I tried really hard to state my case without it sounding like bragging but since the weirdness is that I'm being showered with praise that may not be earned under the circumstances of my rocky start (or let's face it, maybe not deserved at all) it's hard not to come off that way. This whole thing is embarrassing.

Usually I'm pretty good at reading the "vibe", but this place used to be a shit hole that was well known and it got bought out by a much better corporation. A lot of changes have taken place in the months before I got there and with all that plus the switch to echarting and emar there's a lot of stress on them. It's really hard to tell.

For example, today an RN unit supervisor there told me she had a question for me if I could find time to come down to her unit. I figured it was about PCC since that's the capacity I'm in and I'm an absolute nobody to all but management at this facility. She told me that a recent admit was complaining of shoulder pain due to a fall at a previous facility, that the x-ray cam back clean, but that the daughter was a "real piece of work" and asked me what I thought she should do about it.

I asked if there were any orders for pain meds (There was, PRN Tramadol) and told her to have the floor nurses give him that at HS and a few hours before the daughter showed up to alleviate the immediate problem and to fax a note to the MD along with the radiologist's findings and see if we can get something scheduled. I even made her a copy of the report while she wrote the note.

Doesn't that seem weird? Why would she ask me that question? I'm there to enter POs into the computer, hardly anybody even knows I'm a nurse or sees me unless I'm digging in charts for clarification and I don't work the floor or know any of the pts. I'm happy to help, but that doesn't seem like something any nurse would need me for. It just strikes me as odd.

Another nurse here used the term "rockstar". Maybe once I have as many letters after my name as they do I'll feel that way, but right now I just feel inexperienced. I think what they're seeing is that before the medical field I was a roofer and an iron worker, and from my years in surgery I don't rattle easy. I'm there to work and work efficiently. I really think that's all it is that they're seeing.

I think I'm going to take the MDS position. They've gone out of their way to offer me different options to work there and this is a good schedule, good experience, and good pay. I still haven't heard back from the VA and I may never.

Thanks, and sorry for the long replies. It does me good to talk this stuff out.