we think a disease has been eradicated. We have no coping mechanisms in place to deal with such things and also people want others to deal with it for them.

TB is a terrible disease but very treatible today. The problem arises when patients do not take the medication, for what ever reason, and the "bug" become resistant. Then we are really in trouble as it mutates and healthy people then become at risk.

As a specialist nurse have several people with TB in my case load and I never worry about cross infection. Perhaps this has lead me to be a bit blase and so other colleagues reactions have taken me a back a bit.

On reflection, after long discussions with staff and public I feel that lack of knowledge has led to this panic.

I have subsequently arranged several open discussion sessions for staff and lay folk to attend to be given correct research based information and education which will hopefully allay there fears.

Hopefully I will return next Monday to a calmer lace of work.

Petula